Ad Execution and Evaluation

Introduction

The most practical phase in advertising is implementation a follow up. When you want all your hard work to pay off effectively, you have to cautiously drop your advertisement in the right media at the right time in the right way and see if the ad is heading to the right direction. That's all about ad implementation and evaluation. Evaluation here refers to tracing and understanding the effectiveness of an ad campaign. When an advertisement is evaluated, the advertiser comes to know the lagging loopholes and can work accordingly to fill those potholes. In this module, we will discuss about ways of implementing ads, elements of an ad and evaluation of an ad.

Ad Execution

Ad execution is the most crucial process in in implementing an ad campaign. It's that phase where an ad is reviewed thoroughly and placed in the right media considering the advertising objectives. Once major decisions are made with regards to goal of the advertising campaign, the advertiser tries to bring his visualization into reality. The ad can be in any format. It can be an audio ad or a video ad or banner ad or even a digital ad. The advertiser has to very cautiously prepare the copy (content in the advertisement) so as to pull maximum eyes. 

For an effective execution, the advertiser should decide about the theme and the message in advance as per the media to be used for advertising. Only then, the ad team can head with the production. In reality, newspaper ads, outdoor banner and web banners do not take much time as they can be instantly prepared using computer devise and software, but video ads take a greater amount of time and resources as there it is subject to availability of shooting space, celebrity, set up and direction team. For print advertisements, there are gatekeepers also known as chief editors who review the content made by the production team and suggest for effective changes, if required. Similarly, multiple shoots are carried out for video ads and numerous sets of video advertisements are prepared so as to analytically place them amidst the right audience. Let's understand some execution styles in advertising.

Elements of Advertisement

An advertisement, irrespective of its nature is built of various elements. For print advertisements, elements like background color, layout, illustration and copy matters widely. Similarly for video ads, elements like background music, cast, scene, theme, voice, photography, videography matters. So, understanding these elements is very important for the advertiser as this gives an idea about what all to be included in the advertisement. Let's understand some elements with appropriate examples.

Print Ads

Print advertisements are a form of visual communication used to promote products, services, or ideas in newspapers, magazines, brochures, posters, and other printed materials. They consist of several key elements that work together to convey a message and persuade the audience. Here are the main elements to consider:

Headline: The headline is a short, attention-grabbing phrase or sentence at the top of the advertisement. It's meant to capture the reader's interest and encourage them to continue reading.

Visuals/Graphics: Images, illustrations, photographs, or other visual elements are used to convey the main message of the advertisement and engage the audience. Visuals can enhance the emotional impact and make the ad more memorable.

Copy/Text: The body of the advertisement contains the written content, also known as the copy. It provides more information about the product, service, or idea being promoted. The copy should be clear, concise, and relevant to the target audience.

Slogan/Tagline: A short and memorable phrase that captures the essence of the product or brand. It often accompanies the logo and reinforces the message of the advertisement.

Logo: The logo represents the brand and helps in brand recognition. It's usually placed prominently on the advertisement to establish the brand's identity.

Call to Action (CTA): A call to action is a statement that encourages the reader to take a specific action, such as making a purchase, visiting a website, or contacting the company. It should be clear and compelling.

Contact Information: This includes details on how the audience can reach the company or find more information. This can be a phone number, website, email address, or physical address.

Benefits/Features: The advertisement highlights the benefits and features of the product or service being promoted. It explains how the offering can solve a problem or fulfill a need for the target audience.

Testimonials/Reviews: Including quotes, testimonials, or reviews from satisfied customers can enhance the credibility of the advertisement and build trust.

Colors and Typography: The choice of colors and typography (fonts) plays a significant role in setting the tone and mood of the advertisement. It also contributes to the overall visual appeal.

Layout and Design: The arrangement of all the elements on the page is crucial for readability and visual impact. A well-designed layout guides the reader's eyes through the content in a logical and engaging manner.

White Space: Also known as negative space, this is the empty space around the elements in the advertisement. It helps prevent clutter and makes the ad visually pleasing.

Video Ads

Video advertisements are a dynamic and engaging form of marketing that uses visuals, audio, and motion to convey a message and capture the audience's attention. Here are the key elements to consider when analyzing or creating video advertisements:

Visuals: Visuals are the heart of video advertisements. They include scenes, shots, animations, and graphics that visually represent the product, service, or idea being promoted. High-quality visuals help convey the message clearly and make the advertisement visually appealing.

Narrative/Storytelling: Many effective video ads tell a story that engages the audience emotionally. A compelling narrative can create a connection between the viewer and the product, making the advertisement more memorable and impactful.

Music and Sound Effects: Music and sound effects enhance the mood of the advertisement. They can evoke emotions, create suspense, or add excitement. The right audio elements can significantly influence how the audience perceives the message.

Voiceover/Narration: A voiceover or narration provides spoken information and context. The voice should match the tone of the advertisement and effectively convey the key messages.

Text/Captions: On-screen text or captions can reinforce the message and make the content accessible to viewers with hearing impairments or those watching without sound.

Logo and Branding: The brand's logo is typically displayed prominently in the video to establish brand identity. Consistent branding elements, such as colors and fonts, help viewers recognize the brand.

Call to Action (CTA): Like in print advertisements, a video advertisement should include a clear call to action that tells the viewer what to do next. This could be visiting a website, making a purchase, subscribing, etc.

Emotion and Appeal: Video advertisements often aim to evoke emotions such as happiness, excitement, nostalgia, or empathy. Creating an emotional connection can make the ad more memorable and increase its impact.

Product Demonstration: Video allows for dynamic product demonstrations. Showing how the product works, its features, and benefits can be more engaging than text or static images.

Humor or Entertainment: Incorporating humor or entertainment can make the ad more enjoyable and shareable. If done effectively, it can leave a positive impression on the audience.

Length and Format: Video ads can vary in length, from short 15-second clips to longer narratives. The format should match the platform where the ad will be displayed (e.g., social media, TV, YouTube).

Transitions and Visual Effects: Smooth transitions and visual effects can enhance the overall viewing experience and maintain the audience's interest.

4. Descriptive Copy: A copy which describes the product or service or the process in detail. Generally, social advertisements involving formalities and process contain descriptive copy. The below ad talks about it all. 

5. Social Copy: A copy spreading a a message for societal betterment is a social copy. Several awareness messages and ads promoting Government schemes contain social copy. The below ad promotes child welfare and discourages child labor.

7. Comparative Copy: A copy which compares its product with general products is a comparative copy. Many advertisers adopt this approach so as to show themselves better and more capable than others.

Testing Ads (Evaluation)

Ad testing can be more referred to as ad evaluation so as to understand the effectiveness of an ad campaign. It is very important for an advertiser to evaluate his advertisement  before and after dropping in the market in order to measure the 'change'. Here, change refers to the impact created by the advertising campaign on advertising goals. Such evaluation enables the advertiser know whether goals have been achieved or not. If achieved, then that can be set as a benchmark and plans can be made to sustain the same. But in case of under achievement, effective measures can be drawn. Let's understand how ad testing is done.

I. Pre-Testing Methods

Before launching an ad campaign, the advertiser applies a test to see whether the ad will work in the market among the audience. In simple words, testing carried out before launching an ad campaign is called pre-testing. Pre-testing allows an advertiser to understand the best advertisement to broadcast from the various available alternatives considering consumer responses, behavior and feedback. It involves self assessment and survey so as to understand the power of the ad from multiple angles. Let's out check a few pre testing methods.

1. Checklist Test: In this method, the advertiser first makes a list of all the features he wants in his advertisement like attraction, readability, information, reliability, convincing and selling ability, etc. This list is prepared considering advertising and communication goals. The list is reconciled with the ad where the advertiser puts a check mark against each listed point while parallelly watching the advertisement. 

2. Consumer Jury Test: As the name tells, it's a test where a sample of consumers (respondents) are called and shown four to five ads of the product. A discussion is carried out including lunch or tea break and the consumers are asked to recollect the ads they had seen. The ad which seems to be well remembered by most of the respondents is considered to be effective and is selected to be implemented in the market. The main reason of carrying out this test is to understand the best ad from consumer perspective. 

3. Sales Area Test: This is a test where a mini (trial) ad campaign is carried out in various cities and put into analysis. The cities with good response is considered as the perfect market for launching the final ad campaign with necessary changes. The cities receiving unfavorable responses are eliminated from the final ad campaign implementation. 

4. Concept testing: This involves presenting the basic idea or concept of the advertisement to a sample audience to gauge initial reactions. Feedback is gathered to determine whether the concept resonates with the target audience and if it aligns with the advertising objectives.

5. Storyboard testing: A storyboard is a sequence of rough sketches or images that outline the key scenes or frames of the advertisement. This method involves showing the storyboard to a test audience to gather feedback on the overall flow, visual appeal, and messaging of the advertisement before production begins.

6. Animatic testing: Animatics are rough animated versions of the advertisement created using storyboards. This method allows advertisers to simulate the final advertisement using simple animations or transitions. Animatic testing helps assess how well the advertisement communicates its message, engages the audience, and elicits emotional responses.

7. Copy testing: Copy testing focuses on evaluating the written content of the advertisement, including headlines, taglines, and body copy. Test audiences provide feedback on the clarity, persuasiveness, and relevance of the copy, helping advertisers refine their messaging for maximum impact.

8. Comprehension and recall tests: These tests assess how well the audience understands and remembers the advertisement content. Test subjects may be asked questions about specific elements of the advertisement, such as product features, benefits, or key messages, to measure comprehension and recall levels accurately.

II. Post-Testing Methods

Post testing are methods applied after launching an ad campaign so as to test its effectiveness. With such tests, the advertiser can understand the level of penetration of the advertisement and its impact among the masses. An ad should be able to develop a positive attitude among the audience, which can be measured only by applying post testing methods. Let's understand a few post testing methods.

1. Surveys and Questionnaires: Surveys and questionnaires are widely used to gather feedback from consumers about their recall, recognition, and perception of advertisements. These may include questions about ad recall (e.g., "Do you remember seeing this ad?"), message comprehension, brand association, likability, and purchase intent. Surveys can be conducted online, over the phone, or in person.

2. Focus Groups: Focus groups involve gathering a small group of individuals representative of the target audience to discuss their thoughts and feelings about an advertisement. This qualitative method allows advertisers to delve deeper into consumers' reactions, perceptions, and attitudes towards the ad. Focus groups can provide valuable insights into how well the ad resonates with the target audience and any areas for improvement.

3. Eye-Tracking Studies: Eye-tracking technology can be used to monitor and analyze where viewers are looking on a screen while watching an advertisement. This method helps advertisers understand which elements of the ad attract the most attention, how viewers navigate through the content, and which parts of the ad may be overlooked. Eye-tracking studies provide insights into visual engagement and can inform decisions about ad placement and design.

4. Neuroscience and Biometric Measurement: Neuroscience techniques such as EEG (electroencephalography) and fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) and biometric measurements like heart rate variability and skin conductance can provide deeper insights into consumers' subconscious responses to advertisements. These methods measure physiological reactions to stimuli, allowing advertisers to understand emotional engagement, attention levels, and cognitive processing beyond what self-reporting methods can capture.

5. Sales and Market Data Analysis: Analyzing sales and market data before and after an advertising campaign can help assess its impact on consumer behavior and business outcomes. This may involve comparing sales figures, website traffic, social media engagement, and other relevant metrics before and after the campaign launch. By correlating advertising exposure with changes in consumer behavior, advertisers can quantify the campaign's effectiveness in driving sales and achieving objectives.

6. Social-Media Listening and Sentiment Analysis: Monitoring social media platforms for mentions, comments, and sentiment related to the advertising campaign provides real-time feedback on consumer reactions. Social media listening tools can track brand mentions, hashtags, and conversations, allowing advertisers to gauge public perception, identify emerging trends, and address any issues or concerns promptly.

7. A/B Testing: A/B testing, also known as split testing, involves creating multiple versions of an advertisement and exposing different segments of the target audience to each version. By comparing the performance of different ad variations, advertisers can determine which elements (such as messaging, visuals, or calls to action) resonate best with their audience and optimize future campaigns accordingly.

8. Return on Investment (ROI) Analysis: ROI analysis involves calculating the financial return generated by an advertising campaign relative to the investment made. By quantifying the revenue generated or cost savings achieved as a result of the campaign, advertisers can assess its profitability and efficiency. ROI analysis typically considers factors such as sales lift, customer acquisition cost, and lifetime customer value.

9. Recall Test: This test is carried out after implementing an ad campaign. Here, viewers those who have seen the ad are asked whether the ad could develop change in their views about the product. Such recall test enables the advertiser to know certain scenes, themes, colors, characters which play a vital role in creating a recall value for the product. 

10. Attitude Opinion Test: Post tests can also be conducted by asking consumers about the impact the ad has placed in their decisions. If an ad has converted consumers into customers, it can be considered as a positive sign and a similar advertising strategy can be applied hence forth. This test also allows the advertiser to understand consumer's opinion about the advertisement. Such opinions are highly valuable and can be considered to develop better advertisements in the future.

Over and above, post-testing methods in advertising provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of advertising campaigns, helping advertisers optimize their strategies, allocate resources efficiently, and maximize return on investment. By combining various research techniques and data analysis approaches, advertisers can gain a comprehensive understanding of how their ads impact consumer behavior and drive business results.