Ad research in the US. Hurdle or help? A brief review of the state of the art

A useful review of thinking and practice in the USA about advertisement pre-testing, which has differed from that in the UK.

Ad research in the US. Hurdle or help? A brief review of the state of the art

Alexander L Biel

Ever since it started in the early 1930s, there has been disagreement in the US about how to 'test' advertisements. One persistent idea is that it should be a go/no go hurdle, rather than a guide and help. Also – what should be measured? Recognition, recall, preference, or something else? By 1990, preference shift seemed to have carried the day, with advertisers if not their agencies. The author points to substantial recent work that puts this approach seriously in...

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