This is a case study that summarizes a recent project in which Research & Marketing Strategies (RMS) partnered with an advertising agency to determine the return on investment (ROI) on a specific channel of advertising used by one of its end-clients (Company XYZ). The market research study was designed to create a statistical model and estimate the revenue that was generated from the advertising campaign and compare to the actual cost of running the campaign. Advertising ROI can be estimated through the use of market research.

Background: The advertising agency wanted to understand the community awareness of its vehicle advertising wrap venues as well as rooftop advertising units being utilized in the market. The market research was centered around the following objectives: (1) test awareness of the wrapped vehicles within the community; (2) test the effectiveness of the advertising campaign for Company XYZ; (3) test the perceptions and opinions regarding the taxi cab advertising modality; and (4) test community reaction to this type of advertising relative to other traditional advertising forums.

Approach: In order to answer the objectives at-hand and provide the advertising agency and Company XYZ with an ROI for its advertising, RMS customized a quick pulse telephone survey script. What is a quick pulse telephone survey? Click here to find out. The survey lasted approximately five minutes and a random sampling of households in the primary market area (PMA) for the client was used for dialing. A total of 350 completes were collected for this study to provide the client with a high degree of statistical reliability. Questions regarding awareness of  Company XYZ’s advertisement(s), impact on usage of Company XYZ and average spending at each visit were asked for the ROI model.

Results: Here is a quick overview of some of the main takeaways from the study.

• Total awareness for the advertising of Company XYZ was 49 percent (unaided awareness was 21 percent).
• Over half of all respondents (61 percent) stated that using taxi cab advertisements was an appealing way to promote the Company XYZ’s business.
• Forty percent of respondents stated their impression of taxi cab wrap advertisements were positive.
• Twelve percent stated seeing the taxi cab advertisement made them much more likely to go to Company XYZ and 18 percent stated seeing the taxi cab advertisement made them somewhat more likely to go Company XYZ.
• Overall, 6 percent of respondents shared that seeing the taxi cab advertisements had an influence on visiting Company XYZ, and had visited Company XYZ within the past eight months (the current length of the advertising campaign run by the advertising agency).
• Among this pool, respondents visited Company XYZ an average of over five times in the past eight months and spent an average of $150 per visit. By collecting these figures, RMS was able to apply these rates to the population as a whole within a 5 percent margin of error to predict an advertising ROI.

An advertising ROI model can be created for all types of marketing and advertising. RMS will work with you to understand your campaign and create an extensive and thorough line of questions to tackle an estimation for ROI. If you would like more information about calculating advertising ROI or have any questions about how Research & Marketing Strategies (RMS) can use market research to provide your business with ROI data, contact our Business Development Director, Sandy Baker at SandyB@RMSresults.com or by calling (315) 635-9802.