IAS biometric study proves high-quality environment drives greater engagement

Biometric research conducted by Integral Ad Science looks to prove that ads viewed in high-quality mobile web environments are perceived more favourably, and drive higher engagement and brand recall.

The study tracked brain activity believed to be responsible for positive and negative affinity. It found that consumers liked ad creative 74% more when seen next to high-quality content, versus the same advertisements seen in low-quality environments. 

Moreover, it found that ads viewed in high-quality environments can generate up to a 20% higher engagement rate and are 30% more memorable than those in low-quality environments. 

IAS chief marketing officer Tony Marlow said the research "demonstrates that the quality of an ad’s environment has a dramatic impact on how people react to that ad”.

“People respond to the entire context of an ad impression rather than just a single component of it, and this generates a very strong and positive halo effect for ads that are seen in high-quality environments," he said.

The study monitored 50 people during a 30-minute mobile experience by Neuro-Insight using Steady State Topography (SST), a proprietary technology that tracks and records brain activity in real-time as participants navigate through a simulated mobile experience.

Participants were shown eight digital display creatives spanning the auto, CPG, financial services, technology, and retail industries on eight mobile web environments that were selected based on IAS Brand Risk assessment (four high quality and four low quality). Articles and creatives were rotated to control for sequential bias.