The above video interview is from the Advertising Research Foundation Audience Measurement conference.
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Applying metrics to subjective experiences has challenges. When the audience studied has a growing set of choices, as is the case with media consumers, the difficulty can get compounded.
The Council for Research Excellence (CRE) is working to get better data on what’s happening inside the heads of audiences to understand what works under what circumstances. This community of Nielsen clients is facilitated by Richard Zackon, who charts the group’s direction.
CRE is engaged in a meta-analysis of over 150 industry and academic research studies to identify questions and gaps to be addressed in new research to be initiated late this year. Zackon notes that the industry research at hand may be influenced or judged by the financial interest of the sponsoring party. With the participation of both ad buyers and sellers, as well as agencies, he sees CRE achieving better quality and acceptance.
The answers sought are broad and non-trivial; the means to get those answers yet to be fully defined. Why do audiences choose the screens they do? How does that screen choice affect viewing experiences? How do social media and gaming come into play? How and why do some choices complement or displace other screens? How do advertisers place value on ad impressions on alternative screens?
Zackon cites the need to create a taxonomy to serve as the foundation of better informed discussions on these and other subjects. He acknowledges that the ongoing introduction of new screens is an additional variable to be factored into the process.
