Advertising is a complex field, and many practitioners—whether in creative roles, media planning, or executive leadership—are still exploring, without clear success, what truly makes it effective. Over the years, much of the industry’s approach has been shaped by tradition and established practices, many of which are insufficient or outdated. However, recent advances in neuroscience and cognitive science are offering new perspectives that can help deepen our understanding of how advertising works.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly serving as a bridge, making it easier for these scientific insights to be integrated into advertising practice. As the industry adapts to new technologies and methodologies, there is a growing opportunity to enhance the effectiveness of advertising investments.
Research has shown that a significant portion of advertising does not achieve its intended impact. This has led to healthy skepticism among CMOs and decision-makers regarding the results of some brand lift and sales lift studies. It’s important for research studies and media sellers to strive for transparency and accuracy, ensuring that reported outcomes reflect genuine incremental gains.
One key principle is that advertising cannot create demand where none exists; it is most successful when it connects with something the consumer already wants. These motivations may be conscious or subconscious. Behavioral economics and neuroeconomics have demonstrated that many decisions are driven by subconscious desires, rather than purely rational considerations.
Some industries, like tobacco and alcohol, have been very successful in advertising because they connect their products to deep desires people have—such as wanting to feel sophisticated. This connection between what people want and what the ad offers is called “resonance.”
Recent neuroscience research shows that when an ad truly resonates with viewers, their brains react in sync, as measured by EEG technology. This “synchrony” in brain activity is strongly correlated to increased sales (0.91). In other words, advertising works best when it taps into what people already want, even if those desires are subconscious. The most effective ads help people see how buying the product will fulfill a deep-seated want, sometimes one they didn’t even realize they had.
The one company that has translated this knowledge into practical tool ware for advertising practitioners, RMT, was founded by me on the heels of my other successful inventions, such as the ADI/DMA, set-top box data (for which I won an Emmy), addressable commercials, passive peoplemeters, ROI measurement using big data, etc.
RMT (Resonance Mapping Technology) was developed to help advertisers understand and target people’s subconscious motivations. In 1997, RMT used set-top box data and machine learning to recommend TV programs, which led to a sixfold increase in converting nonviewers into loyal viewers.
Through AI and machine learning, thousands of keywords were distilled down to 265 “Value Signals”—a term suggested by Wharton Neuroscience’s Michael Platt for triggers that drive consumer choices and may correspond to neurological signals in the brain. RMT uses these Value Signals in two main ways: first, to target audiences based on the signals present in ads, which Neustar found increased incremental sales by 95% and new-to-brand sales by 115%; second, to match ads with program environments that share similar Value Signals, resulting in a 36% sales lift according to NCS.
These Value Signals are grouped into 87 Need States and further into 15 Motivations, which help make ads more relatable. Research shows that RMT Motivations explain 48% of sales data across 19 brands (ARF Cognition Council), and Value Signals add 83% more explanatory power for adoption across 3830 brands (Simmons).
Many buyers and sellers of media have tested RMT and found it to work, but have hesitated to make greater use of it because they are waiting for clients to demand it.
In Summary
More than half of the trillion dollars invested in advertising this year is likely wasted, a condition that can be virtually eliminated by allowing some science to enter the field. Ads appear in contexts, so the consumer never sees the one without the other. Practitioners are being abstractionists when media and creative are dealt with in separate silos.
There is substantial potential to improve advertising effectiveness by embracing scientific approaches and integrating creative and media strategies. By focusing on resonance—understanding and addressing what the target audience truly wants—advertisers can create more impactful campaigns and achieve better results.
Posted at MediaVillage through the Thought Leadership self-publishing platform.
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The opinions expressed here are the author's views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillage.org/MyersBizNet.