How to Make Your Advertising More Memorable

Advertising is both an art and a science—an art for its creativity, and a science for the strategy that drives its success. One part of the science that’s often studied is the topic of memorability. Specifically, why some parts of ads stay in our minds and others go missing from memory. Branding firms go to great lengths to track and test an ad’s appeal, yet they frequently find that people only remember the attention-grabbing aspects of ads and often forget the less lively scenes. To explain this selective attention and retention, BrandingStrategyInsider.com covered this mystery of the memory to help marketers make their ads more memorable.

According to research, people have trouble remembering all of an ad because it’s too much for our brains to handle. There are just too many concepts to take in at once. Since we only have a limited amount of conscious space, we focus on the things that grab our attention and tend to forget the rest.

It’s important to realize that our brains are trained to turn our attention to things that are emotionally charged or personally relevant. While this lets us focus on the compelling components, it takes our attention away from other aspects.

And this effect is commonly seen in our response to video ads and TV commercials. Our attention is drawn to the more emotional or relevant aspects and we’re distracted from the other scenes. As a result, we only recall the powerful parts of the ads. And apparently, the brain is to blame.

So the takeaway for advertisers and branding firms is to add an emotional or relevant aspect to the most important parts of ads. Then, there is a greater chance that these scenes will be seen and remembered. And if these scenes highlight the brand and its benefits, then that message will stay in the minds of viewers.

Discover the secrets of successful branding firms. Contact MDG.

MDG is a full-service advertising agency and one of Florida’s top branding firms. With offices in Boca Raton, FL and New York, NY, MDG’s core capabilities include branding, logo design, digital marketing, print advertising, mobile marketing, email marketing, media planning and buying, TV and radio, outdoor, newspaper, video marketing, Web design and development, infographic development, content marketing, social media marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO). To stay on top of the latest trends in advertising and branding, contact MDG. Check out one of the most memorable advertising messages of the last 25 years, “Nike’s “Just Do It,” the Last Great Advertising Tagline, Celebrates its 25th Birthday.”