• by Masha Geller , April 10, 2002

At the ARF Annual Convention today, Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) and DoubleClick announced the results of e-AdWorks: Internet Advertising Effectiveness Study, which examines the impact of Internet advertising on purchase behavior and consumer attitudes.

The research, conducted on eight brands from five manufacturers, shows that online advertising can positively influence consumer perceptions of brands and increase offline sales by an average of 6.6% for major consumer packaged goods (CPG).

The study mapped the impact of Internet advertising throughout the consumer purchase decision process. It found growth in brand awareness, message recall and sales that was incremental to the base levels achieved through TV, radio and print advertising. The sales lift resulting from online advertising ranged from flat for two brands up to 22.5% for a brand with a new line extension (sales increase was based on consumers who were exposed to the online ads, i.e., 100% reach and median frequency of 5 exposures.)

Half of the brands achieved statistically significant increases in unaided brand awareness, ranging from 1.8% to 23.9% depending upon the ad impact, ad frequency and base awareness level. Six of the eight brands achieved significant growth in aided message recall.

“Not only does this research dispel the notion that people ignore banner ads, but it shows that online advertising can impact the most important measure -- sales,” said Brian Murphy, senior vice president of IRI. “This research should shift the debate from 'does it work' to 'how can we maximize the impact and ROI of Internet advertising within the marketing communications mix?'”