BRC conducts recognition-based post testing, or ad tracking, to provide the most definitive measures possible of the effect advertising has had after it has run.  Is there a real link between being reached by advertising and buying the brand, or having more favorable perceptions?  Post testing, conducted in-market and under real world conditions, is the best way to find the answers.

The typical and most cost effective application is to test the number reached and affected by a variety of advertising.  This makes it possible to test for synergy between various elements in the marketing mix, and the reach and counteracting effects of competitive advertising.

Pretesting vs. Post Testing

Pretesting helps answer one critical question.  Is the new advertising likely to produce the expected results if you spend the money to run it?  Post testing answers a broader range of questions, more accurately, and at a lower cost.

• Post testing measures how advertising actually performed.

• Conditions of exposure and purchase are real, not simulated.

• This makes post testing inherently more accurate, less difficult and less expensive.

• Recognition-based post testing is capable of answering a broader range of questions.

  • "Does the advertising have attention getting power?  Did people notice it or ignore it?"

  • "Will it get the name across?"  (Most pretesting does not answer either of these.)

  • "Did the campaign as a whole work?  Was there synergy between the elements?"

  • "What were the strong spots and the weak spots in the campaign?"

  • "Was it cost efficient?  How many were reached and affected per dollar invested?"

  • "What was the most cost efficient?  TV, radio, print, web advertising, store displays?"

  • "What happened when the competition started their big campaign?"

  • "What approaches usually work best in this market?"

  • "In the future, what should we do more of?  What should we avoid?"