Ad Size as an Indicator of Perceived Advertising Costs and Effort: The Effects on Memory and Perceptions

Abstract In support of past research, ad size was found to lead to enhanced memory; but the existence of an “interference effect” (i.e., when increased attention aimed at the relatively large ad interferes with processing of surrounding ads) was not confirmed. Replicating Kirmani (1990), analyses suggest that consumers use ad size as an indicator of advertising costs and effort and that consumers make quality-related inferences based on their perceptions of advertising costs when quality-related information is not explicitly conveyed in an ad. Evidence of an inverted U-shaped relationship between perceived advertising costs and brand perceptions was found for quality perceptions. That is, perceptions are positively related to perceived advertising costs except at excessive levels when consumers may feel advertising is manipulative. The data also support the notion that perceived advertising effort mediated this relationship. The nature of these relationships between perceived advertising costs and consumer perceptions differed across the various perception measures.