• by Joe Mandese , July 9, 2020

New research conducted by IPG Mediabrands Magna and IPG Media Lab units with Twitter finds that mixing video advertising formats yields better results.

While that may not be much of a surprise, given decades of research showing mixes generally always have greater impact, the new study provides further affirmation, utilizing a combination of conventional ad effectiveness research (ad recall surveys) and eye-tracking.

The study controlled three exposures each for a single standalone video ad format, a combination of two ad formats, and a combination of three ad formats, and found in each case multiple formats spread across multiple views generated the best results.

“For a long time, many brands thought it made sense to put a majority of their budget into an ad format that worked for them, but our study’s findings are a major differentiator because it indicates that a mix works better at driving awareness, purchase intent and brand favorability,” Magna Senior Vice President-Intelligence Solutions Kara Manatt notes, concluding, “Creating this sort of variation in ad experiences doesn’t necessarily require creating a whole host of new assets. In our study, the same exact ad led to better results when presented differently.”