Persuasive Advertising - J. Scott Armstrong [175]
Evidence on the effects of pictures
In a lab experiment, subjects saw an ad for a camera with a fast shutter speed with the text stating “You can take a picture of people on a fast-moving roller coaster.” Some subjects saw an ad that contained only text, while others saw the ad with the text plus a photograph of people on a roller coaster. Because the subjects already knew what a fast-moving roller coaster looks like, the picture was uninformative. Those who saw only the text had better recall than those who saw the text plus the photo—a mean of 4.6 versus a mean of 3.6 recalled phrases (Unnava and Burnkrant 1991).
Our analysis of quasi-experimental data examined the effects of writing on pictures:
Print ads without writing on pictures had better recall. Our WAPB analysis found 43 pairs of print ads in which one wrote on the picture, while the other ad did not. Recall for ads without writing was 1.14 times better than for the other ads.
With respect to bleed, Finn (1988) found ten non-experimental studies. In each study, bleed helped. Some examples: an analysis of 1,379 Iron Age ads found that ads with bleed were 10 percent higher for “percentage-noticed” (Assael, Kofron, and Burgi 1967); an analysis of 1,070 ads in Life magazine found that ads with bleed had higher readership (Diamond 1968); and an examination of 154 one-page magazine advertisements found higher readership for ads with bleed (Holbrook and Lehmann 1980).
An analysis of non-experimental data on 109 print ads from three business-to-business magazines found that multiple-picture ads (with the text wrapping around the pictures) scored higher than single-picture ads for awareness, interest, and brand preference (Chamblee and Sandler 1992).
9.2.2. When using a picture, relate it to the headline or message
Experts suggest relating the picture to the headline—assuming that the headline is related to the key message. For example, a 1960 Volkswagen ad used a headline, “Think small,” and had a picture of a car that took up less than 3 percent of the ad’s space, the rest being blank.
Typical practice follows this principle. A content analysis of over 2,100 print ads found that of those ads with pictures, 93 percent of the headlines and pictures were linked (Leigh 1994). And our WAPB analysis of 422 full-page print ads with headlines showed that 78 percent related the picture to the headline.
Evidence on the effect of a picture related to the headline:
Our analysis of quasi-experimental data provides support:
Print ads with pictures related to headlines had better recall. Our WAPB analysis found 46 pairs of print ads in which one ad used a picture that was directly related to the headline, while in the other ad there was no obvious connection. For example, an ad for Colgate toothbrushes headlined, ‘When a toothbrush really fits, teeth really get clean,” accompanied by a picture of a toothbrush perfectly positioned inside a person’s mouth, had a recall score almost twice that for another Colgate ad that did not include a picture–headline linkage. Recall for ads with a headline linked to a picture was 1.12 times better than for the other ads.
9.2.3. Use clear and readable captions for pictures
Captions have been used for many years. For example, in an 1875 ad for a new device, the New York Tribune carried a picture of the product with the caption, “This is a picture of the ‘type writer.’” Captions can be placed above or below the picture. In some cases, the headline can also serve as a caption.
Captions can alert the reader to the purpose of the picture. They are especially helpful when the picture’s message is not immediately obvious to the target market and when the information is new.
People who read ads are often in a rush and might only glance at the picture. A caption can help to ensure that the reader gets the message quickly. It provides an opportunity to reinforce