Tag adcepts

For leading modern brands, functional efficacy is usually a given – their real point of difference from the crowd is where they sit emotionally. Differences are often very subtle and B7’s Adcept technique can examine these with depth and detail in qualitative research in a way that traditional research techniques cannot match.

Within any product sector, the leading brands tend to stand for the same sort of emotions. For example most whiskey brands stand for maturity and discernment while washing powders compete over caring for one’s family. The key issue for brands in these sectors is to find what type of discernment or what type of care? The differences are almost always subtle and nuanced.

Unfortunately traditional research techniques lack the detail and subtlety needed to uncover and explore emotional areas. Concept statements only give you a handful of idea areas to examine and therefore cannot provide the pinpoint emotional positioning sought. Concept statements also suffer from being unfamiliar and unrealistic and lacking in emotion. B7’s Adcept technique is different – Adcepts ‘get’ emotion.

Because our Adcepts are in the familiar language of brands – advertising – consumers find them easy to relate to and asses. The format also allows us to explore different emotional tones – is our whiskey’s discernment modern or traditional, serious or humorous, internally or externally focused etc? Because we show consumers up to 80 Adcepts in a focus group, we are able to explore an emotional territory from a number of different angles. The volume of material combined with the 360 degree emotional view allows an idea to be explored with a depth and precision not offered by any other existing technique.

B7’s founder, Paul Tidmarsh, says “Defining and owning the right emotional territory is fundamental to a brand’s success – we’ve spent 10 years developing our Adcept methodology into the most effective way of unearthing and then precisely defining the emotional positioning for some of the world’s most successful brands.”

Not all Adcepts are created equal. As a marketing tool, they have been around for many years but their full potential has never been realised – until now. What B7 has done is to fundamentally alter how Adcepts are written & the way that they are presented to consumers. The effect has been to turn them into the richest & most precise way to uncover compelling positioning opportunities for a brand or an innovation. Below, B7’s Paul Tidmarsh highlights some key differences between traditional Adcepts & B7 Adcepts:

Rough & Consistent Appearance
Traditional Adcepts are often made to look like highly polished, finished advertising. Ours are kept deliberately rough looking so that consumers respond to the idea expressed rather than the execution. For the same reason we always use the same simple layout, so each idea is judged on its own merits, not its superficial attractiveness.

Quantity is Quality
The number of Adcepts B7 shows consumers is very unusual – up to 80 are put on the wall at a qualitative research group. It seems counter-intuitive to use so many, but it really is the key to getting genuinely deep & precise consumer insight. This is because we are effectively producing multiple variations of each idea area, meaning that the very best expression of an idea can be isolated. No other agency shows anything like the volume of Adcepts that B7 does.

Specialisiation
B7 is the Adcept specialist – unlike other agencies that offer Adcepts as an option, Adcepts are all we do. After10 years of constant refinement of our thinking & our systems, we are undoubtedly the world experts in this technique. We have applied our methods with consistent success from highly sophisticated Western markets to the developing world. We have partnered with some of the world’s leading qualitative research agencies, and have made a difference to some of the world’s most respected brands. No one understands the power of Adcepts like B7 does.

Adcepts give much richer & more precise insights into what a brand can be & where it can go. B7’s Paul Tidmarsh outlines five things that B7’s Adcept methodology offers that traditional concept statements can’t:

1. Talk to consumers in a way that’s realistic & familiar
Consumers never see concept statements in everyday life. Adcepts, however, are in a familiar format & allow them to assess an idea’s appeal/uniqueness against the competition just as they would in the real world.

2. Give emotional expression to an idea
Concept statements are rational arguments, but real life brands are much more than rational arguments. Adcepts are different – they appeal to consumers in the same way that real brands do – by being emotionally engaging / funny / shocking / charming / informative etc.

3. Give each idea its best chance
The number of concept statements we can show to people is limited – usually around six. This means that you’ve got just one chance to get it right per area, so strong ideas can be easily lost if the best angle isn’t taken. With Adcepts, however, we can show consumers up to 80 ideas, often using multiple variations around the same idea area. This way we give each area many more opportunities to strike a chord with consumers.

4. Give extremely precise direction
Because we can show so many adcepts to consumers, each one is very pure & distinct, giving very precise indication of exactly what it is that they like. And because there is an emotional aspect to Adcepts, we get a powerful feel for the best brand personality & tone of voice

5. Facilitate large/international teams
When you are limited to around six concept statements per project, it can be very difficult to include different points of view. Individuals, teams & local markets can feel that their ideas are being left out. Using Adcepts with up to 80 executions being shown to consumers means that there is plenty of room for every voice to be heard.