September 2011 Newspaper Creative Benchmark Report Qantas

It’s a component of the Newspaper Effectiveness Metric which is run by the newspaper industry marketing body, The Newspaper Works. A monthly study designed; To measure and identify the effectiveness of newspaper creative To help improve understanding of how to use newspapers effectively To improve the understanding of the roles newspaper advertising can play To improve the standard of newspaper creative To provide a consistent metric that is accepted as the industry standard Optus was included in the August 2011 study

Pre/post effectiveness studies, measuring in-market effects and how newspaper work with Television Comparison of creative against category averages Comprehensive analysis of how newspapers can best be used to influence purchase behaviour The Newspaper Works’ effectiveness partner:

Recognised industry measures + Newspaper measures Proprietary newspaper measures The Newspaper Works’ effectiveness partner: Ad Recognition Brand Linkage Message Comprehension Brand Equity Impact Role Map Action Map Newspaper Creative Diagnostics

Qantas were two of six ads tested in Sydney (one each, in groups of three) Sample: Australians 16+ Sample size: a) 105 b) 109 Fieldwork: 8 th -15 th September 2011 Conducted online by Ipsos MediaCT Benchmarks used: Newspaper Norm(see appendix for details)

Branded Newspaper Benchmarks

Size: FPC Position: Page 8 Appearance date: 20/8/11 Publication: Sydney Morning Herald Ads benchmarked Size: FPC Position: Page 4 Appearance date: 25/8/11 Publication: Sydney Morning Herald

Newspaper Norm The ‘Spirit’ ad is obviously seen as the more appealing creative as we’d expect with interesting photography versus a copy heavy piece. An ad seen as ‘cluttered’ is not necessarily unsuccessful in communicating important information if it is organised well and delivers to a strong creative idea.

Results on Top Line measures are within tolerance for Norms for both pieces of advertising. Note: Ad Recognition and Brand Linkage can be affected by weight of campaign and timing of research Significantly different to Retail Average at 90% c.l. Newspaper Norm Spirit : n=13 Stronger : n=12 Ads shown without branding

Both ads achieved brand equity scores within tolerance for Norms, with the ‘Stronger’ ad achieving significantly high scores at delivering understanding. Significantly different to Retail Average at 90% c.l. Newspaper Norm +14

44% of respondents were generally correct in understanding key messages. 25% made references to copy or concepts that related to ‘friendship’ or ‘partnership’ but really didn’t explain the advertising in relation to Qantas or any other airlines brand. The number claiming ‘don’t know’ is disappointing.

What did the respondents say about the ‘Spirit’ ad? The photo looks great but doesn't seem to relate to the information. It is a little ambiguous when you first look at it. But it has friendly connotations with the children playing and conveys a positive feeling towards the business partnership. It was cute and made the airline seem more real. It is a very warm ad. Positive image associations Cute / different Partnership with whom? I felt that it was lacking clarity, Just a plane in the background high in the sky would have made a huge difference. The ad was a good one. But I am sceptical of its motives, given the current controversy over forthcoming reorganisation. It stands out from other newspaper ads very well. they say they are joining forces...but with whom? it seems a bit half ended....not telling the full story

The Word Cloud reflects a fairly straightforward understanding of the concepts being communicated in the ‘Spirit’ execution

30% of respondents were generally correct in identifying key messages in the ad. A further 28% made more generic connections to ‘growth’ or union disputes without relating it back to Qantas or any other airline. The amount of ‘don’t know’ responses is disappointingly high and verbatims suggest a reticence to engage with the copy. Find out more on long copy ads that work well at: search-into-long-copy

What did the respondents say about the ‘Stronger’ ad? Too cluttered and confusing. It's not really a travel ad, like you see for other airlines. I don't like that it tries to blame things on the unions. There's a lot of other causes to Qantas' problems. The ad was a plea to get people back flying on Qantas, after some bad things in the press lately. It was well written and explained the reasons for the necessary changes. Respondents highly informed about issues and clearly taking sides Cluttered, but lots of information As a loyal customer of Qantas I do want to know what is happening so would like them to make an ad that is in simple English for people like me to understand. The ad was not so much an ad as Qantas' version of the big news story. It looked as though Qantas was having trouble getting its side of the story across in the main coverage and so was prepared to commit serious money to communicate via a paid ad. boring, too cluttered, overwhelming

The Word Cloud reflects a complicated and multi- facted understanding of the concepts in the ad, with no one clear message coming through, however this probably accurately reflects the purpose of the ad which is to deliver a lot of complex information

RoleMap successfully demonstrates the two very different roles of the ads and perception of those by newspaper readers. As expected, the ‘Spirit’ execution achieved significantly high scores on driving Affinity, while the ‘Stronger’ ad delivers to the Public Agenda, Reappraisal and Information. Significantly different to Retail Average at 90% c.l. Newspaper Norm

Interesting that while the RoleMap results are very different for each ad, the ActionMap results take almost the same shape, with the most likely from both ads being ‘Remember for Later’ and Web Search % scores Significantly different to Retail Average at 90% c.l. Newspaper Norm

Comparison with other ads

Comparing ‘Spirit’ to other Airline ads we’ve tested that perform well on Affinity September 2009September 2011November 2008

A single focus versus many roles Newspaper Norm Both Jetstar and the A380 ads deliver Information well, which helps drive Affinity and a concurrent Call to Action. The ‘Spirit’ execution is the strongest performing ad we’ve tested (in the Airline category) at driving Affinity and it is much more focused on this as it’s role versus other airline ads we’ve tested since 2008.

Comparing ‘Stronger’ to other Airline ads we’ve tested on delivering Information and driving Reappraisal May 2010 July 2009September 2011

A good offer overcomes many barriers Newspaper Norm Of these three ads, Air NZ are the most successful at using an eyecatching headline, to drive Reappraisal and Call to Action. Despite being very visual, they are the highest ad we’ve tested in this category, in delivery of Information. The Virgin Blue ad from July ‘09 uses an appeal to the Public Agenda to drive Reappraisal and a Call to Action.

Top Performers on Rolemap

6.2x Higher than norm 5x Higher than norm 2.4x Higher than norm 2.9x Higher than norm 8.0x Higher than norm 3.8x Higher than norm All newspaper norm. September 2011 (Updated monthly)

Obviously these two ads for Qantas are not directly comparable as they serve two very distinct communication needs and both are successful in different ways. The ‘Spirit’ ad is seen as a visually pleasing piece of communication, scoring well on creative diagnostics such as ‘Has a great image’, ‘Catches my eye’ and ‘Looks good’ and this is reflected in research verbatims This ad achieves strong scores for Affinity however some comments indicated confusion over key messages Because the ad is one component of a multi-tiered strategy, it struggles to stand alone in testing. Conversely, the ‘Stronger’ ad is perceived to be cluttered and looking a little dull However, this ad scores high numbers for Reappraisal, Information and speaking to the Public Agenda Of those respondents who understood the key messages within the ad, research verbatims demonstrated a high degree of understanding around key issues…and for them, the level of information provided, was a good thing

Established in 2006 by the major Australian newspaper publishers: – News Limited – Fairfax Media (including Rural Press) – APN News and Media – West Australian Newspapers Represents paid national, metropolitan, regional and community titles. Primary aims: – To promote newspapers as a powerful medium for advertisers – To ensure that newspapers are perceived as being contemporary and relevant in a transforming media landscape

Creation of All Newspaper norms Testing of randomly selected newspaper display ads 5,100 ad observations in total 40 test ads, 100+ observations per ad Population representative sample of the five mainland state capitals Conducted online by Ipsos Media CT, July-August 2008 Sample size 1,737

Newspapers are a powerful medium to utilise across a broad range of strategic roles. Six strategic advertising roles have been validated both qualitatively and quantitatively, resulting in the creation of Role Map, one of two proprietary newspaper metrics. Role Map demonstrates how consumers connect with newspaper advertising across the six roles, comparing the performance of creative against a footprint of all ads tested. Retail average Statements are tailored to be appropriate to the advertising category.

Newspapers are recognised as an effective medium for delivering a Call to Action. Action Map, the third proprietary newspaper metric, expands on this strategic role to provide an understanding of the types of action a newspaper ad inspires. Measured via forced exposure, people are asked about the actions they would consider taking (or have taken) as a result of seeing the ad. New measure introduced in March 2010, norm not yet available.

Another proprietary newspaper metric provides a set of creative diagnostics unique to the attributes of newspaper advertising. They’ve been developed to help identify areas for improvement where results across other brand and advertising measures may require further analysis and interrogation. Retail average Statements are tailored to be appropriate to the advertising category.