Consumers in the UK find television the most effective medium for advertising, according to new research from Initiative Media. In the pan-European study, TV came out on top amongst British people as the best deliverer for the majority of brand attributes, but the preferred medium was often determined by the product being advertised.
Cars, for example, are seen as a product in which brand reliability is the most vital need. But while TV is the perfect medium for reliability in Germany, France and Italy, radio works best in Spain, and ads in the quality press are the best indicator of reliability in the UK.
The study was produced by RADAR, the new independent communications planning research group from Initiative Media Futures. It interviewed consumers across the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Portugal and Poland, and covered 20 different forms of advertising and marketing.
Television came out on top in terms of the attention it commands, its ability to make a brand likeable and give brands stature. Special interest magazines, however, were best at identifying with a consumers lifestyle and personality, cinema scored highly for its ability to involve a consumer with a brand and the internet was good for ideas on how to use a brand.
While TV is often the most effective, it is also the most expensive and RADAR identified a mix of media for various products. The study identified that likeability was the key brand message for perfume brands, for example, and found that while TV was best positioned to create likeability, cinema and radio were effective alternatives, with magazines scoring highly in Italy.
Sue Elms, managing director of Initiative Media Futures, said: “RADAR shows how important it is to get the media mix right for each different country. The cost implications of getting this wrong are staggering. The research provides an added insight and puts real usable data at the disposal of clients for the first time.”
Initiative Media Futures: 020 7663 7138
