When it comes to online advertising, a new study by online ad network VideoEgg and comScore indicates that user engagement is perhaps more important than the environment in which an ad is placed.

The study, released this week, recruited 14,000 web users via a comScore panel and asked them to compare the same ads across brand name and non-brand name sites. The pages featured an ad from one of six major brands, while the other units were filled with PSAs. The results showed that, while brand name sites rated more favourably with users when assessed on their own, the perceived value of the site, good or bad, did not influence the user’s perception of the rich media ad located on it.

The study also asked panelists to rate ad effectiveness based on format, comparing pages with IAB banners, interstitials and rich video ad units respectively. It found that rich video units were twice as effective at generating aided and unaided ad recall as a standard IAB banner. It also found that first mention was six times higher for those who engaged with rich media ads, and aided recall was four times higher among engaged users. Engaged users were also found to be 23% more likely to consider the brand in the ad, and 12% more likely to recommend it.

The highest rate of ad recall was found when video interstitials and rich video ads were combined, generating over twice the rate of aided and unaided recall than a standard ad banner on its own.

‘By carefully controlling the environment and competitive ads on the page, this study provides unique and accurate insight into the differential impact of a creative unit for the same advertiser,’ Lesle Litton, vice president, comScore, said in a release. ‘Overall, it was interesting to see how exposure to online video ad units drove considerable gains in brand recall and perceptions when compared to standard banners.’

www.comscore.com
www.videoegg.com