Getting Noticed in the Digital Economy of Noise

By Keith Burtis

Have you ever done a genre based search in the Apple App store or maybe in Google’s Play Store? What do you see? Here is a screen shot from the Business apps listing in the App Store.

business apps

Looks a lot like a logo test to me. The question is who is getting noticed among the crowded space and fits the perceived needs of the consumer? As a market research firm we’re working with companies  on a daily basis to help them better understand what appeals and resonates with their target consumer.

Optimize Across Platforms and Mediums

In todays business environment logo’s and brand images have to play a number of roles. Even more important these images used across social media avatars, packaging design, application logo’s, product design, apparel and more must optimally convey the brand message within the constraints of the platform or medium. For example iTunes requires an image that is 1600×1600 and presents it in 100×100. Twitter needs a logo at 100×100 and Facebook has multiple image sizes as well.  Nike does a good job with it’s swoosh + branding as it fits well across any dimension and medium.

Nike+

Test, Iterate and Optimize

The ability to increase Return On Investment through logo, stimulus and copy testing has never been greater.  Copy testing on the web can be optimized and used in traditional magazine advertisements. Logo’s can be tested against those of competitors to better understand potential purchase impact.

 Consumers Live in a Noisy World – Gain an Edge

Consumer attention is fractured and people are receiving more messages through more media types than any other time in history. Test to ensure your creative is memorable, conveying brand personality and aligning with your unique selling proposition.

Testing Concepts Online – Cost and Data Effective

In the award winning report titled, The Predictive Power of Internet-Based Product Concept Testing by Ely Dahan (Assistant Professor of Management Science in the Marketing group of MIT’s Sloan) and V. Srinivasan (Ernest C. Arbuckle Professor of Marketing and Management Science at the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University) the researchers concluded that virtual prototypes and creative imaging on the Web provide nearly the same results as physical prototypes.

Carbonview Research can offer you the ability to present the needed stimulus and concepts through online channels direct to your target audience for truly actionable insights. Contact us today and gain an edge in your marketing.

Market Research Tech Series Part Three – Optimizing Stimulus – On-Screen Image Size

By Glenn Scheithauer

Welcome back to our multi-part series on clearing up and optimizing stimulus for market research. You can find parts one and two here:

Part One – Clearing up Stimulus : Background

Part Two - Clearing up Stimulus : Translating Images to the Digital Screen

Overview

Now that you (hopefully) have a good grasp of how to translate our images from the real world to the digital screen, now for the details: first and foremost is image size. Everyone wants their image to be as big and clear as possible, but as discussed, not everyone has a $2000 Apple Retina Display.

Available Screen Space

The last section was about the concept of available space – that is, the total amount of space that I have as a programmer to show an image on screen. Let’s take the following example (a screenshot from our ‘Audio/Video’ demo available at Carbonview.com):
rsch_stimulusFrom looking at this image, the fact is that just because someone has a 1024×768 monitor does not mean that the image can be displayed at 1024×768:

  1. The window may not be maximized. In the screenshot above, Internet Explorer was not even maximized, so it was not utilizing my entire screen resolution
  2. The browser itself takes up space. The title bar, menu bar, URL bar, scroll bar all contribute to constraining available space.
  3. The survey layout itself takes up space. Typically there will be some instructions on the page, and usually some UI element and a logo (as in this example).

So, taking all of that into account, my screen size of 1024×768 may only have 800×600 worth of available space to use.

But there is so much whitespace on my monitor! Make it bigger! (Scrolling)

Hopefully you read part 1 of this series, so I will not go into all the details of why that statement is incorrect. What I can do is discuss the negative side effects of just making that image bigger: scrolling.

Scrolling is expected by people today – you are probably doing it right now to read this post. But, you are scrolling vertically. Vertical is what people have come to know, and expect when using the computer. Horizontal scrolling is what must be avoided. Try finding a website that has horizontal scrolling. You will find it almost impossible, because scrolling horizontally is such an anti-paradigm. Your mouse probably has a vertical scroll wheel (sorry mac people) – where is its horizontal scroll wheel?

Conclusion: Optimum [Single] Image Size

It is a fact that every person out there is different. Everyone has a different monitor, all at a different resolution, and no browser windows are the same. So, how can an image get displayed at all?

The answer is to use the concept of lowest common denominator: gather statistics across all of our surveys, and have found that the lowest common screen resolution is 1024×768. On average, a single image of 800×600 will be able to be displayed on 99% of all of our respondent’s screens without scrolling, and is my default response whenever anyone asks ‘What size images do I need to send?’

#Friday_Funday ~ Memorable Ad’s That Bring Utility and Value

By Keith Burtis

Screen Shot 2013-06-07 at 12.54.15 PMOf course we’re all used to seeing pens, pencils, mugs and other tchotchkes dawning a brand name. This advertising while common is likely not particularly innovative, memorable or sharable. On today’s #FundayFriday we’re going to highlight ways brands and their agencies are creating functional advertising that is exactly that.

In IBM’s new People for Smarter Cities campaign they’ve partnered with Ogilvy to come up with some innovative and smart ways to “turn” the ad’s into useful function. Love this!

 

The next one, I’ve written about in a previous post but I thought it would be worth bringing up again. UTEC, a technology focused University in Peru saw declining numbers of student enrollment over the past decade. They decided to create an advertisement that not only brought awareness and boosted enrollment but that was also a destination and service to the locals. See, this area of Peru only sees a half inch of rainfall of year and drought is common. In reaction to this problem UTEC created a billboard that turned the regions high humidity into cold, clean drinking water. Enjoy!

What types of ad’s have you seen that are adding real utility and value?

Getting it Right – Brands Adding MASSIVE Value to Consumers

By Keith Burtis

massive brand valueThe methods by which brands generate sustained awareness, increase profit margins and build loyal enthusiasts is radically shifting in this new multi-device and multi-media world.  After reading How do You Brief in the Post-Digital Age by agency strategist Falk Fuhrman it got me to thinking about the way brands and their agencies were interacting in the lives of current and target consumers. Falk says this in his article,

“On the one hand traditional ad agency creatives tend to be not as channel-agnostic as they think they are: in the past, their ideas always found their expression in a certain format that was defined by media; nowadays we have the possibility to invent not only new media to reach the consumer, but new ways how people interact with a brand and with each other. ”

The last section of that, “new ways how people interact with a brand and with each other.” I believe is the key takeaway and is asking planners, strategists and creatives to start thinking differently about what real needs consumers have rather than focusing on the message they will push through broadcast channels. Furthermore I think from that takeaway the word “interact” is the game changer. Notice he didn’t say the words broadcast, push or advertise to. These things will happen as riders based on real value based interactions.

So how can brands create interactions that are both valuable to the brand, scalable and MASSIVELY valuable to their target audience? Well, it’s already happening and I’d like to share a couple examples of CPG brands adding value through smartphone apps I interact with personally.

ifoods_kraftThe iFood Assistant by Kraft

I am a triathlete and I like to eat healthy. However, what I don’t like to do is eat the same things everyday. What I love about this app is that it generates a ton of ideas and recipe’s for me based on ingredients I personally like to cook with. The Kraft branding is subtle and you’ll sometimes find their products built into the recipe’s but I am fine with that when it add’s value. If you’re a parent like I am and you have a child that hones in on the same foods all the time you’ll like this app for its variety.

 

orvisThe Orvis Flyfishing App

The Orvis flyfishing app gives the end user a ton of value; from locating nearby streams, highlighting local patterns (flies) to use and even giving you video to teach how to tie a correct knot for specific situations. This value based brand play also integrates with their online retail to purchase needed gear for your next trip. Again, this is a situation where the value outweighs the branding. The branding instead of being forced plays an integral role in the unique value proposition. I don’t get out as much as I like but when I do I always use this app to get me in the right place with the right gear so I am not wasting my time.

 

charminSit or Squat by Charmin 

I’ve heard many a creative say its nearly impossible to make a toilet paper brand something people really care about and share! Well, then I guess Charmin has pulled off the impossible! I’ll be honest in saying that this app is on the home screen of my phone every time I travel. It’s simple, Charmin has added utilitarian value and made my hunt for a clean restroom in unfamiliar cities easier. For this I will always be grateful and Charmin will always have a spot on my smart phone.

 

So how are you thinking differently about the way your brand “interacts” with consumers? How are you adding massive value? What questions are you asking to help you identify consumer pain points? By asking these different questions you will generate better creative that will have staying power!