Hi:

Am looking for information on how long the average reader of a trade
(business) publication reader spends looking at an ad in a trade
(business) publication, as in:

"According to NNNNNN, the average reader of a trade publication will
spend just X seconds viewing an average page of advertising in a trade
publication."

--please note we are interested specifically in trade publication
readership, not general consumer market.

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Request for Question Clarification by nellie_bly-ga on 12 Jan 2003 17:26 PST

Hi gagnon-

It is highly unlikely that a researcher will be able to find any
reliable data on the precise amount of time a reader spends looking at
an ad specifically in a trade magazine, or any other publication for
that matter.

When this is measured, it is under "laboratory" conditions in which
the amount of time a readers eyes remain focused on a portion of a
page is recorded. However, simply by virtue of the laboratory
environment, one expects results to be skewed from "real world"
experience.

In addition, readers self-reported perceptions of the amount of time
they spend on a task such as viewing an ad are notoriously inaccurate.

Generally, a readership study will seek to find the number of times a
reader is "exposed" to an ad, e.g., how many times did they open the
publication and how long the reader spent reading the publication.

Perhaps there are other data that might be useful to you such as
techniques that increase ad recognition and recall.

What use were you hoping to make of data on time spent with an ad?

Please let us know if there is some other way we might assist you.

Nellie Bly
Google Answers Researcher

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Clarification of Question by gagnon-ga on 12 Jan 2003 18:29 PST

If there is laboratory data, even for any type of advertising, then we
could use this as the answer to our question. What we are looking for
is the amount of time someone spends viewing an ad in a publication.

Hello gagnon-ga,

I will phrase my answer in the basic format that you indicated in the
first question, modified by your subsequent clarification, and
modified in one instance by the experimental data.  I will also note
additional variables that you might wish to consider.

According to Giep Franzen (as reported by Max Sutherland), the average
reader will spend about 2 seconds viewing an average advertisement.

"Print Ads: Two Second Hookers", by Dr. Max Sutherland (October 24,
2002)
I Have an Idea
http://www.ihaveanidea.org/articles/entries/00000031.htm

"Advertising: What Works and What Doesn't", by Dr. Max Sutherland
(October 24, 2002)
I Have an Idea
http://www.ihaveanidea.org/articles/entries/00000034.htm

According to W. Kroeber-Riel (misspelled as "Kroebel-Riel") (as
reported by Erik du Plessis), the average reader will spend about 2.8
seconds viewing a double spread advertisement, 1.9 seconds viewing a
3/4 or full-page advertisement, and 0.6 seconds viewing a 1/2 page or
less advertisement.

"The Advertised Mind", by Erik du Plessis (Preliminary Release, April
1998) [scroll down to middle of page]
Advertising Media Internet Center
http://www.amic.com/papers/eduplessis.html

According to T. Kiss and H. Wettig (as reported by Edward Rosbergen,
Rik Pieters and Michel Wedel), the average reader will spend less than
2 seconds viewing an average advertisement.

According to Rosbergen, Pieters, and Wedel, the average reader will
spend about 1.766 seconds viewing an average advertisement.

"Undirected Visual Attention to Advertising: A Segment-Level
Analysis", by
Edward Rosbergen, Rik Pieters and Michel Wedel (1995) [pages 6 and 41]
Universiteitsbibliotheek Groningen: Research School Systems
Organisation and Management (SOM)
http://www.ub.rug.nl/eldoc/som/95B28/95b28.pdf

The numbers reported for W. Kroeber-Riel illustrate one factor that
might influence the average time: the size of the ad.

Rosbergen, Pieters, and Wedel point out that the average is different
for those who scan, pay initial attention, or pay sustained attention.
 (See pages 21-22 of their paper for a description of these three
segments.)

Pieters, Rosbergen, and Michel Hartog observe that the viewer's
motivation and repetition of viewing (and to a lesser extent the
quality of the argument in the advertisement) can affect the length of
time that persons view an advertisement.

"Visual attention to advertising: The impact of motivation and
repetition", by
Rik G.M. Pieters, Edward Rosbergen, and Michel Hartog (1995)
Universiteitsbibliotheek Groningen: Research School Systems
Organisation and Management (SOM)
http://www.ub.rug.nl/eldoc/som/95B27/95B27.pdf

I hope that this information is helpful.

- justaskscott-ga


I used various combinations of the following search terms on Google:

advertisement
advertisements
ad
ads
advertising
"look at an advertisement"
"look at advertisements"
"look at an ad"
"look at ads"
print
second
seconds
"eye fixation"
"eye fixations"
"eye tracking"
franzen
rosbergen
pieters
wedel

[I also tried several searches in combination with terms such as
"trade publications" and "trade ads", without finding additional
information.]

Excellent response, and good backup data provided.