Author: Jazmin Brooks

New York, NY – November 15, 2022 – MAGNA Media Trials, in collaboration with brand suitability leader Zefr, released a new study today that examines the impact of misinformation on consumers and brands. Voices on Misinformation takes an in-depth look at consumer sentiment and perceptions of misinformation and identifies how people are dealing with it in their daily lives. Further, the study highlights the potential impact on brands thought to be associated with misinformation.

Voices on Misinformation found that consumers continue to be exposed to a high-volume of misinformation, and a majority view this as increasing over time (82%). Approximately 7 out of 10 people agree that misinformation is “an issue” and that it is also getting “out of control.”

The study found that misinformation transcends the political divide, as respondents representing a variety of political affiliations agreed on many key issues. Across media types, people reported they encounter misinformation the most on social media (94 over index), followed by television (57 over index).

As people are increasingly exposed to misinformation, they have also become equally savvy in identifying it. Most study participants (83%) claimed to incorporate at least four signals to identify misinformation on their own, demonstrating the significant legwork people undertake to effectively vet content. That said, while many people are actively vetting the content sources they view, they aren’t as engaged with combating misinformation once they’ve encountered it. A vast majority of participants (78%) reported they simply ignore misinformation when they see it.

For brands investing millions in advertising to establish their reputations, association with misinformation poses a significant risk. Among participants surveyed, 63% saw agreed that misinformation would have a negative impact on how they viewed the brand. As a result, brands are likely to see a loss across key performance indicators.

Given the current political climate, consumers expect brands to take a more proactive stance on combating misinformation. A majority of respondents expressed the desire to see brands “take responsibility when associated with misinformation” (87%), as well as “make every effort to avoid being next to misinformation” (86%). These findings suggest consumers are more discerning and critical when it comes to the type of content brands associate themselves with—a clear signal to advertisers on the need to adopt proactive strategies to avoid misinformation.

“Zefr’s mission to defund misinformation continues with our latest partnership with MAGNA and our joint research on its impact to consumers via platforms and their advertisers,” said Christopher Murphy, SVP of Global Business Development, Zefr. “It’s clear the time is now for brands to demand third-party verification for misinformation and help protect their long-term brand values as well as their short-term business results. Zefr looks forward to our continued partnership with platforms, brands, and agencies on this key issue.”

“In a fractured news environment, 93% of respondents told us they view misinformation as being ubiquitous, and while they’ve developed skills to identify it, our study revealed that consumers are not reporting it, which puts even more responsibility on brands to be aware of ad environments,” said Elijah Harris, EVP Global Digital Partnerships & Media Responsibility at MAGNA. “A resounding 87% of respondents told us they expect brands to take responsibility for misinformation, and combatting it is becoming a critical industry issue of our time.”

Voices on Misinformation key takeaways:

• Consumers under report misinformation. Only 23% of study participants revealed they contact the platform when they see misinformation. This is concerning, as many platforms rely in part on consumer reporting to assess and address misinformation on their sites. This finding suggests that the data platforms have on misinformation may be inaccurate and might require the assistance of third parties to effectively vet content.

• Author is a far less important signal than content for identifying misinformation. While many platforms use the author of the content as an indicator of misinformation, most consumers use the content itself as a signal for misinformation (23 over index). In fact, vetting a piece of content based on the author was one of the least-used signals (33 under index) among surveyed respondents.

• Brands thought to support misinformation take a hit to their bottom line. Brands appearing next to misinformation content face more than just reputational risks—there are also negative implications for advertisers’ financial bottom line, KPIs, and future growth. According to the study, 50% of consumers reported they were less likely to purchase from, and 51% reported they were unlikely to search for brands perceived as supporting misinformation.

• Misinformation is an issue everyone can agree on. The study discovered that political ideology does not necessarily shape opinions when it comes to issues around misinformation. Left-learning (72%), right-leaning (73%), in the middle (66%), and apolitical (66%) identifying respondents all agreed within a similar survey range that misinformation is “out of control.”

Magna conducted focus groups with individuals across the United States as well as surveyed 2,045 people online, with geographic, demographic and political diversity, for the report.

The full study is available here.

About MAGNA

MAGNA is the leading global media investment and intelligence company. Our trusted insights, proprietary trials offerings, industry-leading negotiation and unparalleled consultative solutions deliver an actionable marketplace advantage for our clients and subscribers.

We are a team of experts driven by results, integrity and inquisitiveness. We operate across five key competencies, supporting clients and cross-functional teams through partnership, education, accountability, connectivity and enablement. For more information, please visit our website: https://www-wp-stage.magnaglobal.com/ and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Zefr

Zefr is the global leader in brand suitability targeting and measurement across walled garden environments. Zefr’s products put brands in control of their content adjacency on scaled platforms including YouTube, Meta and TikTok, based on brand and industry standards like the Global Alliance of Responsible Media (GARM) framework.

Rather than rely on keywords, Zefr leverages a patented Cognition AI technology to offer brands and agencies more accurate and transparent targeting and measurement solutions on scaled platforms. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, California, with offices in New York, Chicago, London, Brazil, and Dubai. For more information, go to: http://zefr.com.

Media Contact:
Zinnia Gill
Mediabrands
Vice President, Global Corporate Communications
(646) 965-4271

Andrew Serby
Zefr
[email protected]

‘Ad Mix Synergy: Myth or Reality?’ Study Compared Combinations of Linear, CTV and Mobile Ad Buys to Reveal Best Scenarios for Purchase Intent and Brand Awareness

New York, NY- November 2, 2022 – A new study by MAGNA Media Trials, MAGNA’s industry-leading proprietary research offering, in partnership with Spectrum Reach, the advertising sales business of Charter Communications, Inc., reveals that consumers are more likely to respond to advertising if they see it across different screens, with 41% of survey respondents claiming better recall when they had seen the same spot across linear, connected TV (CTV) and mobile devices.

The “Ad Mix Synergy: Myth or Reality?,” study explored the impact of advertising when viewed across single or multiple media screens, testing combinations of linear TV, CTV, and mobile for recall, retention, search intent and purchase intent. The study found that not only does a multiscreen approach increase ad attention and retention, it also increases purchase intent. Also, the order in which the various screens are employed also impacts ad effectiveness. For example, leading with linear TV on a cross-platform campaign lifted purchase intent by 25%, with streaming first and mobile hitting 14% and 4%, respectively.

“The study confirmed that brands will do the best job telling their story when their spot is delivered across multiple screens,” said Kara Manatt, EVP, Managing Director Intelligence Solutions, at MAGNA. “It also shows that, when possible, brands should plan the order in which ads are delivered across screens with a focus on casting the widest attention net in the first exposure.”

This same pattern held true for unaided brand awareness and search intent in a multiscreen buy. A linear-first approach lifted unaided brand awareness by 44%, with streaming first at 29% and mobile first at 26%. As for search intent, 21% of respondents responded positively to campaigns that were linear-first, with streaming at 11% and mobile at 7%.

“The findings reaffirm what our customers have already recognized –  the importance of linear TV and power of multiscreen advertising to deliver full-funnel results,” said Michael Guth, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Spectrum Reach.

Additional findings from the study include:

• Three forms of media are better than two, or one: Of the viewers who were exposed to three types of advertising, 81% of them agreed the message was clearly communicated, and 39% felt the ads had provided new information. Yet, these numbers are significantly lower when viewers were only shown one or two types.
• The right combination of media is critical: Purchase intent increased 13% when the combination of CTV, linear TV, and mobile were all used. However, CTV seems to be the main driver as CTV and mobile increased intent by 11% and CTV-only increased intent by 10%.
• Ad fatigue is real: Over 25% of viewers felt that they had seen “too much” of a brand when they were exposed to multiple ads on linear TV and CTV. Brands wanting to avoid this need to diversify their platforms, once they have exhausted the bigger-screen options.

“Ad Mix Synergy: Myth or Reality?” surveyed 1,684 people who qualified for the study based on natural media consumptions over one week. Panelists were randomized into test and control groups and took a brand lift survey to measure the KPIs.

The full study is available here.

About MAGNA

MAGNA is the leading global media investment and intelligence company. Our trusted insights, proprietary trials offerings, industry-leading negotiation and unparalleled consultative solutions deliver an actionable marketplace advantage for our clients and subscribers.

We are a team of experts driven by results, integrity and inquisitiveness. We operate across five key competencies, supporting clients and cross-functional teams through partnership, education, accountability, connectivity and enablement. For more information, please visit our website: https://www-wp-stage.magnaglobal.com/ and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Spectrum Reach

Spectrum Reach®, the advertising sales business of Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR), provides custom advertising solutions for local, regional and national clients. Operating in 36 states, 91 markets and nearly 100 DMAs, Spectrum Reach creates scalable advertising and marketing services driven by aggregated and de-identified data insights and award-winning creative services. Spectrum Reach is the one-stop shop that helps businesses of all sizes reach anyone, anywhere, on any screen. Additional information about Spectrum Reach can be found at spectrumreach.com.

 

Media Contacts:

Zinnia Gill
Mediabrands
[email protected]

Stacey Mitch
Charter Communications
[email protected]

MAGNA of IPG Mediabrands distilled 610 Nielsen podcast studies to determine best practices, including when to use host-read copy, why longer ads work best and how industries differ

New York, NY- October 26, 2022 – A new meta-analysis on the advertising effectiveness of podcasts, commissioned by MAGNA and conducted by Nielsen, represents the largest ever undertaken. It included 610 separate studies and involved over 140,000 respondents. “Podcast Ad Effectiveness: Best Practices for Key Industries”, released today, reveals the consumer impact of podcast advertising in driving key brand metrics. The study found that while podcast ads are generally effective at driving key brand metrics, fine-tuning the placement and structure of ads can create even more value for advertisers. In addition, longer creative generally drives higher lifts, but 35-seconds to a minute seems to strike the right balance between results and the listener experience. The study also found that custom content seems best suited for brands seeking to build awareness, as recall is strong.

Another key finding of the report is that brands seeking to reach Hispanic/Latinx or Asian American listeners, should leverage podcasts in their advertising strategies as they are particularly good at driving mid-to-lower funnel metrics. Also, ad copy with eight or more brand mentions consistently drives higher lifts than creative with fewer mentions. The study findings recommend brands focus on pre- and mid-roll placements to maximize impact and should also consider which ad type to use based on brand KPIs: For example, non-host read ads can be existing audio creative—and thus more cost effective and easier to use for dynamic insertion—but without sacrificing too much in terms of results, whereas host read ads are better for building awareness and driving search.

Podcast advertising proved to be particularly effective at improving aided awareness, with 79% of those surveyed recalling spots, a 15% lift over control groups. The study also found a 7% increase between control and exposed groups for intent to seek information, a 6% lift in recommendation intent and 5% lift in purchase intent. The report also revealed how listeners responded to familiar hallmarks of the medium, such as host-read ads and long-form spots. Host-read ads proved to be particularly effective at driving listeners to search for more information (+7% lift) and ads that were longer than one minute delivered higher scores on search intent (+8%) and purchase intent (+6%). Other conclusions included adults aged 50 and older clocking larger gains across affinity, search, purchase and recommendation intent than younger demographics.

“Podcasts are one of the few growth areas in terms of consumer time spent with media, and as more of our clients invest in the space, we wanted to surface best practices to maximize impact,” said Brian Hughes, EVP, Managing Director, Audience Intelligence & Strategy at MAGNA. “By leveraging the extensive work Nielsen had already done in this space, we were able to not only create overarching guidelines, but uncover useful nuances for specific industries.”

“Podcast Ad Effectiveness: Best Practices for Key Industries” also identified characteristics that were unique to auto, CPG, financial services, retail, and telecom categories that advertisers can factor into their decision-making. Key highlights of the study include:

● Sports Wins for Auto Brands: Sports podcasts delivered stronger results for affinity (+7%) and intent to seek information (+8%) compared to comedy and society & culture podcasts.
● Repetition is Good for CPG Advertisers: While 8 or more brand mentions in a spot performed better in podcast advertising in general, repetition proved to deliver even stronger results for CPG brands, for example earning a 7% lift for purchase intent, compared to 6% for all advertisers.
● No News/Good News for Financial Brands: Counter-intuitively, financial services ads scored much better, across all metrics, on sports and society & culture podcasts compared to news shows–for example, purchase intent rated +8% for sports, +5% for society & culture and only +1% on news podcasts.
● Telecom Take 2: Podcasts can add incremental reach on top of media where younger audiences are harder to connect with, like broadcast and cable TV.
● The Read on Retail: While non-host-read ads scored better in increasing familiarity lower down the funnel (+4% in exposed vs. control groups), host-read ads scored better for affinity (+6%) and search (=8%), purchase (+5%) and recommendation intent (+5%).

“Podcasts continue to grow and represent a vibrant medium for brands with dialed-in, active audiences who are eager to engage,” said Arica Mckinnon, Vice President of Solutions Consulting, Nielsen. “Our research continues to uncover how podcasts can push behavior through the funnel and how brands fine-tune their campaigns for better results across categories, unlocking new opportunities for consumer engagement.”

“Podcast Ad Effectiveness: Best Practices for Key Industries” analyzed findings from 610 Nielsen Brand Impact simulated studies, encompassing 147,525 respondents, age 13 and up between 2018 and this year, examining both macro trends and drill-down insights across six major advertising categories including auto, CPG, financial services, retail and telecom.

The full study can be found here.

About MAGNA
MAGNA is the leading global media investment and intelligence company. Our trusted insights, proprietary trials offerings, industry-leading negotiation and unparalleled consultative solutions deliver an actionable marketplace advantage for our clients and subscribers.

We are a team of experts driven by results, integrity and inquisitiveness. We operate across five key competencies, supporting clients and cross-functional teams through partnership, education, accountability, connectivity and enablement. For more information, please visit our website: https://www-wp-stage.magnaglobal.com/ and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Nielsen
Nielsen shapes the world’s media and content as a global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics. Through our understanding of people and their behaviors across all channels and platforms, we empower our clients with independent and actionable intelligence so they can connect and engage with their audiences—now and into the future.
An S&P 500 company, Nielsen (NYSE: NLSN) operates around the world in more than 55 countries. Learn more at www.nielsen.com or www.nielsen.com/investors and connect with us on social media.

Press Contact:
Zinnia Gill
Vice President, Global Corporate Communications
Mediabrands
[email protected]

Pre-eminent industry barometer transforms into an actionable tool for brands to evaluate responsibility of multiple media types across 150+ global partners  

NEW YORK (October 13, 2022) — IPG Mediabrands and its intelligence arm MAGNA, today unveiled the 4^th issue of its signature Media Responsibility Index (MRI 4.0), an initiative that strives to raise industry awareness and standards around harm reduction for brands and consumers in advertising. MRI 4.0 has transformed from an analytical study of 10 social platforms into an actionable toolset, now assessing 150+ partners from a variety of formats across 15 countries and establishing four new ESG-aligned priorities for partner accountability.

The index allows for teams and clients to incorporate brand and consumer safety priorities into their investment decision-making for a variety of media types, from the largest global social platforms to local broadcast media outlets.

The original MRI, the first-of-its kind, was launched in August 2020, in response to concerns about social media platforms not taking steps to acknowledge, measure and reduce their contribution to online and real-world harms. In effect supersized, MRI 4.0’s evaluations now encompass 80% of Mediabrands’ global investments and allow for clients to identify and invest in the media outlets that support their values without compromising ROI.

MRI 4.0 assessed each outlet across four priorities of partner accountability—Safety, Inclusivity, Sustainability and Data Ethics—in alignment with industry-adopted ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) frameworks so businesses can easily extend how they are measuring their impact in these spaces to include media. Previous versions of the MRI had ranked the platforms upon Mediabrands’ 10 Media Responsibility Principles, which are now consolidated within the four priorities.

More than 150 major partners were surveyed, expanding into the realms of Broadcast & Cable, Connected TV, Online Video, and Display. Across Broadcast & Cable, the traditional-first networks also span several subsidiary companies across Connected TV and Online Video properties; The findings illuminated that strict, longstanding federal regulations within Broadcast & Cable have had a trickle-down effect to their digital properties, in effect enhancing safety standards when compared to digital-first counterparts surveyed.

“We developed our first media responsibility index in 2020 to determine exact protocols of the major platforms, as people started questioning the impact of social media in their lives, from the prevalence of misinformation to hate speech and data-collection practices,” said Elijah Harris, EVP Global Digital Partnerships & Media Responsibility at MAGNA. “We have always believed in the need to bring the lens of media responsibility to a broader set of media types. Consumers digest content and opinions from an ever-increasing list of mediums. It only made sense that this rigor we’ve developed for social platforms would be translated for a more diversified mix of media partners. With each iteration, the MRI is becoming more robust and establishing itself as a mainstay in driving industry accountability and powering responsible advertising investment.”

Key highlights include:

• Social media platforms showed continued improvement across the four priorities (averaging +3-point in overall performance). Partners attained a ~10% increase in Inclusivity, driven by increased focus on internal accountability and creator equity.
• Safety is a standout priority for broadcast & cable, based in part on federal industry regulations forcing uniformity and 3^rd party enforcement in safety standards – including children’s safety rules and advertising approvals.
• Tech proficient digital-first CTV partners are driving higher Data Ethics performance than their traditional-first counterparts, in part due to their origins and operating in a more tech-oriented space, versus a TV-first space
• In a mixed marketplace for Sustainability practices, online video platforms showed strength in their ad-business emissions measurement + setting net-zero goals.

Advertising environments remain under the microscope as brands pursue ESG commitments and consumers become more critical of where brands choose to advertise. A Mediabrands survey found that one-quarter of clients adjusted their media mix based on MRI findings, and 90% said they were interested in finding new methods to assess media value beyond price efficiency alone.

“The MRI is an important underpinning of our Media for Good positioning, putting responsibility at the heart of every media decision, as concern over the interplay and societal impact of advertising, media and misinformation increases,” said Eileen Kiernan, Global CEO of Mediabrands. “Our clients are increasingly pursuing ESG criteria within their own businesses and we are providing a resource to support these goals along with advocating for stronger, safer standards in media.”

Examples include Snap achieving a 6-point lift YoY, outperforming all platforms in its efforts to protect people and combat misinformation and disinformation due to their robust publisher diligence; TikTok continuing to raise the bar, gaining an 8-point lift on brand safety practices and 24-point lift in children’s wellbeing; and YouTube setting the benchmark for online video across all categories, most notably in Inclusivity for delivering 60% diversity in behind the camera casting for owned and diverse content, and Safety for their policy and enforcement tools to manage UGC.

“Looking back at the strides made by social-media platforms since 2020 not only validated the need for a media responsibility monitor, it motivated us to expand the lens of media responsibility to more media types and markets,” said Harris. “We are proud to be a part of the greater journey to make social media safer for all and excited about the opportunity to improve our industry for all.”

“The 4A’s has been proud to endorse the Media Responsibility Index as an important tool for advertisers to assess how the big social-media players are handling safety issues on their platforms,” said Marla Kaplowitz, President and CEO, 4A’s. “Expanding to include other media types and global markets is a welcome next step.”

To compile MRI 4.0, MAGNA surveyed 150+ global media partners on a dynamic assessment, customized by media type, covering the most pressing safety issues of the day facing consumers and brands and specific accomplishments made by these outlets to help alleviate them. Scores were analyzed based on the varying weights of each question, as well as nuance within the individual platform, against the four brand-safety priorities.

ABOUT MEDIABRANDS:

IPG Mediabrands is the media and marketing solutions division of Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG). Mediabrands manages approximately $40 billion in marketing investment globally on behalf of its clients and provides strategic services and solutions across its award-winning, full-service agency networks UM and Initiative and through its innovative marketing specialist companies Reprise, MAGNA, Orion, Rapport, Healix, Mediabrands Content Studio and the IPG Media Lab. Mediabrands clients include many of the world’s most recognizable and iconic brands from a broad portfolio of industry sectors.  The company employs more than 13,000 marketing experts in more than 130 countries representing the full diversity of humanity. For more information, please visit our website: www.ipgmediabrands.com and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.

ABOUT MAGNA:

MAGNA is the leading global media investment and intelligence company. Our trusted insights, proprietary trials offerings, industry-leading negotiation and unparalleled consultative solutions deliver an actionable marketplace advantage for our clients and subscribers. We are a team of experts driven by results, integrity and inquisitiveness. We operate across five key competencies, supporting clients and cross-functional teams through partnership, education, accountability, connectivity and enablement. For more information, please visit our website: https://www-wp-stage.magnaglobal.com/ and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

 

PRESS CONTACT:

Isabelle Brenton

SVP, Global Corporate Communications, Mediabrands

[email protected]