Disney's secret lab tests online ads: consumers probed
LONDON - Disney has unveiled a new research lab that uses eye tracking, heart monitors, skin temperature readings and facial probes to determine the most effective type of online ads.
The company has long measured clicks and conversions, but is keen to know more about which ad formats are most attractive for consumers who merely glance at them while engaging the content of the site they are visiting.
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Disney Media Networks, which includes ABC, ESPN, ABC Family and Disney XD, is hoping the research will enable it to advise brand-owners on how best to spend their marketing budgets online as money shifts away from traditional channels including TV, press and radio.
Among the initial findings of the research is that ‘fly out' ads that appear next to the video player on a website deliver the same impact as transparent ‘over-lay' ads that run over the content, but are less intrusive.
Disney is due to unveil more detailed findings to a collection of 200 big-brand advertisers in New York later this year.
Tracey Scheppach, video innovations director for Starcom MediaVest Group claims Disney's research is "completely invaluable." She told The New York Times: "Everybody is trying to figure out the ad models of the future, but nobody is doing is on this scale."
The recession has slowed the growth of online advertising, but eMarketer predicts that £25 billion (£15bn) will be spent online in the US this year, rising to $37bn (£22bn) by 2013.
Disney is testing online ad effectiveness
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Comments
Kay Mc - 05/08/2009
Hey save your money Disney, start with redesigning your utterly pants website for Paris Disneyland before investing in ad format research. Get the basics right first etc etc. If you don't know what I mean, try finding out basic information such as how tall do you have to be for each ride? Ride duration? Recommended age range? It's all too vague and too hard. Massively headache inducing. And some UGC wouldn't go amiss, like is it really worth queueing for 60 mins to drive around Autopia for 5 minutes? \(FYI the answer is no).