OPINION: Is it better to be creative, or better to be persuasive?

David Abbott was quoted in the October 27 edition of MEDIA as saying it is up to the creative team "to say what has to be said like it has never been said before", particularly in light of the fact that most brands have nothing new to say to consumers. So, what does the research evidence show? Is creativity enough? Shouldn't I be persuasive, and creativity is just icing on the cake? Ad agencies hate most copy testing procedures, and perhaps with good reason. One of the most commonly used techniques, originating in the United States, is the pre-post persuasion measure. Here, respondents are asked to indicate which products they would choose if they were the winner of a prize draw - they do this before and after they are exposed to a clutter reel of ads which contain the client's ad. The percentage who choose the client's brand after exposure to the ad minus the percentage who choose the client's brand before exposure to the ad equals the persuasive power of the ad. In terms of the ability of this technique to predict short term sales effects, it is quite good as it turns out. The validation data we have seen shows that the correlation between predicted sales increases from the copy test and in market (short term) sales is high. Many advertisers in the States are happy with this result because they believe, in error I might add, that persuasion is the measure for sales effectiveness. Given the "direct product sell" advertising in the US and the focus on new news, this is perhaps not surprising. However, the technique ignores one critical fact; there are significant long term sales effects that our modelling shows can account for between two to five times the effect of short term sales effects. Suddenly, unprofitable advertising can look very profitable if you use the right measure. So where did these longer term sales effects come from? Creative or persuasive advertising? Ads that generate the largest sales are memorable, communicate one (or maximum of two) key messages, and immediately persuade. Nice in theory, but for over 80 per cent of brands there is going to be nothing at the strategic heart of the brand that is innovative. Fortunately, our 25 years of Link copy testing and tracking tells us that highly memorable advertising which communicates well (whether a rational or emotional message) is enough to maintain long term sales of a brand and generate a financial return easily sufficient to cover the cost of advertising. What gives us cut-through, visibility or stand-out, the first ingredient of successful advertising? Being remembered. Your agency may use animals, children, relationships, slice of life, star endorsement, even humour to deliver this. Whatever is used, all the best ads we have tested share a common characteristic; the brand is at the heart of the ad. When copy test findings are delivered to clients and agencies which is bad news, it often revolves around two key issues; the ad is not enjoyable or involving enough, or what is enjoyable and involving is not linked to the brand. Branding does not mean repeating the brand name and showing packs. A good test to use is this; if you can take out your brand and stick in a competitor's and the ad still works, you probably have a problem. The best ads we have tested are also elegantly simple (although this still can mean there is a lot going on in the ad as long as there is clarity of purpose that the consumer can perceive). Better ads also tend to have a degree of pace about them, a momentum that carries the viewer through. Communication is not as easy as we might think. We have already learned that many ads that fail try and cram too many messages into them. Our database of norms show communication scores for key message that range from zero per cent to 99 per cent. Memorability provides a platform to communicate, but ultimately the effectiveness of your ad will depends on your ability to leave an impression with the consumer. In summary, if you are a new brand trying to establish yourself, it is better to be persuasive, to deliver news that is relevant, credible and different. If you are an established brand, creative advertising that has the brand at the heart of the ad will leverage your sales in the longer term.

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