BVDW / IAB Germany – Power of Creation study

The Power of Creation
Bundesverband Digitale Wirtschaft | November 2013
Results of the Online-Vermarkterkreis (OVK) Study 2013

Focus of the study – what is it about?
What?
Online display creations
This study deals specifically with the design flexibility that exists regardless of product, price
and media plan.
The study shows the objective and numerical significance of the creation and provides a
design “corridor” to effectively boost the potential of online marketing activities.
What it is not about!
The study cannot provide “the” perfect online creation, since creation always has something to do
with the new, the unique, and the surprising.
Page 2 | November 2013 | OVK Study 2013 - Power of Creation

Definition of the creation
The creation is a part of the advertising medium. This involves an advertising
medium’s degree of freedom with respect to design and content, which can be
utilized without concern for technical or legal restrictions.
• In concrete terms, it means the layout, placement, size, color and use of
individual elements as well as the length and general mood applied to an
advertising medium.
The 5 central dimensions of creativity are: originality, flexibility, elaboration, synthesis and artistic value
(source: Smith, McKenzie et.al., Marketing Science, Vol. 26, No. 6, November-December 2007, pp. 819-833)
Colors –
which
ones and
how
many
People:
yes or no
Number
of visuals
Where does
the logo go
and how big is
it
Animation
or still
graphics
Let me tell a
story
How much
text and how
many
messages
Funny or
suspenseful
How long
does it take
to go
through it
?

About the study
Awareness Impact Creation guidelines
Eye contact: yes or no? And if
yes, how long?
Attentiveness
(Ad Quality Index & rating of the
creation)
Attraction, memory, image,
incentive to buy, message,
creativity, rating
Systematic classification of the
creations
Analysis of attributes – which
attributes have the most influence
on the impact of a creation?
Awareness
Examination of the influence of the creation on the awareness of an ad in a live
study.
Impact
Analysis of attributes for differentiating components of the creation. Analysis of
the design criteria that are most important for impact. Deduction of general
design guidelines.

Benchmark study
550,000 data points
Approx. 40,000 interviews
270 creations
45 attribute characteristics
3 standard display formats
29 impact parameters
consolidated into 7 scores
Live study
1,850 live ad contacts
365 creations
334 brands
100 participants
9 premium websites
4 standard display formats
Awareness of an ad
Currently the largest and most comprehensive study in the German
market for the documentation and rating of online display creations.
Awareness Impact

Overview of the live study
Recruiting
& random sample
criteria
Instructions,
calibration
Stimulus presentation,
recording of view data
12 minutes
• N=100
• Age: 25 to 45 years
• Internet use: 1 to 2
hours per day. Sex:
m/f 50/50
• Even distribution by
net household income,
education and job
Selection of websites.
Instructions: Please look
at the chosen websites.
The object was to
observe viewing
behavior.
(Calibration)
The participant explored
5 websites of his choice.
While doing so, he was in
contact with the live ad
media.

Live study
9 premium websites
365 creations and 4 formats (standard display formats)
Wallpaper
Medium
rectangle
Super banner
Skyscraper
Awareness

Ad awareness – eye contact and length of viewing
11
11
11
22 22
Length of viewing
All eye contact is
added together and
the total time spent
on the advertising
medium is
determined.
Eye contact
As soon as the user’s
eye falls on the
advertising medium,
eye contact is
established.
Awareness

Eye contact with
the advertising
medium
Person
10.7
Creation
47.3
Share of explanations in %
Basis for data: 1,850 advertising contacts, 365 creations, 9 websites, 4 formats; controlled for influence of format
and environment
Whether an advertising medium will be viewed at all is
highly dependent on its creation.
Awareness

Length of viewing
of the advertising
medium
Person
32.8
Creation
30.1
Share of explanations in %
How long an advertising medium will be viewed depends
up to one third on the creation itself.
Basis for data: 1,850 advertising contacts, 365 creations, 9 websites, 4 formats; controlled for influence of format
and environment
Awareness

5.8 times longerAll formats
Gap between shorter and longer views
(without bottom and top 25% of the data)
25% 75%Advertising media classified by length of viewing
Basis for data: 1,850 advertising contacts, 365 creations, 9 websites, 4 formats, July 2013
Awareness –
the creation makes the difference
The quality of the creation of an advertising medium can result in up to 5.8 times longer
viewing times – in the area of the awareness of online display ads, this is critical to the success
of the campaign.
This amount is adjusted for industrial sector and environmental influences.
Awareness

7 impact scores of the benchmark analysis
Image
Rating
What brand
image does the
ad convey?
What was the overall
rating?
Attraction
How strongly is the user
attracted to the ad?
How unconventional is it?
Memory
How successfully does
the ad remain in the
user’s memory?
Incentive to buy
How interesting is the
product/service?
Message
Is the sales message
understood?
Creativity
How creative is the ad
overall?
Impact

The creation makes the difference – overall impact increased by
more than 60%, incentive to buy increased by over 90%
Total score for advertising impact (increase in %)
* Shown is the growth of the indexed average, adjusted for format, of the respective proportion of low to top performers included. The amounts that underpin this are first
generated on the basis of individual formats and then averaged. Growth is calculated from the averaged differences.
+62%
10% low vs. 10% top
*
Impact
Individual score for advertising impact
(increase in %)
+93%
10% low vs. 10% top
*
Individual score for image (increase in %)
+56%
10% low vs. 10% top
*
Single-score rating
(increase in %)
+54%
10% low vs. 10% top
*

Which attributes have the greatest influence?
Storyline
Animation
Product presentation
Surprise
Actors
High quality
General tone
Originality
Key visual
Number of brand
elements Branding
Teaser
Text/picture
Product placement
Length
Visuals
Degree of elaboration
Color
Relationship between actors
Logo placement and logo size
Product
Claim
Use of humorStrength of influence on
the advertising impact
of a creation
Impact

Storylining - examples of the characteristics
The sales message should be told as a story
Stories always lead to a significant improvement of the ad. This corresponds with the finding that pure text
information leads to a poor rating of the ad.
A good story that quickly and succinctly conveys high-quality visuals demonstrates the clearest effect toward
improving a display ad. Indeed, display ads are not print ads.
64 65
67
63
53
68
63
53
51 53 53
42
64
50
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Rating Creativity Memory Image Incentive to buy Message Attraction
Storylining Story
No story
Dependent values are indexed from 0-100, with 0 indicating a very poor rating/performance, 50 a balanced rating/performance and 100 an excellent rating/performance).
Database for the rating: 193 creations, 34,727 interviews; creativity: 193 creations, 34,727 interviews; memory: 236 creations, 34,770 interviews; image: 258 creations, 37,659 interviews;
incentive to buy: 232 creations, 34,766 interviews; message: 233 creations, 37,620 interviews; attraction: 233 creations, 37,620 interviews
ImpactPage 15 | November 2013 | OVK Study 2013 - Power of Creation

High quality of the materials – examples of the characteristics
Without doubt: the higher the quality of the ad, the better!
It can be clearly seen: Ads of high quality, i.e. those that appear professionally made and implemented, are most
persuasive on all levels. Lower-quality display ads, on the other hand, performed significantly worse.
In particular, the perceived creativity increased along with the increased quality of the ad.
47
43
47 46
37
60
47
54
52
54 54
44
64
51
56 55 55 55
44
65
52
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Perceived level of quality Low
Medium
High
Database for the rating: 197 creations, 35,558 interviews; creativity: 197 creations, 35,558 interviews; memory: 240 creations, 35,601 interviews; image: 262 creations, 38490 interviews;

1 change of visual needed, but not multiple changes
Here again it was found that stills significantly diminished the rating. A display ad should contain at least one
change of visual in order to increase the overall rating. With more than 2 visuals, however, performance
stagnated. Recall levels and creativity increase most notably when more than one visual is incorporated.
One change of visual is indispensable, but more is not necessarily better here.
49
54 54 54
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Overall rating
Number of visuals –
overall rating
1 visual
2 visuals
3 visuals
4+ visuals
Dependent values are indexed from 0-100, with 0 indicating a very poor rating/performance, 50 a balanced rating/performance and 100 an excellent rating/performance). Database for the rating:
194 creations, 34,861 interviews; creativity: 194 creations, 34,861 interviews; memory: 236 creations, 34,903 interviews
50 52
54 55
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Creativity Awareness
Number of visuals –
creativity/memory
1 theme
2+ themes

Degree of the animation - examples of the characteristics
The elements of the display creation should be animated so
that they coordinate with each other
A good animation provides for attraction and a positive rating in all categories.
52
48
50 51
40
62
48
55 54 55 54
43
65
52
59 60 61 59
47
68
56
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Degree of animation None
Medium
High
Impact

Product illustrations and unconventional key visuals are
persuasive
Better overall rating when the product or rather unconventional elements, such as animated figures, are
displayed. Creativity and incentive to buy are most strongly influenced by the right key visual. Text as the key
visual is rated most poorly in all criteria – it does not fit with the model of media reception.
In a competitive environment, the online creation must offer attractions and quickly convey its message – this
works best with the product.
54
51 53 53
41
65
50
56
53 54 54
44
66
5150
48
50 50
40
62
48
57 57 58 56
47
65
53
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Rating Creativity Awareness Image Impact Message Attention
Type of key visual People and faces
Product presentation
Text
Other

Drawn characters better than real actors – gender has no
influence
Drawn or animated figures increase the overall rating enormously.
Compared to adults, advertisements with teenagers have a mildly positive impact on the rating and image, while
adults overall prompt better memory and attraction.
The gender of the main character, meanwhile, has a negligible effect. There is no difference between male and
female actors aside from a minor advantage for women when it comes to the message and incentive to buy.
54
51 52 53
41
63
5052 52
55
52
41
63
53
60 61 62
60
49
67
60
54
51 53 53
43
65
51
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Bewertung Kreativität Erinnerung Image Kaufanreiz Message Attraktion
Use of actors/performers
Junge Menschen
Erwachsene
Gezeichnete oder
animierte Figuren
Keine Darsteller

Product demonstrations better overall
The symbolic demonstration is the most persuasive – in the sense of a good storyline, this can significantly
increase the impact of a creation.
Along with differences in awareness, the biggest differences between the artificial and natural are seen in
creativity, since drawings are assessed to be more creative than depictions from reality.
56
52 53 54
44
66
51
56 54 55 55
45
66
51
60 59 59 60
50
70
56
51 49 51 50
40
62
49
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Prevailing type of product presentation Natural
Artificial/Virtual
Symbolic
No product presentation

Friends and couples are preferred to depictions of families
Showing friends leads to the best impact overall. However, the picture of a couple provides the strongest
attraction and can best communicate the message. Depictions of families, on the other hand, are less persuasive.
The young, dynamic and interactive medium Internet is not as well utilized with traditional depictions of families.
54
50 50
53
40
65
50
57
55
57 57
44
66
49
56
54 54
56
46
69
56
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Type of relationship between main actors Family
Group of friends
Couple
Database for the rating: 19 creations, 3,632 interviews; creativity: 19 creations, 3,632 interviews; memory: 21 creations, 3,634 interviews; image: 22 creations, 3,713 interviews; incentive to
buy: 20 creations, 3,633 interviews; message: 20 creations, 3,711 interviews; attraction: 20 creations, 3,711 interviews

If there are performance elements, then there should be prizes
or deadlines
In most cases, teasers lead to a poorer rating. Only the use of prizes has a positive effect at all levels. Deadlines
also sometimes have a positive impact – in particular, they increase interest. The psychological principle of
scarcity is at work here.
52 53
56
53 54 53
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Overall rating
Use of teasers
Database for the rating: 132 creations, 22,727 interviews; creativity: 127 creations, 21,605 interviews; attraction: 124 creations, 20,100 interviews.
53 55
52 51
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Creativity Attraction
Use of teasers – deadline Deadline
No deadline
Price, time limit, discount
Without price, time limit, discount
Prize
Without prize
Deadline
Without deadline

Logo not only at the beginning!
In contrast to a product presentation, a logo achieves its greatest impact at the end of the creation. This is
especially true for the points creativity and awareness.
Top levels are achieved in the rating and creativity when the logo fills out half of the page.
Placement of the logo display: Database for the rating: 178 creations, 31,957 interviews; creativity: 178 creations, 31,957 interviews; memory: 218 creations, 31,997 interviews; image: 235
creations, 34,489 interviews; incentive to buy: 214 creations, 31,993 interviews; message: 212 creations, 34,453 interviews; attraction: 212 creations, 34,453 interviews;
Logo size: Database for the rating: 169 creations, 30,041 interviews; creativity: 169 creations, 30,041 interviews; memory: 204 creations, 30,076 interviews; image: 222 creations, 32,569
interviews; incentive to buy: 201 creations, 30,073 interviews; message: 203 creations, 32,537 interviews; attraction: 203 creations, 32,537 interviews
54 52
58 56
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Rating Creativity
Logo size
Up to 1/4 of the
area
1/2 of the area
48 50
54 55
52 5452 54
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Creativity Awareness
Placement of
logo display
At the start of the creation only
At the end of the creation only
Multiple times, including during the creation
Throughout
Impact

Less is more!
While more colors can provoke slightly more attraction, it degrades the overall impact.
Thus: The fewer colors used, the better. This effect becomes most obvious in the ad’s incentive to buy.
56 56 57
5052 53 53
43
51 53 52
41
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Creativity Memory Image Incentive to buy
Variety of colors 1-2 colors
3-4 colors
5+ colors
194 creations, 34,861 interviews; creativity: 194 creations, 34,861 interviews; memory: 237 creations, 34,904 interviews; image: 259 creations, 37,793 interviews; incentive to buy: 233
creations, 34,900 interviews; message: 234 creations, 37,754 interviews; attraction: 234 creations, 37,754 interviews

Ratio of text to pictures – examples of the characteristics
Pictures and visuals are an absolute must
Negligible difference between a depiction using only pictures and a balanced ratio of pictures to text.
Advertisements with a disproportionate amount of text, on the other hand, fared significantly worse.
A display creation requires strong visual images for its messages – the imagination of the user who reads text
does not correspond to the received reality.
56 54 55 55
44
65
52
50
47
50 49
39
62
48
55 53 54 54
44
66
51
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Rating Creativity Awareness Image Impact Message Attentiveness
Ratio of text to pictures More pictures
More text
Balanced ratio

The more brand, the better
The overall rating of the advertisement improves in tandem with an increase in the number of brand elements.
Impact, rating and attention are most strongly linked to the number of brand elements. This means more than
merely displaying the logo frequently, however; instead, various brand elements need to be integrated into the
creation’s story through products and good slogans.
52 50 52 51
40
63
50
55 53 54 54
44
65
50
58
55 56 57
47
69
53
60
55 55
58
50
69
57
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Rating Creativity Awareness Image Impact Message Attentiveness
Number of brand elements used
1
2
3
4+

Branding and displaying the product increase the overall rating
54
53 54 54
43
65
51
48
45
48 48
38
60
47
55
53 54 54
44
65
5151
49
51 50
40
62
49
,00
10,00
20,00
30,00
40,00
50,00
60,00
70,00
Branding and product display Branding
No branding
Product
No product
194 creations, 34,861 interviews; creativity: 194 creations, 34,861 interviews; memory: 237 creations, 34,904 interviews; image: 259 creations, 37,793 interviews; incentive to buy: 233
creations, 34,900 interviews; message: 234 creations, 37,754 interviews; attraction: 234 creations, 37,754 interviews
Integrating the brand and/or product into the online advertisement improved the overall rating of the ad across
all 7 criteria. The biggest effect of branding can be observed with respect to creativity.
Demonstration of the product has the clearest impact on the brand image.

Well-made creations  Do’s
1. Storylining (intelligent linking of individual elements and visuals) for product
presentation
• e.g. using the element of surprise, originality
2. Use high-quality material
3. At least 1 change of visual, or 2 visuals
4. Relatively short rotation lengths
5. Animation and interaction between the elements within a visual
6. The key visual should be the product or animation/cartoon
7. Product presentation
• Symbolic use and display during rotation
8. If the key visual contains people, then friends and couples are the preferred
grouping
9. If there are performance elements, they should be prizes or deadlines
10. Display of the brand logo should not only be at the beginning, and it should take
up about 50% of the area of the advertising medium

Poorly made creations  Don’ts
1. Stills used online like those in print ads
2. Numerous and wide variety of colors
3. Heavy use of text information
4. Long, elaborate rotations
5. Too many changes of the visual
6. Simple display of brand logos or products
7. Failure to use a separate brand logo or a clearly
identifiable brand element

Conclusion
The creation highly influences the awareness and impact of an ad.
• Up to half of the probability that an advertising medium will be looked at depends
on the creation itself (47.3%). How long the attention is then focused on the
advertising medium can likewise be largely traced to the creation itself (30.1%).
• Well-made creations are looked at 5.8 times longer than poorly made creations.
This difference is critical for the success of the online campaign.
• An increase in impact of more than 60% with respect to performance is also
observed when a creation is well made.
Findings regarding specific attribute characteristics open up the possibility for
advertisers and agencies to effectively improve the overall quality of online
campaigns.
Clear tips for designing well-made creations can be drawn from these findings.

Carola Lopez
Leiterin Marktforschung,
Fachgruppenmanagerin
BVDW e.V.
Berliner Allee 57
40212 Düsseldorf
Tel 0211 600456-27
Fax 0211 600456-33
lopez@bvdw.org
www.bvdw.org
Kontakt
© 2013 | Bundesverband Digitale Wirtschaft (BVDW) e.V.

BVDW / IAB Germany – Power of Creation study

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