Study for AOL Finds Bold Color Banners Work Best

IPSOS-ASI, an advertising research and evaluation firm in Stamford, CT,
released a study saying that banner advertising on America Online “is highly effective in
generating awareness of brands and increasing consumers’ intent to purchase
products.”

Pretty much a ho-hum statement, but the study did find that bold colors work
best.

The research (presumably paid for by AOL) also indicates that the impact of
banner ads “is consistently positive in both content and chat areas on the
AOL service.”

The study shows that, once a banner ad is noticed, there appears to be little
difference in attitudes or behavior between either the chat or content areas
on AOL.

An average of 55% of the test groups in the content area recalled seeing the
ad for the product immediately after viewing it, while 48% of the test groups
in chat remembered it. In four of seven cases, persuasion was significantly
improved with exposure to the ad, the company said.

The research also suggests that banner ads featuring the boldest colors
have the greatest impact on recall. In addition, ads that feature new
information most significantly move consumers toward purchase.

“Intent to purchase and recall are two of the most important goals of
effective advertising,” said Bob Pittman, president and COO of America
Online. “What this new research shows is that AOL is succeeding in
delivering both.”