Memorable visuals in ads are more likely to lead to purchase – study

They examined how four advertising characteristics – provocativeness, emotional tone, cultural relevance and visual appeal – affected purchase intention through two pathways. The first was emotional response, meaning the feelings an advertisement evokes, and the second was advertisement recall, or how well people remembered the details of the campaign. 

The findings indicate that provocative advertising and culturally relevant messages were effective at generating emotional reactions. However, those emotional responses did not translate into stronger purchase intentions.  

Similarly, an advertisement’s emotional tone neither improved recall nor influenced buying intentions. 

Visual appeal improved advertisement recall 

By contrast, visually appealing advertisements consistently improved advertisement recall, and stronger recall was linked to greater purchase intention. The results suggest that memory, rather than emotion alone, is the more reliable route from advertising exposure to consumer action. 

The research addresses a gap in advertising studies, which have traditionally focused on factors such as credibility and informativeness rather than the effects of provocative or culturally tailored content. 

As brands compete for attention on social media platforms, the findings imply that striking imagery may be more effective when it helps audiences remember a message rather than simply provoking an emotional reaction.  

For advertisers, the study suggests that attention-grabbing or controversial campaigns may need to be paired with memorable visual design to influence purchasing decisions. 

You can find out more about the research, titled ‘Beyond the norm: exploring the paradigm shift in advertising tactics towards the unconventional and provocative’, here.