Which Broadcast Medium Better Drives Engagement?

ABSTRACT This study compared the ability of radio and television advertisements to generate emotional responses and engage consumers. It did so using advanced physiological methods that measure emotional activation in ways that do not require verbal responses. sixteen different real advertising campaigns were evaluated with 80 consumers watching television and 80 listening to radio programming with embedded commercials. Radio and television evoked positive emotion about equally, but television advertising generated a slightly higher negative emotional reaction. Positive emotion and brand recall were found to be positively correlated, with the relationship stronger for radio than for television.