Gallup and Robinson provides pre-testing and post-testing of television commercials and print advertisements.

     Watch out for words here and there! They contain links to sample reports.

Post-testing and Pre-testing of Television Commercials.
     In both cases, respondents view commercials in their homes and are interviewed by telephone the following day, as discussed here. The company reports three measures of the impact of the commercials:

1. Proved Commercial Registration (PCR). The percentage of respondents who can recall (given cues) and accurately describe the commercial;
2. Idea Communication. The percentage (of those who can recall the ad) who can also recall specific sales points in the commercial;
3. Favorable Attitude. A measure of the favorable comments about the brand volunteered by the respondent.
   

Total Prime Time
     This post-test service measures the impact of commercials that appear during network prime time programs. Gallup and Robinson announces the testing schedule in advance and advertisers place their advertisements on those dates.

     The sample consists of approximately 700 men and 700 women in the Philadelphia Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area (SMSA). It is a stratified random sample, with representative proportions of persons in the metropolitan area and in the suburban area. Only persons who watched at least 30 minutes of network prime time programming the previous night are qualified for inclusion in the sample.

     The Gallup and Robinson Report describes the impact of the commercial by reporting its Proved Commercial Registration, Idea Communication score and its Favorable Attitude score. In addition, the report provides norms for all commercials and for those in the same product category, script of commercials, characteristics of the sample and transcripts of verbatim comments by the respondents.

     Here is a scanned image of a sample Gallup and Robinson report on a commercial for a ready-to-eat cereal. And this is another part of the same report!

In-View
     The Total Prime Time test is conducted under normal conditions: respondents view the commercials in their homes and do not know about advertising. In-View, Gallup and Robinson's pre-test, is also based on in-home viewing, but conditions are not completely natural. Respondents are called in advance and invited to watch the program that will carry the commercial being tested. Although they are not given any details, they are told they will be interviewed the following day and are given inducements to watch the program.

     The sample consists of 150 men and/or 150 women, depending on the product being advertised. The sample selection process is the same as for the Total Prime Time test, and all respondents are from the Philadelphia area.

     The advertisers provide Gallup and Robinson copies of commercials to be tested. They can film or tape, or even just a rough version. Advertisers can have one or two measures of the commercial's performance:

1. Commercial impact, and
2. Attitude change

     The same kind of report (as in Total Prime Test) is produced.

In Tele Test
     Gallup and Robinson uses at-home exposure of video cassettes with test commercials embedded in a pilot program. The InTeleTest Services take advantage of the widespread use of VCRs to achieve in-home viewing.

     Testing is done in 10 cities with 150 respondents of each sex. Respondents are contacted door-to-door in residential neighborhoods and asked to participate in a study of a new television series. As an incentive, each respondent's name is placed in a monthly drawing for $300.

     Each respondent is given an hour-long video cassette with a pilot program i which six test and six control commercials have been inserted. Commercials are rotated in order to avoid bias.

     Before viewing the tape, respondents are asked to fill out a self-administered questionnaire about television viewing habits and preferences. A respondent views the tape and then fills out a questionnaire about his reactions. they are later re-exposed to the commercials by viewing the end of the tape where they have been re-inserted. Then, they fill out sections containing evaluative items for recognition, main point of communication, brand rating, likeability, and reactions to the commercial.

Pre-testing and Post-testing of magazine advertisements
     In both cases, the sample is the same: 150 adults of either sex, depending on the magazine, or 150 of each if the magazine is of interest to both sexes. Respondents are selected from 9 or 10 SMSAs across the country and must have read at least two of the last four issues of the type of magazine being tested.

     The pretest method is called Tip-In.

Rapid Ad Measurement (RAM)
     Rough or finished ads can be tested via RAM. A schedule of test issues is provided, and advertisers buy ad space in one more issues of Time and People magazines. If lead time is short, they use the Tip-In service.

     Sampling procedure is the same as Tip-In.

     A series of detailed questions about each ad recalled measures three basic levels of effectiveness.

1. Intrusiveness. Recall, referred to by G& R as Proved Named Registration, is the percentage of respondents who can accurately describe the advertisement the day after exposure.
2. Idea Communication. measures then number of respondent descriptions their retained ideas, thoughts, and feelings about the ad.
3. Persuasion. Referred to as Favorable Buying Attitude for consumer advertising, and Favorable Attitude for corporate advertising, this is intended to measure how the advertisement affected interest.

     Here is a sample RAM score distribution.