eyeblaster research global_benchmark_insights_may_2010

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Eyeblaster

Benchmark Insights

Using Dwell to Measure Advertising Effectiveness

“Tell me, and I will forget. Show me, and I may remember. Involve me, and I will understand.”

Confucius (551-479 BCE)

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Making Display Advertising The Engine for Automotive Growth

Benchmark Insights: Using Dwell to Measure Advertising Effectiveness

Research Highlights

Ads with a high Dwell Rate •are more likely to have a high Conversion Rate.

A new study by Microsoft, •comScore and Eyeblaster shows Dwell’s effectiveness.

High Dwell triples brand related •search, increases traffic by 69%, and increases brand engagement.

Placements in which users •spend ample time on the web page increase Dwell Rate.

Ads that are more visible over •the publisher’s content have a higher Dwell Rate.

Combining video into your •creative increases Dwell Rate by 29% and nearly doubles Average Dwell Time.

3 EyEBlASTER BEnCHMARk InSIgHTS

Making Display Advertising The Engine for Automotive Growth


1 Dewey, John. Experience and Education. 1938/1997. new york. Simon and Schuster.

Why Engagement CountsIn 1938, American education reformer John Dewey asserted that “there is an intimate and necessary relation between the processes of actual experience and education.”1 According to Dewey, people ‘learn’ through doing and playing. In the offline world, the target of advertising is a ‘viewer’ – a passive bystander that can only direct his eyeballs to the direction of the TV, newspaper or magazine. Online, the target of advertising is a ‘user’ – an active participant that can engage, interact and play with an ad. Engagement is the third dimension of online advertising, beyond the traditional reach and frequency. While the theory behind the benefits of interactivity and engagement is clear, Eyeblaster acknowledged the need for empirical evidence that Dwell does affect brand effectiveness metrics.new research provides scientific evidence for the effectiveness of Dwell as an engagement metric. The research shows that when more people choose to actively engage with your brand, as measured by a high Dwell Rate and a high Average Dwell Time, the more the needle shifts in favor of your brand. This new research by Eyeblaster, Microsoft Advertising and comScore concludes that campaigns with high Dwell not only increase brand engagement, but also drive increased brand related search and increased site traffic. An additional analysis by Eyeblaster shows that Dwell has an impact way beyond branding. Ads with a high Dwell Rate are more likely to have a high Conversion Rate as compared to ads with a low Dwell Rate. It would seem that there is more to display advertising than a mere click. How then, can you increase your campaign’s Dwell? These three simple steps will help you increase your Dwell and ultimately your ROI:

First, include placements around editorial content that require thorough •reading. Second, combine video into your ad. •Third, get more assertive and visible with your ads!•






Why Dwell?In the second half of 2008, Eyeblaster released the Dwell metrics. The aim was to define a ubiquitous online metric to help advertisers quickly gauge the effectiveness of online Rich Media campaigns. Dwell was developed to capture Rich Media’s essence – interactivity and touch.

Dwell is divided into two metrics: Dwell Rate and Average Dwell Time. Dwell Rate measures the proportion of impressions that were intentionally engaged with by touch, interaction or click. Average Dwell Time measures the duration of a Dwell in seconds for users who engaged. In both cases, unintentional Dwell lasting less than one second is excluded.

Dwell provides an estimate of the share of impressions that were seen by users with high likelihood. Users’ natural tendency is to follow the mouse cursor movement with their eyes. Dwell measures the proportion of impressions that had a meaningful mouse-touch, lasting more than one second. While there have been users who have seen the ads and have not touched them with their mouse, Dwell allows us to gauge the number of users that are very likely to have seen the ad, and indeed take time to explore the brand’s message.

Dwell is superior to older metrics such as Click Through Rate (CTR) and Interaction Rate. CTR measures the share of impressions that were clicked on. However, in many cases, users can retain the message from the ad itself and do not have any reason to browse to the advertiser’s website by clicking on the ad. For example, users who have seen an ad for a shampoo can typically get all of the information that they need from the ad and are less likely to click on the ad and browse to the advertiser’s website. In this case, the ad has done its part – users have seen the ad and got the message. However, without a click being recorded the ad was deemed completely ineffective, penalizing a well performing creative by using an inapplicable metric.

Similarly, interactions measure specific actions taken by the user such as playing or stopping video, clicking, expanding and other custom interactions. Alas, auto-initiated video, for example, can deliver the message without any interaction. After all, TV has been delivering messages without interactions for decades. Furthermore, Interaction Rate may be influenced by the number of interactions defined in the creative – a game

2 lugo, J.E., Doti, R., Wittich, W. & Faubert, J. Multisensory Integration: Central Processing Modifies Peripheral Systems. October 2008. Psychological Science.

3 Eyeblaster Research. Analytics Bulletin: Trends in Time and Attention. Available for download at: http://www.eyeblaster.com/Content.aspx?page=resource&id=74

could deliver multiple interactions and playing a video merely one or two. Thus, when Interaction Rate is creative dependent, it may prove hard to compare apples to apples, making cross-campaign benchmarking unfeasible.

“Dwell encompasses the whole course that users go through when engaging with ads”.Dwell was developed to capture the branding effect of campaigns. To do that, it encompasses the whole course that users go through when engaging with ads. Rich Media ads need to capture users’ attention away from the publisher’s content and make them want to find out more about the brand. As users tend to follow the mouse cursor movement with their eyes, this is a proxy to how many users have seen the ad. Therefore, Dwell Rate measures whether the ad was successful in capturing users’ attention by quantifying the proportion of users who physically touched the ad.

After users have seen the ad, advertisers need to draw them to interact and have a deeper brand experience. It is this deeper, all encompassing multi-modal experience where the cognitive change on part of the consumer takes place, combining touch with the audio-visual senses.2 The more human senses involved, the more emotions evoked and ultimately the more time users spend with the brand, the deeper their overall experience with the brand is and the more likely they are to recall the brand message.

Average Dwell Time measures the length of users’ engagement with ads, to quantify how long users were exposed to the ad. Average Dwell Time measures how much time the mouse was on the ad, the panel was expanded, the video playing or any other action taking place on the ad after the user engaged.

A previous study by Eyeblaster Research has already shown that today’s consumers are 24x more likely to interact with an ad than click on it, and those that choose to do so engage with ads on average for around 43 seconds.3 But what does this actually mean for the marketer? While the theory makes sense that those ads with higher Dwell work better than ads with lower Dwell, what happens in practice?






4 To capture both the effect of Dwell Rate and of Average Dwell Time, the research examined the Total Dwell which was defined as Dwell Rate multiplied by Average Dwell Time.5 Available for download at: http://advertising.microsoft.com/europe/dwell-on-branding

Dwell and Brandingnew research by Eyeblaster, Microsoft Advertising and comScore shows that Dwell does have an actual effect on brand metrics. The research investigated the differences between campaigns with a low active engagement as measured by a low Dwell and campaigns with a high active engagement as measured by a high Dwell.

“The robust methodology of the research ensured any positive brand uplift observed was due exclusively to the increase in Dwell.”The study examined a sample of high Dwell campaigns and a sample of low Dwell campaigns and compared the difference between them in terms of their brand effects. The robust methodology ensured any positive brand uplift observed was due exclusively to the increase in Dwell.

The sample of campaigns was taken out of 800 Rich Media campaigns that were served by Eyeblaster exclusively on Microsoft Advertising sites between January 2009 and June 2009. The 800 campaigns were ranked by total Dwell scores.4 To ensure a distinct difference between high and low Dwell, the study analyzed campaigns that fell in the top and bottom 10% of the Dwell scale.

Overall, 10 campaigns from the low Dwell group and 10 campaigns from the high Dwell group were chosen for the analysis. These 20 were selected for having the largest number of impressions, ensuring the biggest sample sizes for our analysis of over 6,500 panelists. The campaigns covered eight industry verticals.

For each of the 20 campaigns, comScore identified people that had been exposed to the ads. comScore measured those panelists’ subsequent online behavior across a four week period and compared those to unexposed panelists and their online behavior. These groups were pair matched – the exposed/unexposed groups were equal except for the fact that the exposed group had seen the ads, the unexposed had not. groups were matched to ensure equality according to specific demographic and online behavioral variables.

Campaigns with high Dwell are 3x more effective at driving search than campaigns with a low Dwell.Uplift between unexposed and exposed was averaged for the 10 low Dwell and 10 high Dwell campaigns. These average uplifts were compared to evaluate the impact of increased Dwell on subsequent brand effects.

The results of the study indicate that users who were exposed to campaigns with a high Dwell are more likely to search for brand related keywords as compared to users who were exposed to campaigns with a low Dwell. The research found that users who were exposed to campaigns with a low Dwell increased brand related keyword searches by 12%, as compared to the control group, while users who were exposed to campaigns with a high Dwell increased brand related keyword search by 39%, as compared to the control group. This shows that campaigns with high Dwell are 3x more effective at driving search than campaigns with a low Dwell.

Furthermore, campaigns with a low Dwell increased advertisers’ site traffic by 10%, as compared to the control group, while campaigns with a high Dwell increased site traffic by 17%. This is an incremental change of 69% between campaigns with low Dwell and campaigns with high Dwell. Campaigns with a high Dwell also increased brand engagement – increasing page views and time spent on the brand’s site.5






Dwell and ConversionsWhile the research by Eyeblaster, Microsoft Advertising and comScore has shown the advertising effect of Dwell, Eyeblaster Research has found empirical evidence that Dwell works beyond branding. In fact, there is a link between a higher Dwell Rate and a higher Conversion Rate.

The chart above describes the link between Dwell Rate and Conversion Rate. For the purpose of this analysis, Eyeblaster Research analyzed the results of over 13 thousand ads and 13 billion Rich Media impressions served between Q1 2009 and Q4 2009. Ads were divided into buckets according to their Dwell Rate, and for each bucket the average Conversion Rate was calculated.

Interactive ads that attract users to touch and play with them will generate interest, and ultimately a higher Conversion Rate.

Source: Eyeblaster Research. Data: Q1 2009 to Q4 2009, Worldwide.

Dwell Rate and Conversion Rate

The results clearly establish that there is a link between Dwell Rate and Conversion Rate. On average, a higher Dwell Rate yields a higher Conversion Rate. Thus, interactive ads that attract users to touch and play with them will generate interest, and ultimately a higher Conversion Rate.

Conversion Rate is only one measure to validate Dwell. The aim of Dwell is not necessarily to generate conversions, but to measure branding effectiveness. nevertheless, these results confirm the effectiveness of Dwell – users who Dwell on ads and are allured by the creative are more likely to convert.







The Impact of Ad Duration on Dwell Rate

Increasing your DwellHow then can you get a higher Dwell for ads? The second half of this research is dedicated to best practices for getting a higher Dwell Rate and a higher Average Dwell Time.

1. Place ads in environments where users spend ample time on the webpage.

The longer users spend with the publisher’s content, the higher their Dwell Rate. The chart below presents the link between Ad Duration, the length of time that an ad is presented, and Dwell Rate. The analysis indicates that environments in which users spend ample time with the publisher’s content or with the ad exposed, tend to have a higher Dwell Rate.






Consider Instant Messaging. Users tend to spend about eight minutes with the ads presented. True, during some of that time the messenger window is covered by the browser or other programs. nevertheless, when users are actively chatting, they are exposed to the ads for a long duration. Imagine the average chat session: you type “Hi”, you wait… wait… wait… your friend is typing… typing… and then “Hi” pops up. you type “what’s up?” you wait… wait… and while you stare at the messenger window waiting for a reply, you notice the flashing banner of a new movie that just came out.

As you have nothing better to do, you check it out – the banner serves as entertainment while you wait. The combination of long exposure and boredom while waiting boosts Dwell Rate for Instant Messaging. It is the most promising indication to date that shows that application-based ads may even outperform browser-based ads as technology continually moves forward, for example, mobile platforms or tablet-based computing.

Dwell is also high in environments where users are immersed in content for a long time. In news placements, users spend a lot of time reading the content while their eyes are moving back and forth on the webpage. This increases the likelihood of seeing the banners and engaging with them. The result is a higher Dwell Rate.

On the other hand, social networks tend to have relatively lower ad duration. Users may be spending a lot of time on social networks overall, but relatively little time on a single webpage. Users log in multiple times per day to update their status, check for messages and see what their friends are doing, but that takes only a short amount of time. Thus, users may not notice the banners and the result is a lower Dwell Rate.

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6 Eyeblaster. Analytics Bulletin: Online Video Advertising. Available for download at: http://www.eyeblaster.com/Content.aspx?page=resource&id=81

2. Use video

Display advertising competes with the publisher’s content. Users browse to the webpage to engage with the publisher’s content, while the advertiser’s job is to lure them to engage with the ads.

One of the advantages of video banners is that the publisher’s content is typically static. Therefore, moving pictures tend to draw attention from the content to the ad. In the Video Analytics Bulletin,6 Eyeblaster Research showed that video banners work best when the video is exposed to the user at first glance. In some Expandable Banners, the video is hidden behind the expanding panel. A good practice here would be to have a light preview video visible at first glance to invite users to expand the panel and view the full video.

The results are that video ads perform better than ads without video. On average, adding video to ads increases the Dwell Rate by 29% as compared to banners without video. Video also nearly doubles the Dwell Time as compared to ads without video. These results are similar across ad formats, verticals and ad sizes.

Video uses both audio and visual elements to combine senses and tell stories. With the rise of interactive video, adding touch to audio-visual stimuli will only serve to increase overall Dwell and increase residual brand effectiveness.



Dwell Rate with and without Video

Dwell Time with and without Video






3. Get assertive

good display ads are like good salesmen – they need the right amount of chutzpah to get the job done. As with video banners, ads that make an effort to be seen typically get higher engagement from users. Clearly, there is a tradeoff between higher Dwell Rate and higher Average Dwell Time. Floating Ads and Commercial Breaks have a higher Dwell Rate, while Expandable Banners and Polite Banners have a lower Dwell Rate and a higher Average Dwell Time.


Dwell by Ad Format

The leading Rich Media ad formats can be divided into two main groups. Floating Ads and Commercial Breaks tend to have very high breakthrough as evidenced by their high Dwell Rate, but for a very short duration, typically of around five seconds of Average Dwell Time. Floating ads are shown over the publisher’s content and are highly visible. Commercial Break is shown before the page is loaded for a very short duration.






7 Eyeblaster. Analytics Bulletin: Online Video Advertising. Available for download at: http://www.eyeblaster.com/Content.aspx?page=resource&id=81

Both Commercial Breaks and Floating Ads tend to get a high Dwell Rate. Many of these engagements are typically attributed to users who try to close the banner in order to view the publisher’s content, and as a result marketers have tended to shy away from such formats for fear of annoying users.

However, by removing the accidental interaction of less than one second, we are still left with a positive indication that these ads were engaged by consumers. Their low Dwell time is related to the amount of time that these ads are typically displayed on screen. These formats can do well with short and concise marketing messages.

One of the most successful ways to deliver video is Eyeblaster TV. Eyeblaster TV is a video delivered in a floating ad, with the sound turned on by default with the volume on low. This allows publishers with mostly textual content to deliver ads transferred directly from TV with a more natural usage pattern as opposed to merely serving them In-Stream.

As a result, Eyeblaster TV gets double the Dwell Rate of regular video ads, while the Video Fully Played Rate is similar to other ads, so users do not turn it off more often than the typical video ad. This indicates that when used wisely, default sound on can be accepted by consumers in online advertising. For more on Eyeblaster TV, please download the Analytics Bulletin on Video.7

Polite Banners and Expandable Banners tend to have a lower Dwell Rate. This could be seen as many initial loads contain less visually engaging creativity, preferring to hide the fun stuff behind even a click-to-expand in certain cases. However, the main advantage here is in providing the stage for longer and more complex marketing messages. Polite Banners and Expandable Banners have a longer Average Dwell Time, which works well for ads that require more than a few seconds to understand.






ConclusionDwell Rate is the best ubiquitous metric to measure the effectiveness of Rich Media display advertising. Dwell offers a time-based measurement of all media channels to ascertain if consumers are actually looking at ads beyond panel based data alone. The research indicates that high Dwell increases brand related searches, elevates site traffic, and boosts brand engagement. Furthermore, ads with a higher Dwell Rate tend to have a higher Conversion Rate on average. These results serve as an indication to the validity of the metric.

There are three best practices that would help advertisers create better campaigns with a higher Dwell Rate. First, placing ads in environments in which users spend ample time tends to generate better Dwell Rate results than environments with short exposure duration. Second, using video tends to increase Dwell Rate, as video draws users’ eyes from the publisher’s content. last, exploring more visible ad formats may lead to a higher Dwell Rate, while rewarding the consumer with more engaging content increases Average Dwell Time, which in turn will drive effective campaigns.






BenchmarksThis edition of Eyeblaster Benchmarks provides a summary of the results of campaigns that were served by Eyeblaster between Q1 2009 and Q4 2009. To produce these benchmarks, Eyeblaster


CTR by Region for Standard Banners and Rich Media

Overall global CTR is 0.23%. Rich Media tends to have much higher CTR as compared to standard banners – 0.37% as compared to 0.09%.

As far as regional differences are concerned, there is a clear rule

Research analyzed the results from 170 billion impressions delivered in six different regions and more than 50 different countries.

of thumb. If you are a former English speaking British colony, your CTR and Dwell are likely to be lower. Thus, the US, Canada, Australia and new Zealand have lower CTR performance as compared to other regions. This is mainly due to differences in user behavior and market maturity.






South America, South Asia and Europe tend to have the highest Dwell Rate, while East Asia has the highest Average Dwell Time. Europe tends to have a significantly higher Dwell Rate as compared to north America and Australia and new Zealand, mostly due to differences in user behavior, though in part could be seen in differences in current publisher restrictions.

The benchmark tables contain benchmark averages on interactions, Dwell, clicks, expansions and video metrics. Data is broken down by formats, sizes and verticals. The next 32 pages contain information on six regions and 24 countries.

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Dwell by Region

The first two pages contain a full description of each vertical and a definition for each of the metrics used.

One important caveat about using these benchmarks is that they only present the average performance, while the deviation in performance between ads is very large. As evidenced by the size of the document, we have tried to slice the data into as many categories as possible. Still, the averages contain campaigns that are different in their nature, goals and execution. Therefore, these benchmarks should be used as a reference only, and not with the aim of trying to “beat the benchmark.”







IndexVerticals Definitions.......................................................................15

Metrics Definitions...........................................................................16

Regional Benchmarks

north America• ................................................................................17

Europe• ...........................................................................................18

Australia and new Zealand• .............................................................19

East Asia• ........................................................................................20

South Asia• ......................................................................................21

latin America• .................................................................................22

Country Benchmarks

Australia• .........................................................................................23

Brazil• ..............................................................................................24

Canada• ..........................................................................................25

Denmark• ........................................................................................26

Finland• ...........................................................................................27

France• ...........................................................................................28

germany• ........................................................................................29

Hong kong• .....................................................................................30

India• ...............................................................................................31

Italy• ................................................................................................32

Japan• .............................................................................................33

Malaysia• .........................................................................................34

Mexico• ...........................................................................................35

netherlands• ....................................................................................36

norway• ...........................................................................................37

Portugal• ..........................................................................................38

Singapore• .......................................................................................39

South Africa• ....................................................................................40

Spain• ..............................................................................................41

Sweden• ..........................................................................................42

Taiwan• ............................................................................................43

Thailand• ..........................................................................................44

Uk• ..................................................................................................45

United States• ..................................................................................46

eyeblaster research global_benchmark_insights_may_2010

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