Advertising Success Story: Westwood One

Initially skeptical about entering the radio advertising space, this insurance brand worked alongside Westwood One to run tests in efforts to discover which practices are best when it comes to audio advertising, and how data can prove that.

Westwood One Helps Major Insurance Brand Achieve Better Ad Performance

Advertising Success Story: Westwood One

The Objective

The Approach

Part of Westwood One’s mission is to prove that data-driven best practices for radio ads exist—and matter— they worked with the brand to test whether applying those best practices improved consumers’ perception of the ads and their desire to purchase the product. WWO ran two tests to understand the impact of enhanced branding in audio creative.

Test 1:

In January 2018, 317 respondents, all adults 18-54, assessed four existing ads for their happiness, optimism, likability and trustworthiness, and how much they wanted to buy the product after listening.

Test 2:

In March 2018, they conducted a second test after the client applied best practices around “enhanced branding,” including:

Putting the brand name at the beginning of the ad instead of the end, allowing listeners to make an early connection
Mentioning the brand two or three times in the ad, rather than only once
Using a sonic logo for familiarity, especially in close proximity to the brand name mention, which forms a memory link

Our Result

By testing with Veritonic, WWO had verified proof to bring back to their insurance client that enhanced branding drives better performance. The insurance company saw consistently better performance across all key measures, including happiness, optimism, likability, and trustworthiness.

With clear, data-driven direction on the best way to optimize their creative, the insurance brand created objectively more resonant, compelling radio ads that drive purchase.