The value of using popular music and performers on brand and message recall in television advertising jingles

ABSTRACT

This study offers insights into two critical decisions in jingle-based advertising. How much more could the producer pay to buy the rights to popular music to add to advertising jingles? And how much more could they pay a popular performer to sing the jingle? Will doing so enhance the brand or message recall to justify the investment? Based on 300 interviews that measured unaided and aided day-after recall of five jingle ads concurrently aired on television, popular music and performers increased unaided and aided recall of brand name and ad message. Compared to the base case, a popular performer can increase the brand and message recall by two-and-half folds, and a popular performer and popular music can increase the brand and message recall by six-folds compared to the base case.

KEYWORDS:

• Advertising jingles
• popular performer
• popular music
• message recall
• brand recall
• field experiment

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ahmed Taher

Dr. Ahmed Taher is an Assistant Professor and Graduate Director in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communications at the School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at The American University in Cairo (AUC). He also taught at The University of Georgia and Offenburg University in Germany. Dr. Taher serves on the board of EBank of Egypt (EBE) and the board of trustees of 57357 Children's Cancer Hospital Foundation. He holds a BSc. in Civil Engineering, an MBA from The Ohio State University, and a Ph.D. from the University of Georgia.

Heba Y. El Badawy

Heba El-Badawy is a senior administrator at the German University in Cairo with 15years of experience. Heba holds a Master's degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences and anMBA from the German University in Cairo.