Cinema the 'attention leader' in the advertising market

At the Digital Cinema Media 2022 Upfronts conference in July, the results of several studies on the effectiveness of cinema advertising were presented, providing concrete evidence that, compared to other media, cinema really stands out, and that its ability to attract and maintain attention is virtually unparalleled.

The 'Centre of Attention' study was conducted by research company Lumen on behalf of DCM. Its aim was to measure the level of attention paid to cinema advertising and compare the results with other media (from Lumen's data bank). The researchers used special eye-tracking goggles among a representative sample of cinema-goers watching the film 'Batman' in March this year. A survey was later conducted to measure brand recall and other key indicators.

Survey results, including comparison with other types of media:

• Cinema is the medium maintaining the highest level of attention among audiences
• Cinema audiences watch an average of 24 seconds of advertising
• TV viewers watch an average of 14 seconds of advertising
• YouTube users watch an average of 4 seconds of an unskippable ad
• Facebook users watch an average of 2 seconds of advertising

Supporting the above findings are the results of other studies presented at the conference:

From the research (Differentology) we learn that cinema advertising provides an increase in key indicators such as:

• Awareness of advertising +17%
• Perception of brand image +19%
• Purchase consideration +16%
• Intention to act +23%

In contrast, the Demand Generation study conducted by ThinkBox shows that the best results for campaigns were when cinema took up 5% of the overall media budget.

Other findings from the study, presented as part of the fifth edition of DCM's Building Box Office Brands series:

The conference also addressed the difference between watching an ad and paying attention to an ad. In cinemas, adverts are difficult to miss. Consequently, there is no significant difference in attention span in relation to spot length, as the following figures show:

• 60 seconds 79% of viewing time
• 30 seconds 76% of viewing time

These results are above the benchmarks of other media such as display advertising.

Attention to cinema trailers was comparable to cinema ads: 77% vs. 80% of viewing time.

Dr Joe Devlin, a neuroscientist, also presented his insights at the conference. Amongst other things, he will highlight the existence of certain key factors that influence how cinema attracts attention. These include:

• A location different from everyday life
• The absence of so-called 'distractions'
• Community of live audiences
• Narrative plot
• Large screen

Dr Devlin also observed increased hippocampal activity, heart rate variability and electrodermal response in the cine. And all of this contributes to memory building, which leads to better brand recall.

Bottom line: cinema audiences are focused and engaged 😊

Source: https://the-media-leader.com/dcm-upfronts-cinema-as-the-centre-of-attention/