The emotional power of advertising – getting the bigger picture

The best ads resonate with people on an emotional level, yet most advertising pre-testing focuses on conscious and rational responses – making it ineffective. Jemma Ralton, Head of Advertising Research at Tapestry Research and Maria Victoria O’Hana, Cultural Analyst at Sign Salad showcase a new method of measuring the emotive and cognitive power of an ad that is helping brands to identify the creative ideas that will make a difference.

What you’ll learn:

• The history and thinking behind the role of emotion in advertising
• What makes for a great (or not so great) ad
• How Tapestry and Sign Salad combine quantitative data with semiotics analysis to decode what makes an ad a success (or failure!)
• An overview of the charity advertising landscape – showcasing opportunities for brands to disrupt the narrative

Most advertising pre-testing is a waste of time. It focuses on the wrong metrics and measures them in a false environment.

Advertising needs to resonate with consumers at an emotional rather than rational level – as Binet and Field’s work has shown, ads that are emotional have more impact long term. But pre-testing often focuses too much on the persuasion model of advertising; in other words, tapping into the conscious rather than subconscious.

Working with Dr Robert Heath (author of ‘The Hidden Power of Advertising’ and ‘Seducing the Subconscious’), Tapestry Research and cultural insight agency Sign Salad have developed an innovative way to measure more clearly the emotive and cognitive power of an ad, helping brands to identify creative ideas that will make a difference.

Join our Speaker Evening in June to learn about the thinking behind this work and explore recent case studies showing how this approach has led to innovative and creative campaigns.

About the speakers:

Jemma Ralton is Head of Advertising Research at Tapestry Research. She has over 10 years’ experience as a qualitative and quantitative researcher, working on global projects in sectors including charity, media, entertainment and lifestyle. Jemma joined Tapestry in 2018 following stints at Crowd DNA, HPI and the creative advertising agency Leo Burnett.

Maria Victoria O’Hana is a Cultural Analyst at Sign Salad. Maria Victoria leads semiotics and cultural insight projects for clients across categories including FMCG, fashion, finance, and services, helping brands to become more culturally relevant in the UK, North America, Europe, and Asia. Maria Victoria joined Sign Salad after working in the travel industry, and has a background in Art History with an MA in Caribbean and Latin American Studies.

Booking will open 6 weeks before the event takes place.