Tests for Immediate Response Ads

In weighing the results of your immediate response advertisements the following devices should be helpful:

Coupons brought in
Usually these coupons represent sales of the product. Were enough leads obtained (from coupons that represent requests of additional information or contact with a salesperson) to pay for the ad? If the coupon is dated, you can determine the number of returns for the first, second, and third weeks.

Requests by phone or letter referring to the ad
A "hidden offer" can cause people to call or write. For example, in the middle of an ad—include a statement that on request the product or additional information will be supplied. Results should be checked over a one-week through six-month or 12-month period because this type of ad may have considerable carry-over effect.

Testing ads
Prepare two ads (different in some way you would like to test or set for different stations or broadcast times) and run them on the same day. Identify the ads -- in the message or with a coded coupon—so you can tell them apart. Ask customers to bring in the coupon or to use a special phrase. Run two broadcast ads at different times or on different stations on the same day with different "discount phrases." Ask a newspaper to give you a "split run"—that is to print ad "A" in part of its press run and ad "B" in the rest of the run. Count the responses to each ad.

Sales made of a particular item
If the ad is on a bargain or limited-time offer, you can consider that sales at the end of one week, two weeks, three weeks, and four weeks came from the ad. You may need to judge how many sales came from in-store display and personal selling.

Check Store Traffic
An important function of advertising is to build store traffic that results in purchases of items that are not advertised. Pilot studies show, for example, that many customers who are brought to the store by an ad for a blouse also bought a handbag. Some bought the bag in addition to the blouse, others instead of the blouse.

You may be able to use a local college or high school distributive education class to check store traffic. Class members could interview customers as they leave the store to determine which advertised items they bought, what other items they bought and what they shopped for but did not buy.

When advertising is spread out over a selling season or several seasons, part of the measurement job is keeping records. Your aim is comparing records of ads and sales for extended time.

An easy way to set up a file is by marking the date of the run on tear sheets of newspaper ads (many radio stations now provide "radio tear sheets"), log reports of radio and television ads, and copies of direct mail ads. The file may be broken down into monthly, quarterly, or semi-annual blocks. By recording the sales of the advertised items on each ad or log, you can make comparisons.

In attitude (or image-building) advertising
The individual ads are building blocks, so to speak, which make up your advertising over a selling season. The problem is trying to measure each ad and the effects of all of the ads taken together.

One approach is making your comparisons on a weekly basis. If you run an ad, for example, each week, at the end of the first week after the ad appears or is broadcast, compare that week's sales with sales for the same week a year ago. At the end of the second week, compare your sales with those of the end of the first week as well as year-ago figures.

At the end of the third week, one month, three months, six months and 12 months from the running of the ad, repeat the process even though additional ads may have appeared or been aired in the meantime. For each of these ads, you will also make the same type of comparisons. You will, of course, be measuring the "momentum" of all of your ads as well as the results of a single ad.

After a time, you probably will be able to estimate how much of the results are due to the individual ad and how much to the momentum of all your advertising. You may then make changes in specific details of the ad to increase response.

When comparing sales increases over some preceding period, allowances must be made for situations that are not normal. For example, your experience may be that rain on the day an ad appears cuts its pulling power by 50%. Similarly, advertising response will be affected by the fact that your customers work in a factory that is out on strike.

Some of the techniques to use for keeping on top of and improving attitude advertising:

Repeat an ad
If response to an ad is good, run it—without change—two or three times and check the responses of each appearance or broadcast against previous ones.

Keep repeating the process. Much advertising loses effectiveness because the advertiser doesn't keep reminding people. Repetition helps increase knowledge of, and interest in, the product. You can soon estimate how often you should repeat each ad—exactly or with minor changes.

Analyze all ads in relation to response
Divide ads into at least two classes: high-response ads and low-response ads, then look for differences between the two classes.

The time the ad was broadcast or run may be responsible for a particular response level. Other factors, however, may be just as influential as time or even more so, though in radio time is often crucial.

Consider the message and how well it was expressed. Did the copy stick to the theme or did it wander? If you used slogans, did they help make the point? For print, consider the effects of illustrations, type size, colour, and ad location. In broadcast, consider whether or not the voice of the person doing the ad or music used may have had an effect.

Emphasis on brand names should also be checked. Price figures should be analyzed. If price lines are involved either in the ad or in the merchandise line of which the advertised product is a part, you should consider them also.

Check the effect of the length of broadcast ads. Did you get the best results with 10-second, 30-second, or 60-second ads?

Try to see a pattern of dominance
Your analysis of high-and-low response ads may show that certain details make the difference between a high or low response. Try to find the combinations that work best for your firm and merchandise.

Note changes occurring over time
A small retailer should never take a winning combination for granted. There is no single formula that will insure high response ads every time. Advertising changes. Therefore, you should watch the ads of others to see what changes are occurring. Continue to analyze your own ads, make small changes occasionally, and note any variations in response.

Listen to what people say about your ads
In doing so, try to discover the mental framework within which any comment about your ad was made. Then try to find points that reinforce believability and a feeling that your product fulfills some wish or need.

However, you should not be misled by what people say. An ad can cause a great deal of comment and bring in practically no sales. An ad may be so beautiful or clever that as far as the customer is concerned the sales message is lost.

John F. Gardner
Birding Consultant