What if..
Music in Television Commercials could
positively influence the way we feel about a
brand?
P. A. Schneider (10317473)
University of Amsterdam Faculty of Economics and Business Master thesis MSc Business Studies Specialization: Marketing Academic year: 2014-2015 Supervisor: Drs. Ing. A.C. J. Meulemans Second reader: Prof. Dr. J. Tettero Amsterdam, January 11, 2015
Preface
The entire year of 2014, I worked at JWT Amsterdam (JWT), an advertising agency. JWT develops great campaigns. I have always been curious in the realization of campaigns. It is an absolute blest to see how these campaigns are designed from scretch to the big campaigns we all know. I also have a great passion for music. For this thesis I decided to combine these two. I have experienced that the choice of music for a television commercial is often based upon feelings of the creator. The buy-out costs for (existing) music can be quite expensive. I am wondering what motivations play a role by choosing the music. I expect that the factor music is extremely important for the way we, the consumers, perceive the commercial. Brands like NIKON and IKEA specifically caught my interest. These brands use such specific music in their commercials, that by hearing the music alone, people think of the brand. The music used in these commercials became even more popular after the broadcasted commercial, while they already excisted. In my opinion that is one of the biggest achievements brands can have with their commercials.
Keywords: music, television commercials, brand awareness, product categories, personalities. I could not have written this thesis without the following people. First of all I would like to thank JWT Amsterdam for the possibility to write this thesis and for the support and knowledge of my colleagues. Specifically Richard Beerens, who helped me with editing the video- and audio fragments for my survey. I would also like to thank Yannick Balk who gave me feedback and advice during the analyses of the results. Furthermore I would like to thank my boyfriend Robbert Vrugteveen for his support and understanding during all time spent writing this thesis. My study friends Eefje Beentjes and Esther Weeber should be mentioned as well, their support and laughter during the hours in the library, made it fun to write and gave me the discipline needed. All other friends and familymembers should not be left out either, their support and sharing of my survey was really helpful as well. Last but defenitely not least; special thanks to my supervisor Toon Meulemans. We share our passion for music which made it easy and nice to discuss my questions with him.
Pauline Schneider,
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Table of Contents
1. Introduction ... 52. Theoretical Framework... 9
2.1 Brand Awareness ... 9
2.2 Advertising - television commercials ... 10
2.3 Music ... 11
2.4 The effect of music in television commercials ... 12
2.4.1 Music preferences ... 13
2.4.2 The role of music in television commercials ... 13
2.4.3 Music characteristics ... 15
2.5 Media Elements ... 19
2.6 Product Classifications ... 20
2.7 Human personalities ... 21
2.8 Overview theoretical framework ... 23
3. Methodology ... 24
3.1 Research model ... 24
3.2 Research question and hypotheses ... 25
3.3 Sample design and research setting ... 25
3.4 Procedure ... 26 3.5 Measurement of variables ... 31 4. Results ... 33 4.1 Randomization Check ... 33 4.2 Correlation Matrix ... 33 4.3 Hypothesis 1-a ... 34 4.4 Hypothesis 2-a ... 34 4.5 Hypothesis 1-b... 35 4.6 Hypothesis 2-b... 37 5. Discussion ... 39 5.1 General discussion ... 39 5.2 Limitations ... 41
5.3 Further research and recommendations ... 42
5.4 Conclusion ... 43
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Appendices ... 49
Appendix 1. Overview commercials / music survey ... 49
Appendix 2. Survey ... 50
List of figures and tables
Figures Figure 1: Stimulus-Response Model (Kotler and Keller; 2008) ... 6Figure 2: Dimensions of Brand Knowledge (Keller; 1993) ... 10
Figure 3: Conceptual Model ... 23
Figure 4: Research Model ... 24
Tables Table 1: Correlation Matrix ... 35
Table 2: Logistic regression analysis of recall as a funcion of condition (H1-a) ... 36
Table 3: Logistic regression analysis of recall as a funcion of condition (H2-a) ... 37
Table 4: Logistic regression analysis of recall as a funcion of condition (H1-b) ... 38
Table 5: Logistic regression analysis of recall as a funcion of condition (H1-b) ... 39
Table 6: Logistic regression analysis of recall as a funcion of condition (H2-b) ... 40
Introduction | 5
1.
Introduction
‘Our home, let me go home, home is wherever I’m with you’. These words from Edward Sharpe in
his song ‘Home’ are inextricably connected to the IKEA brand. This music has been produced in 2010 and came in the ranklists on number 73 in Australia (Triple; on abc.net; 2010). In 2011 IKEA decided to connect this song to a range of their commercials. IKEA has won a lot of prices with these commercials and the song has received a lot of credits as ‘best commercial music’ (Beemster; in Adformatie; 2013). This commercial has been the trigger for this research. It popped up many questions like; What makes this award-winning commercial so good that everyone knows the commercial? Is the use of music a dominant factor in commercials? Is it luck if a song is so perfectly choosen for a brand? Could music in television commercials increase brand-awareness? And if so, why? Could the music be linked in such a way to the brand, that hearing the music alone (without visuals/images) is enough for brand recall? Could different media-elements influence the role of music in television commercials as a driver for brand awareness? And will the use of specific music work for all types of products? In this research we try to give a better understanding in the role of music in television commercials and its relationship with brand awareness. This ‘Introduction’ will give a little background information on television commercials in general. Subsequently we will explain the Stimulus-Response Model by Kotler and Keller to gain a better understanding in Consumer Behavior. Moreover, this model acts as a starting point for the conceptual model. Furthermore we will deepen into the relevance of this research, for companies, managers and advertisers. Additionally we will provide an overview of the research’s composition.
A television commercial is structured with different features like; visuals, actors, copy, sex, humor, colors and the main topic of this research, music. In The Netherlands the first television commercial was broadcasted in 1967, which was 20 years after the first television commercial worldwide in The United States. These commercials were in black and white and focused mostly on the advertised product. Already from the start the commercials were accompanied by music. However, at the beginning this music was narrowed down to the so-called jingles; tunes that were especially developed for the television commercial. In the eighties they found a positive effect of using familiar/existing music for television commercials (Scheurs; 2004). Buying specific music for a television commercial can cost a lot of money in order to create a desired effect. Music should have a good fit with the brand, the product, the message and with the other features of the commercial (Macinnis and Park; 1991). According to Oakes (2007), the success factor of a commercial is even based upon the congruency of the music with the ad.
A lot of researchers try to find solutions on consumer behavior. Why would consumers in the end buy or like a product? They want to find the right formula for certain consumer
6 | Introduction
activities. Advertising is a phenomenon that is used to make consumers aware of the products. However, we understand that there is not one formula for making the most effective commercial or for reading consumers’ thoughts. Simply because every human being is different, has different preferences, habits, and will react differently on different types of advertising. Nowadays consumers face so many choices, so many channels where products are offered, such a big network, social media, cues, etc. that Marketing activity measurements are more difficult than ever. The starting point of this research, is the stimulus-response model (Kotler and Keller; 2008), see Figure 1. This model describes different factors that can influence the purchase decision.
Figure 1: Stimulus-Response Model (Kotler and Keller; 2008)
Companies spent a lot of money in Marketing campaigns (Singh and Rothschild; 1983). An important component of such campaigns is advertising. Advertising (communications) is one of the ‘Marketing Stimuli’ described in Kotler’s model. Furthermore these ‘Marketing Stimuli’ entail products & services. As stated above there is not only one formula, however, research could be the basis for strategic marketing decisions. There could be a difference in ‘Marketing Stimuli’ for specific product & services. You can imagine that an extraordinary campaign containing a lot of exposure, colors, happiness, up-tempo music, would fit better with such a ‘happy’ product than it would work for example for serious bank/insurance products & services. Price is also one component of the ‘Marketing Stimuli’; this component will be excluded from this research, as the focus is on awareness only. The model also reveals ‘Other Stimuli’; this variable in the model explains influencing factors from the external environment of which marketers have less control. This could lead to opportunities (e.g. new technology) or threats (e.g. economic crisis – less spending money) for the company. These stimuli will not be further discussed either in this research. In the middle of the model we see ‘Consumer Psychology’ and ‘Consumer Characteristics’. These variables together are also called the ‘black
Introduction | 7 box’ and are actually the most difficult to measure. The consumer black box describes distinct personalities and explains that each human being would react differently on certain advertising campaigns. Consumers also have various opinions about certain types of music. Could the combination of the two lead to brand awareness? If distinct personalities react differently on marketing stimuli, we could also make a distinction in product categories. That means that a consumer could react positively on a campaign regarding, for example, food products, but that same consumer would react negatively on a likewise campaign regarding, for example, bank products. The last stages of the model entail the ‘Buying Decision Process’ and the ‘Final Purchase Decision’. The assumption is made that if a consumer is at the decision stage, he at least knows the product / brand. In this research the last two stages of Kotler and Kellers’ model will be therefore captured as ‘brand awareness’. Based on this stimulus-response model, we conducted our main research question, which can be found below. The variables of which we assume that are part of this relationship, has been conducted ourselves. Due to a time limit for this thesis, we mention these variables, but not all of them will be further researched.
This research will be of added value to the advertising industry. We assume that music is an important factor in a television commercial, but from experience we can tell that most advertising agencies pay little attention to music research. Often there are no music specialists involved in the music choice for a commercial. Furthermore this choice is often the last step in the development of a television commercial, after all other aspects like voice-over and visuals have already been examined. Choosing the music for a commercial is a highly personal action. The Creative Director, the team and the client often make this choice. Most of the times, the selection is based upon mood and pace, combined with the musical knowledge of the individuals involved. The aim is to find ways to connect with the target audience; however, this target audience will not be selected based on musical tastes. That means that it is very difficult to eventually select the music for a television commercial (Herder; Soundscape; 2014). There is not one formula to discover the viewer’s musical taste and knowledge. Any piece of music will only be familiar to a certain part of the audience; there is no music that is liked by the entire population (Admap; Issue 438; 2013). As explained before an advertising campaign can cost a lot of money, as well for the entire development of a campaign, as for the specific buy-out costs for music. In order to obtain the most benefits from this investment, the campaign should adapt to the target group. With this thesis we would like to gain a deeper inside in how companies can increase brand awareness by the use of music in television commercials. The outcomes of this
Main research question: ‘How is music in television commercials related to brand awareness,
8 | Introduction
research should encourage the industry to focus more on the choice of music for their television commercials. If advertisers understand the urge, they could better plan and create more effective advertising.
In Chapter 2 ‘Theoretical Framework’, we will deepen into the existing literature to gain a better understanding in the role of music in television commercials and its relationship with brand awareness. At the end of this chapter we will give an overview of the conceptual model, which gives a clear understanding of all factors that can potentially influence this relationship. In Chapter 3 ‘Research Design’, we explain the research method, based on the research model. This research model is a selected route from the conceptual model. This chapter shows how research has been conducted and what variables have been used in order to give answers on the main research questions and hypotheses. In Chapter 4 ‘Results’, the outcome of the research will be described; this chapter shows the statistical analyses used in order to understand if the hypotheses have been supported. The conclusions of these outcomes will be further discussed in Chapter 5 ‘Discussion’. This chapter will also deepen into the limitations of this research and would provide suggestions for further research. This final chapter ends with a general conclusion.
Theoretical Framework| 9
2.
Theoretical Framework
Much research is done into music and into possible effects of music on human behavior. A lot of available theory is based upon music genre, -tempo and -volume. However, we found little,
recent, evidence about the relationship of music in television commercials with brand
awareness (Admap; Issue 438; 2003). Due to an extremely changing environment - Internet, media, and musical styles - we expect that it is of high relevance to continuously doing these kinds of research. In order to gain insight in our main research question, we will give an overview of all potential factors of which we think that can be influential. This chapter will finally lead to a conceptual model that gives an overview of the existing theory.
2.1
Brand Awareness
What is brand awareness and why it is important for companies? Many authors have written about brand awareness. Macdonald and Sharp (2003) defined 3 definitions of brand awareness, obtained by managers. These definitions were; (1) ‘brand awareness is as simple as the
recognition of the brand’, (2) ‘brand awareness is the percentage of consumers who know the product in the market’, and (3) ‘brand awareness is the association of the brand within a product category’. Macdonald and Sharp find these last 2 definitions the most relevant ones; however,
from the article we understood that brand awareness does not have one clear definition (Macdonald and Sharp; 2003). Even though there is not one definition, all definitions lead into the same direction. According to the literature, the importance of brand awareness seems to be more obvious. Marketers should realize that the long-term success, of all future marketing programs for a brand, is greatly affected by the knowledge about the brand in memory that has been established by the firm’s short-term marketing efforts (Craton and Lantos; 2011). The article by Keller (1993) aimed to define the value for a brand that can be created through marketers. Probably the most important asset to improve marketing productivity is the customer’s knowledge about a brand. This so called customer-based equity happens when the customer is familiar with the brand and holds favorable, strong, and unique brand associations in memory. According to Keller (1993), ‘Brand Knowledge’ can be split into ‘Brand Awareness’ and ‘Brand Image’. This research will focus on brand awareness only. Keller divided ‘Brand
Awareness’ in ‘Brand Recall’ and ‘Brand Recognition’. Keller explained brand recall as followed;
‘it implies that consumers correctly generate the brand from memory.’ In earlier research, Bettman (1979) described brand recall as followed; ‘after hearing a minimal cue, people can
reconstruct the original information’. These definitions support each other. Keller described
brand recognition as followed; ‘it relates to consumers’ ability to confirm prior exposure to the
brand when given the brand as a cue’. This description is again built upon an earlier description
10 | Theoretical Framework
seeing something, people notice that they have seen or heard it before’ (Keller; 1993; Bettman;
1979; cited in Singh and Rothschild; 1983). The dimensions of brand awareness by Keller are visualized in Figure 2.
Figure 2: Dimensions of Brand Knowledge (Keller; 1993)
Furthermore, we found that purchase decisions could be rational, however, brand preference and brand engagement are probably more powerful drivers of buying behavior than functional considerations (Field; 2007; cited in Warncke; 2012). Ad campaigns aim to facilitate a consumer’s storage and recall of the feelings and thought associated with the product (Zaltman; 2003, p. 166; cited in Ladinig and Schellenberg; 2012). According to Zielske (1995), a big part of the advertising investment is used for repetition of messages to increase brand awareness. The reason for this is that brand awareness probably increases after repeated messages (Zielske; 1995; cited in Singh and Rothschild; 1983). We can conclude that brand awareness plays an important role in consumers’ decision making; it is important that consumers think of the brand when they think about a product category.
2.2
Advertising - television commercials
Thus far the theory explained the importance of brand awareness. Advertising is a way to put a product or service into the attention of the customer and could help to increase brand awareness. A lot of companies nowadays use television commercials as their way to increase the attention to the product and to increase sales. Most brands work with creative agencies to fulfill their goals regarding advertising (Lienhart, Kuhmunch and Effelsberg; 1997). Research showed that advertising through television commercials is one of the most effective brand-building tools. According to Binet (2007), television commercials are four times as effective as any other media forms (Binet; 2007; cited in Warncke; 2012). Television commercials gain their power, acting as an emotional story-telling medium, as they seek fame through creativity.
Theoretical Framework| 11
‘Charm people and they are much more willing to believe good things about the brand’ (Field;
2007; cited in Warncke; 2012). According to this theory we can assume that advertising - television commercials - would impact brand awareness. But how does this work? What are the important drivers of television commercials that cause this impact?
Consumers are constantly confronted with many advertisements. However, just a few of these advertisements will catch the consumers’ attention (Ray and Webb; 1986; cited in Bozman, Mueling and Pettit - O’Malley; 2011). Within commercials the viewers will be exposed to many different stimuli (visuals, people, colors, voices, settings, etc.). All these stimuli could affect the way consumers feel about the commercial. Due to a short exposure period, effective communication is of high relevance. It would therefore be interesting to analyze an individual’s motivation and ability to process advertisements (Bozman et al.; 2011). Effective cues, paired with an advertisement, apparently could transfer emotional responses directly to the brand. These emotions become part of the advertising communication and play an important role in the overall evaluation of the brand, either positive or negative. It could be expected that this emotive favorability is related to brand attitudes. Television broadcasting is a relatively low involvement medium where a disliked emotive cue would lead to unnecessary harm. In both high- and low involvement situations, repetition of affective cues could influence the persuasive ability of an advertisement (Bozman et al.; 2011).
Building brand equity is a long-term goal. Binet and Field (2013) explain how brand advertising works on an emotional level. They reveal that emotional campaigns have bigger business effects than rational campaigns. Furthermore they explained the theory of ‘fame’ campaigns. These campaigns are extremely effective and efficient due to the fact that they inspire people to share their enthusiasm about a brand with others and to talk about the product and/or brand (Binet and Field; 2013). In our opinion a great example of such a ‘fame’ campaign is the, earlier mentioned, commercial of IKEA. What makes a so-called ‘fame’ campaign? Could we use music as an effective cue to make the campaign work? In other words, what role does music has to increase the likeability of a television commercial?
2.3
Music
To answer these questions we need to determine the effect of music as a standalone variable. According to Bruner (1990), music is an important stimulus for marketers to study, understand and employ. Every day consumers are exposed to different stimuli, which could all have an impact on the way they behave. Music could be seen as one of the most manipulative and influential elements (Milliman; 1982; cited in Herrington; 1996). Music is present in every culture, occupies a gigantic space in human lives and plays a dominant role in most leisure activities. Most people are exposed to music every day, consciously or unconsciously. They are
12 | Theoretical Framework
often not aware of the effect that music causes. Li et al. (2003) explained that music is not only used for pleasure activities. It probably has a bigger purpose, because of its social and physiological effects (Li, Ogihara and Li; 2003). Music can help to gain attention, create desired moods, change the pace of an advertising narrative, facilitate brand- and message recall, improve attitudes towards brands and it can influence purchase behavior (Admap; Issue 438; 2013). The importance of music can be explained by the emotive quality induced by music (Rentfrow and Gosling; 2003; Zenter et al.; 2008).
A lot of previous research stresses the impact of music on people’s emotions. Bruner emphasizes on music’s emotional expressionism and its role as a mood influencer. He found that human beings nonrandom assign emotional meaning to music. People experience nonrandom affective reactions to music. Furthermore the article stated that music used in marketing-related contexts is capable of evoking nonrandom affective and behavioral responses in consumers (Bruner; 1990). According to Cook, music acquires meaning through its mediation of society. He examined the role that music plays within a contemporary multi-media context, whose overall communicative function is rather well defined (Cook; 1994).
In for example a service setting, musical preference could influence the time and money consumers spent in a store. Music could also help shoppers to feel more comfortable within a long queue. Consumers will voluntarily or involuntary adjust their pace to the music, as music has an affective dimension which could influence behavior (Linsen; 1975; cited in Herrington; 1996)
The notion that background music can be used to influence consumer behavior is derived from the concept of atmospherics (Kotler; 1973). Kotler explains this concept as the conscious designing of space to create certain effects in buyers. In other words, it is the effort to design buying environments to produce specific emotional effects in the buyer that enhance his purchase probability. As we now understand the impact that music can have, can we say that these effects will count for all types of music, for all human beings, and in all situations? Most probably there is also something like musical taste that can impact the influential role that music plays.
2.4
The effect of music in television commercials
After explaining the theory of advertising and after giving insight in the variable music, we now would like to combine these two. Could music play a role in enjoyment to television commercials? Are music preferences important for liking a commercial? How could music help to sell products or to increase brand awareness? And what is the impact of different music characteristics? These are difficult questions. We found little recent evidence/articles about the
Theoretical Framework| 13 impact of music, and its characteristics, in television commercials. Most books on advertising effectiveness have relatively little to say about music either. Probably, and most obviously, the main contribution of music in a television commercial is to increase interest and enjoyment. However, many marketers do believe that brand awareness can be increased through music. Branthwaite and Ware (1997) believe that the choice of music in a television commercial can improve brand recognition. Sutherland and Sylvester supported this statement and stated that if music is linked to a brand, it is common that whenever people hear the music alone they will think about the brand (Sutherland and Sylvester; 2000; cited in Craton and Lantos; 2011). Furthermore, Lindstrom (2009) stated that sound is more effective than visual cues to attract attention. The consumer will not only pay more attention to the advertisement but would also remember the advertisement in a later state.
2.4.1 Music preferences
Rentfrow and Gosling (2003) developed a theory of music preferences. The theory explains when, why, where and how people listen to music. There is not much information about why people like the music they do. The theory of music preferences could give the assumption that a television commercial with a certain choice of music could also lead to liking or disliking a commercial (Rentfrow and Gosling; 2003). And according to Herrington, the listener’s preference for different music styles would probably be even more influential than a general emotional tone (Herrington; 1996). However, in earlier research, Kellaris & Cox (1989) found different results. They argue that music preferences not necessarily lead to product preferences, probably mainly under more ideal circumstances. Obviously people have different feelings with music. But what does lead to product preferences, or in this case, brand awareness?
2.4.2 The role of music in television commercials
Branthwaite and Ware (1997) stress the importance of enjoyment to ads. This enjoyment acts as a strong determinant of effectiveness; it will make the brand more memorable and it increases the attention towards the brand and brand message. They stated that enjoyment could be enhanced by the presence of music in a television commercial. Music in advertising increases brand awareness and sales for brands. Music will help to heighten consumer response towards an ad, feel warmer towards a brand, and increase social media engagement. A lot of the most popular and effective commercials have been built around music. Research reveals that television commercials with music are 20% to 30% more effective in leading to sales than television commercials without music. Congruent music in a television commercial increases the effectiveness even further. Television commercials with congruent music are 16% more effective than television commercials with incongruent music (Admap; Issue 438; 2013).
14 | Theoretical Framework
Gorn (1982) conducted a research looking at the different features of commercials, with a focus on music, and its impact on attention to product information. The question in his research was if features, like music, could play such a dominant role that viewers neglected the information given. In other words; could music in a commercial directly influence the attitude of a customer? His results reveal that hearing liked or disliked music, while being exposed to a product/service, can directly affect product preferences. In the same article, Honomichl (1981) suggested that background features in commercials can influence product choice through classical conditioning. Hung (2000) conducted a research where she examined the process by which consumers use music to create meanings. The results of this research indicated that the viewer’s cultural text form a reference point for reading the commercials.
The fit between music and a brand – and its television commercial – is crucial. Not every piece of music works in every television commercial. When these are congruent, purchase intentions go up, and visual recall of the television commercials scenes, verbal recall of the brand- and message recall, is better. If there is no fit between the music and a brand, it can have little or even negative effects (Alpert, et al.; 2005; Oakes; 2007; cited in Admap; Issue 438; 2013).
Bozman et al suggest that pretesting of music backgrounds should be used to improve the effectiveness of the television commercial. They stated that prominent music gives more enjoyment than background music and that well-known music will have a greater impact than self-made music for a commercial. When creating a commercial it is important to know which role the music should have. Music could play several roles in advertising; it may attract the attention, it could carry the product message or it could create excitement or a state of relaxation (Lindstrom; 2009). According to Alexomanolaki, Loveday and Kennett (2007), music is effective in facilitating both implicit learning and recall of the advertised product. There appears to be a certain mechanism of unconscious elaboration of musical signal. The musical element in a television commercial reinforces or directs the viewer’s attention towards the elements that the advertiser wants to emphasize.
A viewer’s focusing attention is obligatory to integrate the message from the television commercial in the long-term knowledge; in that case it might influence perceptions, feelings, thoughts, and actions towards the brand (Weilbacher; 2003; cited in Ladinig and Schellenberg; 2012). Attention during television viewing is very sensitive, most of the times people are distracted and do not pay full attention, especially during the commercial break (Krugman; 1995; cited in Ladinig and Schellenberg; 2012). Music in television commercials could help to guide visual attention back to the television screen (Anderson; 1983; cited in Ladinig and Schellenberg; 2012).
Theoretical Framework| 15
There is an interesting balance between music and visuals. Music should be used to affect perception without disrupting narrative credibility (Kalinak; 1992; and Boltz; 1991; pg. 86; cited in Ladinig and Schellenberg; 2012). Wingstedt et al. explain the vicious circle of music and images; if music could affect how we see things, images could also determine how we hear the music. This is called conceptual resonance between image and sound. The authors further explain that our conscious attention is usually on the visuals (Wingstedt, Brändström and Berg; 2010).
Music facilitates the implicit learning and recall of key features of the advertised products. It is furthermore effective in creating strong associations with the different features of the commercial, especially without the viewer’s conscious effort. Without music, the recognition of verbal information is quite poor (Anderson; 1983; cited in Ladinig and Schellenberg; 2012). Music in television commercials could strengthen that what is exposed and has an attentive role; the viewer’s focus is on the visuals. According to Ladinig and Schellenberg (2012), this reinforcement of music could be considered as index or as symbol-index. Index is described as ‘music initially unfamiliar to the audience functioning as index of the advertising spot’ and symbol-index is described as ‘music familiar to the audience, composed for another social or
cultural purpose and appropriated for its commercial use’. According to Macinnis and Park, low-
and high involvement depends on the indexicality, defined here as; ‘the extent to which music
arouses emotion-laden memories’. High indexicality induces strong emotions that are tied to past
experiences. As a characteristic of music, indexicality is often unrelated to the advertised message (Macinnis and Park; 1991). In the same article, Park & Young (1986) describe the role of music with other ad elements, called ‘fit’. If the music fits with other elements, consumers perceive the music as a relevant addition.
2.4.3 Music characteristics
We searched for different music characteristics of which we assume that could count as influencers of the way we interpret music in commercials. These are; (1) recency, (2) familiarity/existence, (3) narration, (4) language, (5) mood/genre and (6) artist(s).
(1)Recency - Could a musical soundtrack which is relatively new, say less than one year old, positively influence brand awareness? In our assumptions we made a link between the recency of music and the likeability of music. We assumed that if current commercials feature current music, probably a lot of people will know the music and will therefore create a meaning to this music in their minds. Unfortunately we could not find evidence in the existing literature about the impact of using recent music in television commercials.
(2) Familiarity / Existence - Familiarity seems to be a primary determinant of preference (Davies; 1991; cited in Herrington; 1996). Familiar music can associate the brand
16 | Theoretical Framework
with symbolic associations. For example, well-known Christmas music in a television commercial could call up warm emotions of family, happiness, etc., which could then be linked to the brand (Craton and Lantos; 2011). Research showed that familiar music helps with remembering information. An experiment with music and a list of names revealed that the condition with music helped in the long-term memory of the participants. A familiar melody in these studies worked as a trace for remembering the list of names. This research also suggests that when the melody is not familiar, the benefit may not be as great (Rainey and Larsen; 2002). According to Herrington (1996), music that is custom-written for a commercial frequently makes little or no sense when it is heard by itself, away from the context of words and visuals. Branthwaite and Ware (1997) stated that familiar music, or music that have been used by the brand before, can improve brand recognition. Furthermore they stated that the ‘most music conscious life stage’ is human’s teenager years. They suggest that music in commercials should be tailored to the brand’s target group, where in this case the music in a commercial should be selected from people’s teenager years. This statement was supported by Rainey and Larsen (2002); they believe that setting information to music can intensify learning and remembering information. In their research they experienced that many adults, when hearing a melody, can recall the lyrics from a song that they have heard often as adolescents, even if they have not heard the song for many years. This would probably lead to stronger emotional ties to a brand (Rainey and Larsen; 2002).
There is evidence to suggest that the regular use of the same music for a brand can generate familiarity and enhance involvement with the brand as well. However, a piece of music is often selected specifically for an individual ad or campaign without the intention of becoming a fixture in the brand’s communications (Admap; Issue 438; 2013). Herrington, nonetheless, believes that this could be an advantage. He stated that after a certain number of repetitions, patrons of a song may tire and people become annoyed of hearing it. Therefore, when selecting musical compositions service providers should use music that is familiar yet still fresh to patrons (Herrington; 1996). It seems to be difficult to decide which music should be chosen for a commercial, it should be in balance.
Even though most researchers seem to underline the importance of familiar music, music in commercials can also work the other way around. An interesting article on Adformatie (2014) explained to role of music for Ice cream, in this case, Cornetto. The mission for Cornetto (Unilever) was; ‘Score a hit’. In other words, design an attractive sound that will be the recognizer for the commercial - music that does not exist yet and that is not familiar. As this most recent source contradicts the literature, we will deepen into this topic in this thesis.
(3)Narration - Music can communicate meaning in two different ways, nonverbally by instrumental music and verbally by lyrics (Lantos and Craton; 2012). Music with lyrics, in
Theoretical Framework| 17 television commercials, communicates meaning by being relevant to a commercial’s message (MacInnis and Park; 1991; cited in Lantos and Craton; 2012). According to Hung (2000), the lyrics in a musical soundtrack form a reference point for reading the commercials. Results from this research reveal that music in congruent ads reduces ‘noise’ as the connection of the cultural context already communicates meaning. On the other hand, when the lyrics do not match the message in the commercial, it could create an alternative context that is meaningful to the viewer (Hung; 2000). According to the literature there are several statements that explain how narrative music helps with promoting a brand. First of all we found that verbal recall is promoted by well-learned music. This means that words are better learned and recalled with music than when spoken. Verbal recall probably improves when combined with the melody of a well-known tune (Bartlett and Snelus; 1980; Rubin; 1977; Wallace; 1994; and Yalch; 1991; cited in Lantos and Craton; 2012). Furthermore the lyrics in music could provide a platform for the brand message. Rehearsal could lead to better remembering of the brand, which could for example happen when people sing the song from an advertisement (Macklin; 1988; cited in Lantos and Craton; 2012). Music could also lead to the formation and cueing of memory associations with ad content. Music in advertising creates an auditory memory that can assist recall of an advertisement’s visual and emotional element, even when people cannot remember the message argument (Clow and Baack; 2003; p. 320; cited in Lantos and Craton; 2012). And if there is a fit between the lyrics and the message in the television commercials it can increase brand recall. This means that the chosen music is integrated in the brand message (Kellaris et al.; 1993; cited in Lantos and Craton; 2012). Based on this theory we would like to gain a better insight in narrative music in television commercials related to brand awareness.
(4) Language - Language is described here as the language of the lyrics. We did find evidence that perception of music can be strongly influenced by the language spoken by the listener (Deutsch; 1991). However, we did not find more, nor recent, evidence regarding the influence of the language itself. As this topic is close to ‘narration’, we decided to take these two together. I.e.; we do not treat ‘language’ as a separate variable. Narration explains whether the lyrics in a musical soundtrack are understandable by the listeners. Language is, in our assumption obviously, a basis ingredient for this.
(5) Genre / Mood - Generally people tend to like happy-sounding music more than sounding music. However, in everyday listening situations, people often prefer to listen to sad-sounding music instead of listening to happy-sad-sounding music (Ladinig and Schellenberg; 2012). Energetic music tends to create feelings of excitement, while calm and serious music could create meditative feelings (Gabrielsson and Lindstrom; 2001; cited in Lantos and Craton; 2011). Research found that a tempo change is sufficient to induce music-dependent memory. Tempo was found as an influencer of mood, and recall is higher in a mood context consistent with a
18 | Theoretical Framework
given tempo (Balch and Lewis; 1996). Tempo appears to be as well a psychological property of sound. Its influence seems to stem simply from its intensity (Kellaris and Kent; 1993). It does not happen often that negative emotions are experienced in response to music (Juslin and Laukka; 2007; cited in Zentner, Grandjean and Scherer; 2008). Positive emotions were supposedly more dependent on the nature of music (Zentner, Grandjean and Scherer; 2008). People in good moods would not feel better after listening to music they enjoy, but remarkable is that if they listen to music they dislike it could make them feel worse. However, people in bad moods will not feel worse after listening to music they dislike, notable is that they might feel better after listening to music they enjoy (Wheeler; 1985; cited in Lantos and Craton; 2012). According to Sloboda (2005), we could not state that different styles of music cause a specific effect in mood in every situation. We must be aware of the fact that a given piece of music can arouse different emotional responses; different responses between individuals, but as well different responses for the same individual on different occasions (Sloboda; 2005; cited in Lantos and Craton; 2012). These same effects about music could be measured in television commercials as well (Wheeler; 1985; cited in Lantos and Craton; 2012). As Sloboda (2005) mentioned that individuals could react different to music in different occasions, we expect this topic to be more relevant for a longitudinal study. Furthermore a lot of research has been conducted regarding genre and mood, which made this variable less appealing to us. Therefore we decided to leave this variable out of this research.
(6) Artists - Apart from the characteristics of the music itself, we assume that the performer of the music, i.e. the artist, could play a role in an advertisement as well. This assumption is based upon the likeability of the artist as an influencer of the likeability of the music in the television commercial, which would subsequently lead to the likeability of the commercial. In research we did find evidence that a so-called ´celebrity technique´ (the use of celebrities in television commercials) is extremely effective. Binet and Pringle (2005) explained, according to a measurement system called ‘mruk’ (market research UK), that the attention, commitment and acceptation towards an advertisement can be increased by a celebrity with a high likeability level (Binet and Pringle; 2005). This conclusion has been supported in the research from Fleck, Korchia and Le Roy. In their research they reveal that advertisements that use celebrities as endorsers are often the popular ones. Furthermore they add the importance of congruency between the brand and the celebrity. In other words, the brand should feature a celebrity that is representative for the brand believes. If there is a match it could even influence purchase intentions (Fleck, Korchia, and Le Roy; 2012). However, these findings are based upon the presence of a celebrity in a television commercial. We did not find any evidence that these results also count for the artist of a musical soundtrack of a television commercial. Based upon the current theory of celebrities as potential brand endorses, we assume that the artist of a song
Theoretical Framework| 19 would work in the same way. This artist is also connected to the brand. A good example of a celebrity endorser through music is Justin Timberlake for McDonalds. McDonalds used a new slogan in their campaigns; ‘I’m lovin’ it’ which came from one of Justin Timberlake’s songs. And naturally, Justin Timberlake’s music has been used in the television commercials (Billboard; 2003). Nevertheless, we decided not to further deepen into this characteristic either.
2.5 Media Elements
The earlier paragraphs gave insight in all the elements that potentially can influence the relationship between music in television commercials and brand awareness. We also assume that this relationship can be moderated by different elements, for example though media elements. Advertising agencies develop a commercial for a specific company/ brand. The media purchases are mostly done by a (external) media agency based upon the goal and budget of the company. Media elements could play an important role in the attitude towards an advertisement. We make the assumption that for example frequency, broadcasting time, period and the different channels will influence people’s susceptibility regarding commercials.
How often a commercial will be broadcasted is easy to measure. Research revealed that increasing the time between onset and measurement will initially increase the attention to the commercial, recall of the commercial (Appel; 1966; cited in Calder and Sternthal; 1980), and awareness of the brand, (Grass; 1970; cited in Calder and Sternthal; 1980). This statement was also supported by Mindshare (Roode; Mindshare; 2014). Mindshare stated that there is almost always a positive relationship between the broadcast frequency and the (positive) effect of a commercial. They measured that a good television commercial needs around 3 contact moments, independent of the period, in order to have the desired effect on brand awareness. On the other hand, a less good television commercial needs 8 or even more contact moments to have the same effect. The strength of this effect strongly depends on the specific, advertised, brand / product. A product that is quite unfamiliar, with less market competition, will probably have a stronger effect, compared to an established brand with lots of advertising already (Mindtrack; Roode; Mindshare; 2014). Mindshare furthermore explained that such effects are easier to measure for products than for services, and that the yield of this effect is dependable upon the brand itself and its competitors (Roode; Mindshare; 2014). However, in earlier research, Calder and Sternthal (1980) revealed that with increasing repetition, it could also happen that viewers will no longer attend to a message. This is what they called ‘wear-out’. In the end the attention will level off before it will ultimately decline. An interesting aspect is that people do listen to music itself with a lot of repetition, apparently this works differently in television commercials. Balance seems to be key.
20 | Theoretical Framework
Furthermore we are wondering if there is a fit in the music choice of a television commercial and the broadcast channel. Would a commercial with for example English music / lyrics work on a children’s’ channel - bearing in mind that most children will not be fluent in English, yet? Or would rebellious music in a television commercial work on Discovery Channel? Mindshare gave us an insight in this matter. They explained that they always use an important source to check whether the commercial fits the target group on the specific broadcast channel, namely; NOM doelgroepmonitor (www.nommedia.nl). This is a large industry survey that reveals the (media-) behavior of consumers. Furthermore they use the SKO (www.kijkonderzoek.nl) for important data about consumer behavior regarding advertising. When Mindshare receives a campaign brief, the first things they do is a check for different channels and decide which channels would be most effective to reach the target group. An example of these actions is the use of the Dutch broadcasting channel RTL4. According to the NOM, the channel attracts a lot of females. The reach of RTL4 is very large (NOM and SKO - 2014). By advertising for example for make-up, it would be very efficient to advertise on RTL4. However, broadcasting seconds on RTL4 could be more expensive than on other channels, therefore the media agency always considers the best options.
Other factors that could influence the relationship are period and time. In certain periods, like Christmas, some commercials would have more effect. During Christmas it would, for example, make less sense to broadcast a commercial for bikinis with summer music, compared to a commercial with Christmas -music, -colors, -food, etc. We assume that a certain time for broadcasting a commercial will also impact the effect on brand awareness. Prime time would have more viewers, but does that automatically increase brand awareness? Mindshare explained that the choice to broadcast a commercial on prime time depends on several factors. An important factor could be the usage or buying time of the product / service. An example is Knorr (Unilever); they often advertise in the morning, based on the thought that consumers still need to do their grocery shopping that day, it would therefore make more sense than advertising Knorr in the evening. However, some studies reveal that people are more open to advertising during prime time as they will be more relaxed while watching television (Roode, de L. - Mindshare - 2014). We found little further academic evidence that media elements, in combination with the featured music in a commercial, have an influence on brand awareness.
2.6
Product Classifications
Currently we have a great understanding of the possible effects of music in television commercials. Most probably these outcomes will not be the same for all kinds of products. We made the assumption that great visuals and music in for example a commercial for Coca-Cola,
Theoretical Framework| 21 could probably have a different effect on a commercial for example for Banking products. Firstly we need to define the different product classifications.
Armstrong and Kotler (2012) made a distinction between 4 types of product classifications; (1) convenience products, (2) shopping products, (3) specialty products and (4) unsought products. (1) Convenience products are frequently purchased products. These products are bought quickly and with a minimum effort. (e.g. toothpaste and coffee) (2)
Shopping products are products that the consumers usually compare with other products based
upon for example price, quality and style (e.g. clothes and home accessories). (3) Specialty
products are those products for which consumers are willing to make a special purchasing
effort; however, they do not require comparisons (e.g. jewelry and cars). (4) Unsought products are those products that are not top-of-mind of the consumer. Consumers normally do not think of buying these products (e.g. insurances and gravestones) (Armstrong and Kotler; 2009).
Besides these product classification distinctions of Armstrong and Kotler, products could also be classified according to different cues. Barrena and Sanchez made a distinction between (1) search cues, (2) experience cues and (3) credence cues with different levels of abstraction. These cues count for different product classes. (1) Search products enable the consumer to judge the quality of the products. These cues are visible before the actual purchase of the product. (2) Experience products can only be verified and observed after consuming the product. And finally, (3) Credence products, these are hidden and cannot be verified or observed, not even after consumption (Barrena and Sanchez; 2011). An interesting finding in research, regarding different product categories, is that when attitudes toward a specific category change, judgments of brands belonging to this category may also change (Lacobucci, Posavac, Sanbonmatsu and Seo; 2014). This statement gives the assumption that commercials for different brands, in the same category, will influence the consumers’ opinion about the focal brand. Can we also assume that music in television commercials, in relation to brand awareness, can have different effects on different product categories? In this thesis we will focus only on 2 product classifications by Armstrong and Kotler, namely; convenience- and specialty products. We assume that these 2 categories are most interesting to compare, based on the difference in buying effort.
2.7
Human personalities
According to the current research, there are different definitions of the term ‘human personalities’ (Engler; 1995; cited in Maehle and Shneor; 2010). Carver and Scheier (2004) describe personality as ‘a dynamic organization, inside the person, of psychophysical systems that
create the person’s characteristic patterns of behavior, thoughts and feelings’ (Carver and Scheier;
22 | Theoretical Framework
various definitional challenges should succeed. They further define the term as followed: ‘human personality is active; it is a psychological concept tied to a physical body, it is a causal force
determining how the person related to the world. It shows up in patterns, and it is displayed in many forms including behaviors, thought and feelings’ (Maehle and Shneor; 2010). Famous
personality tests include the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Belbin Team Inventory. These test focus on human personalities, especially based upon one’s role within a team, they are fixated on leadership and management styles (Briggs and McCaulley; 1985; Hammer; 1996; Belbin; 1981/1999; Belbin; 2000; cited in Maehle and Shneor; 2010). According to our research model, we expect that human personalities are an influential factor on how people reflect on television commercials; we therefore need to describe human personalities not in a team role but more for the classification of market segments of consumers requiring different marketing communications strategies. Maehle and Shneor (2010) used the ‘Diversity Icebreaker Scale’ (by Ekelund; 1997) in their research. The Diversity Icebreaker is a tool to differentiate people on a safe and positive way, excluding racism or discrimination (Maehle and Shneor; 2010; Romani; 2013). However we assume that, looking at brand awareness, the differences in consumer groups could be better and easier explained in just two groups, based on persuasion. We therefore have deepened into the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM). This model reveals that people are neither universally thoughtful in evaluating persuasive messages, not universally mindless. In other words; it depends on how much cognitive effort a person devotes to processing a message. There are two routes; the central route and the peripheral route. Consumers that follow the central route are most likely to evaluate the true merits of the given information in order to make their opinion about a certain product or service. Consumers following the peripheral route will associate the product or service with positive or negatives cues and would therefore create an attitude towards the specific product or service. Probably any form of persuasion can be understood as emphasizing one of these two routes (Cacioppo and Petty; 1984). We assume that consumers, who usually tend to take the peripheral route, are more susceptible for the music used in a television commercial. We furthermore expect that different human personalities will react differently on certain television commercials. For those reasons, we noticed human personalities as an influencing factor for the relationship between music in television commercials and brand awareness.
Nonetheless, music may be an effective mnemonic device in initial learning for some people, but not for all people. It is possible that there are more influencers like; musical experience, training, or other skills that may be related to such a benefit. For instance, people with a good ear for melody and a good sense of rhythm might use these elements more effectively than others (Rainey and Larsen; 2002). Due to the time limitation we will not test
Theoretical Framework| 23 this variable in this research, we also believe that tis variable could be better tested in a longitudinal research.
2.8
Overview theoretical framework
Based on the literature, we can conclude that there are many factors that have an influence on the relationship of music in television commercials and brand awareness. The theory leads to a conceptual model, which can be found in Figure 3. We want to measure brand awareness, as the dependent variable of this research. According to the model we use ‘music’ as an influencer in television commercials. However, not all commercials feature music, so we made a distinction between the presence of music (music vs. no music) and the level of presence (100% vs. 0%). Music has furthermore been divided into different characteristics that potentially could influence the impact of the commercial. We expect that the relationship can be moderated by; product categories, human personalities and media elements.
Figure 3: Conceptual Model
Due to the time constraint we unfortunately cannot test the entire model. Therefore we conducted our research model, which can be found in Chapter 3 ‘Research Design’, as a route of this conceptual model. The research model gives a clear overview of the main research question and the belonging hypotheses.
24 | Methodology
3.
Methodology
This research has been executed according to the deductive research approach. A deductive research approach involves the testing of a theoretical proposition by using a research strategy specifically designed for the purpose of its testing. This approach entails questions based upon the existing literature.Because we would like to find a relationship between music in television commercials and brand awareness it will be an explanatory study. Furthermore we have chosen to do a cross-sectional research. This means that the results have been measured at a single point of time from multiple types of people. (Saunders and Lewis; 2012). This chapter starts with the research model that will be tested; subsequently we give an overview of the main research question and the hypotheses in order to answer this question. In paragraph 3.3 we explain the procedure we took for the research. This paragraph explains which commercials and music have been chosen for the survey. Paragraph 3.4 gives insight in our survey setting and sample design. In paragraph 3.5 the measurement of the variables will be explained.
3.1 Research model
As explained in Chapter 2 ‘Theoretical Framework’, we narrowed the conceptual model down into a research model that gives a clear overview of the research question and the belonging hypotheses. The dependent variable (DV) in this research is brand awareness. We want to find a relationship with the independent variables (IV), here known as the music in television commercials (familiarity vs. narration). We expect that this potential relationship could be moderated by different product categories (convenience vs. specialty). Our research model can be found below, in Figure 4.
Methodology| 25
3.2 Research question and hypotheses
Our research model leads to the following main research question and hypotheses.
Focusing on the first part of the main research question, we would like to find a possible relationship between 2 music characteristics (familiarity and narration) in television commercials and brand awareness. This will lead to the following 2 hypotheses:
We assume that the relationship between music in television commercials and brand awareness can be moderated by product categories. In other words, we think that possible effects measured in the first 2 hypotheses could be different for different product categories. From the 4 product categories, explained by Kotler (2012); convenience-, shopping-, specialty- and unsought products, we have chosen two different categories; convenience- and specialty products. One of the biggest differences between these product categories is the purchasing effort for the products. We expect that commercials for convenience products have more impact as more people could buy these products without overthinking. For special products, consumers make different considerations and would pay different attention to the commercials. These assumptions lead to the following sub-hypotheses:
3.3 Sample design and research setting
The actual population in this research consisted of all people that watch television and that are potential to generate brand awareness. The survey language was Dutch, as we focused on the Dutch society only. There were 2 conditions, randomly divided. We aimed to receive at least 75 surveys, per condition, in return. The survey-link has been sent to all relations on Social Media
Main research question: ‘How is music in television commercials related to brand awareness,
and what factors can influence or strengthen this relationship?’
H1-a: Familiar music in television commercials increases brand awareness, compared to unfamiliar music.
H2-a: Narrative music in television commercials increases brand awareness, compared to instrumental music.
H1-b: Familiar music in television commercials creates more brand awareness for convenience products than for specialty products.
H2-b: Narrative music in television commercials creates more brand awareness for convenience products than for specialty products.
26 | Methodology
like Facebook and LinkedIn (700+ relations). People in our own network shared the survey-link 15 times. In total we reached 357 people that opened the survey-link. Of these 357 people, there were 197 people that started the survey. 185 people actually finished the entire survey. From these finished surveys, there were 9 surveys incomplete because of technical problems with the audio-fragments at the end of the survey. We decided to leave them out for any analyses. Therefore the total amount of completed surveys was 176. The 176 completed surveys were divided over 2 conditions. Condition 1 had a total of 79 respondents, with 46 ‘male’ respondents (58%) and 33 ‘female’ respondents (42%). Condition 2 had a total of 97 respondents, with 31 ‘male’ respondents (32%) and 66 ‘female’ respondents (68%). The youngest respondent was 14 years old, whereas the oldest respondent was 70 years old. The average age of all respondents, in both conditions, was 36 (SD = 12.2). The survey was sent on the 11th of November. The respondents had almost three weeks to fill in the survey. All results were collected the 1st of December. The survey contained 4 parts. Part 1 consisted of 6 general / basic questions; these were the same for all participants. Part 2 showed 6 commercials with for each commercial, 11 statements. There were two different surveys. In both conditions the featured commercials (visuals) were the same only the music differed. In part 3 we distracted our respondents with a film between the television commercials and the audio fragments. This film was an ING case film about a flash mob for the ‘Nachtwacht - Rembrandt van Rijn’ for the Dutch Rijksmuseum. This film lasted 1 minute and 26 seconds and was just fun to watch. The last part, part 4, consisted of 6 open questions. These questions were short audio fragments of 10 seconds, featuring the music of a particular commercial. Obviously, each survey played the music belonging to the commercials shown. The audio fragments were featured in a different order than the commercials. In total the average time spent for filling in the survey was 13,2 minutes. The respondents did not have to fill in their name on the survey we gave the anonymity insurance.
3.4
Procedure
We conducted an (quasi) experimental survey. The survey can be found in Appendix 2. Even though the entire procedure was done in the form of an online survey, we asked more than just opinions or attitudes. The survey covered our 4 hypotheses. We systematically manipulated the variables ‘familiarity’ and ‘narration’ and exposed the group of respondents to different conditions (commercials). This means that there were 2 different surveys within one survey link that were randomly divided between the respondents (Qualtrics; 2014). The only difference between the surveys was the music; familiar vs. unfamiliar and narrative vs. instrumental. Each survey showed 6 different commercials with an average length of 1 minute. The commercials have been edited with the program ‘After Effects Version CS 6’ by Adobe. All commercials were commercials from outside the Netherlands. The reason that we have chosen
Methodology| 27 for commercials outside the Netherlands was that we did not want our respondents to be already conditioned or to be in the position that they have already created a meaning about a commercial and its visuals. However, the chosen brands were most probably familiar to the Dutch audience. Because we conducted a cross-sectional study we assumed it would be easier for our respondents to form an opinion about the effect of a commercial, if they already have heard from the brand. The research consisted of two parts. The first part, with two hypotheses, tries to explain a relationship between music in television commercials (familiar- and narrative music) and brand awareness. In the second part we looked if this relationship could be moderated through different product categories. This paragraph explains what commercials, paired with which music, have been chosen in order to test the hypotheses.
PART 1:
Television commercials 1/2 – Familiar vs. Unfamiliar
Commercial 1 ‘Budweiser’: http://youtu.be/mZ0MCFY9rmE Commercial 2 ‘Budweiser’: http://youtu.be/qLcejSI4TGg
To test our first hypothesis we have chosen the commercial of Budweiser’s ‘Brotherhood’. We have chosen this US TV commercial, which had not been aired in The Netherlands, to ensure that the commercial was being seen for the first time. Even though people were most probably not familiar with the commercial, we expected them to do know the brand Budweiser. The commercial did not have voice (-over), so it was purely visuals and music. Therefore we could easily adapt the music. The original commercial itself scored very good and positioned itself in the Top 10 Commercials in TIME. This commercial about beer, did not focus only on men – their target group – but also on women (Stampler, L.; in TIME; 2013). The commercial has been showed to our respondents in two versions. In version 1, we showed the commercial with the music of Queen – ‘I want to break free’ (familiar). We expected that this music would fit well with the movements and pace in the commercial. The lyrics in this song did not have a meaning regarding to the product or film. For version 2 we have chosen to leave the commercial in its original state (control) as we assume that the featured music is not familiar in The Netherlands, the song featured in the commercial is Fleedwood Mac – ‘Landslide’ (unfamiliar). Obviously this music fits well with the movements and pace in the commercial.
H1-a: Familiar music in television commercials increases brand awareness, compared to unfamiliar music.
28 | Methodology
Television commercials 3/4 – Narrative vs. Instrumental
Commercial 3 ‘Levi’s’: http://youtu.be/m1sfdIBdbIc Commercial 4 ‘Levi’s’: http://youtu.be/_KvH_V-V3ac
To test our second hypothesis we have chosen the commercial of Levi’s ‘Swimmer’. This US commercial from 1992 was broadcasted such a long time ago that the chances were very little that our respondents would be familiar with it. The commercial did not have voice (-over), and again, we could easily adapt the music. The first version covered narrative music; Neil Diamond – ‘Forever in blue jeans’. This lyrics in this song fit well with the commercial and as they sing about the blue jeans, which were supported by the visuals in the commercial. Therefore we expected that this was a good match. The second version covered instrumental music; Serge Gainsbourg – ‘I Love you me neither’, in which we cannot clearly state that there is a fit between the music and the visuals, based on narration. The movements of the commercial did match the pace and rhythm of the music.
PART 2:
Television commercials 5/6 – Convenience Product – Familiar vs. Unfamiliar Commercial 5 ‘Coca-Cola’: http://youtu.be/FttWPP8_H-c
Commercial 6 ‘Coca-Cola’: http://youtu.be/1ePsJTQOlss
In order to test our third hypothesis, H1-b, we showed 2 different commercials, with each commercial in 2 different versions. In the first commercial we tested familiar- vs unfamiliar music on a convenience product. For the convenience product we have chosen the commercial by Coca Cola, Australia. This commercial was broadcasted for the first time in October 1999 (CheesyTV; 2011) and therefore most probably not familiar to the Dutch audience nowadays. It is a summer feel-good film. We placed Coca Cola, in this case a soft drink brand, in the
convenience products category. Soft drink is one of the products that consumers do not
overthink and compare when buying it (Kotler; 2012). The commercial did not have voice (-over), which means that we could easily adapt the music. The first version featured familiar
music. We have chosen for ‘Happy’ by Pharrell Williams. We assume that there were not a lot of
people that do not know this song. The song, originally created for the animation film ‘Despicable me’, has been in the Dutch Top 40 hit list for 35 weeks in a row and is therefore the
H1-b: Familiar music in television commercials creates more brand awareness for convenience products than for specialty products.
H2-a: Narrative music in television commercials increases brand awareness, compared to instrumental music.
