Internet users that have a penchant for a particular website are more likely to be well disposed towards marketing messages and buy advertised products, according to a recent report from the Online Publishers Association (OPA).
The study, conducted by comScore Networks, was the second to look for correlations between site affinity and attitudes to advertising. The previous survey based on the OPA Affinity Index found that high affinity users tended to have a mcuh better opinion of the ads on the site that low affinity users (see
Internet Users Well Disposed To Ads On Favourite Sites).
The latest findings revealed that site affinity is a greater driver of key brand metrics than frequency of ad exposure. However, a high frequency of exposure against a high affinity visitor was the best combination for advertising effectiveness.
Some 38% of high affinity visitors said that that they were very or somewhat likely to buy the advertised brand in the next three months compared to just 32% of low/medium affinity users. It was also apparent that site affinity has an effect on aided advertising recall with 12% of high affinity visitors being able to recall online ads for the test brands as opposed to just 7% of low/medium affinity users.
The report also found that high affinity users are even more likely to recall online advertising for the test brands when supported by increased ad frequency. At a high frequency (5+), 15% of high affinity visitors recalled seeing online ads for the test brands against just 4% of low affinity visitors.
“This research proves that the sites on which advertising appears significantly impact how that advertising performs,” said Michael Zimbalist, executive director of the Online Publishers Associaiton. “The existence of a media ‘halo effect’ has been presumed by advertisers in traditional media for decades. This research shows that the media halo effect works with online advertising, as well, and that advertisers who target sites that attract loyal, high affinity audiences will, indeed, see superior results.”
Sports site categories had the largest proportion of high affinity users (82%) ahead of food, lifestyle & entertainment and computers & technology (both 72%). Business news sites had the lowest percentage of high affinity users at 53%.
