research

Erez Levin, media futurist and ad quality evangelist, explains why marketers need to move beyond simple reach and binary metrics like viewability to focus on media quality signals that better predict marketing outcomes. As identity-based targeting weakens and channels like Connected TV grow, the attributes of the ad placement itself—like attention potential (screen prominence, audibility, time on screen) and situational context (content environment, time of day, device)—are becoming critical indicators of effectiveness.

Mark Ritson, globally recognized marketing expert, cuts through the mythology of "great ads" to examine what actually drives effectiveness. Drawing on decades of academic research and real-world examples, he unpacks the commercial, strategic, and psychological factors behind high-performing creative—and challenges marketers to rethink how they brief, assess, and invest in advertising.

Matt Devlin, Chief Strategy Officer at PHD, provides an overview of the Canadian Media Landscape and outlines a shift to an “Age of Abundance,” where content is limitless and automation accelerates commoditization. In this forward-looking session, Matt unpacks how this shift is changing the rules of competition, and what marketers need to focus on to stay ahead.

While there is lots of evidence that TV works in the aggregate, marketers want campaign-level proof of advertising effectiveness – and now we have it. Environics Analytics’ David Phillips shares a detailed analysis of TV campaign performance across a variety of brands and categories; the study found that 90% of campaigns delivered significant, incremental short-term sales lift, and more two-thirds drove increased foot traffic.

At our Media, Marketing & Effectiveness event, effectiveness guru Peter Field and attention expert Dr. Karen Nelson-Field shared the latest findings from their groundbreaking "Extraordinary Cost of Dull" research, which puts a dollar value (almost $200 billion) on invisible impressions and dull media.

At Media, Marketing & Effectiveness, Hilary Borndahl, Founder and CEO of Miix Analytics, shared key findings from an extensive analysis of Canadian businesses ($45B in revenue and $621M in working ad spend).