How ad variation and repetition influence memory recall: effects of brand familiarity and message similarity

Appropriately using advertising variation and repetition strategies is critical to marketers’ decision-making process. Previous studies, however, have not considered realistic advertising environments. This study examines how ad variation-repetition strategies influence ad memory in more realistic settings with different brand familiarity and message similarity levels. Specifically, we performed four experiments to test the hypotheses derived from the theoretical arguments and prior research about the brand schema, the encoding variability hypothesis, advertising creativity, and consumer motivations to process brand claims. The results suggest that a variation strategy of advertisements is desirable for more familiar brands. In contrast, for less familiar brands, the specific ad strategy depends on the message similarity level of competing brands. The findings are robust in that they are consistent in print and SNS media. Finally, we present meaningful implications of the results and future research directions.