The public are willing to accept more obtrusive advertising, as long as there’s something in it for them, new research has revealed. 46% of Londoners and around 25% of the population as a whole would be happy with the idea of constant TV advertising being shown on the tube, if it meant cheaper fares. Over one third of all adults would accept the same arrangement on buses.
Oliver Rowe, head of insight at CIA, said, “When advertising, in the broadest sense, can be shown to give something back to consumers they are far more likely to be accepting. However there seems to be a clear distinction in consumer’s minds between situations that they feel are and are not interruptible.”
The research, published by CIA MediaLab, found that the youngest group of people surveyed (15-24 year olds) were the most receptive to these kind of ideas, with 52% agreeing to the idea of ads on buses and 37% to ads appearing on mobile phones, compared to the 84% of all surveyed who were opposed to mobile phone ads.
The survey also discovered that ABC1s were more likely to accept advertising in return for lower fares than C2DEs – 34% of the former were for Underground advertising, compared to 19% of the latter, while 42% of the former were for bus advertising, compared to 30% of the latter.
An increase in product placement would be acceptable to around 25% of the public, if it meant less ads or ad breaks, the survey found. But at the same time, the return of a centre break during cinema films was accepted by 27% of the 35-45 year olds surveyed, although the figure for this choice overall was less than 20%.
A different story emerged when it came to newer technologies, however, as nine out of ten people said they would reject cheaper online call charges if it entailed an uninterrupted flow of ads onscreen.
The most popular choice presented to the respondents was a reduced licence fee in exchange for advertising being shown on the BBC. 53% of all age groups were in agreement with this idea, with 63% of the lowest income bracket supporting the idea.
CIA Medialab: 020 7803 2000
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