RESTON, Va., July 14, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- comScore (NASDAQ: SCOR) today announced the publication of its latest report, The Halo Effect: How Advertising on Premium Publishers Drives Higher Ad Effectiveness. The research and resulting study examines the branding effectiveness of digital display ads appearing on Digital Content Next (DCN)* member sites compared to non-member sites. The study revealed that this segment of publishers delivered significantly better branding effectiveness results across a number of measures. The primary driver of this increased effectiveness is the 'halo effect' of the contextual environment in which the ads are seen.

With the rapid growth of programmatic advertising in recent years, concerns have arisen about whether digital ad impressions are becoming increasingly commoditized. While more efficient in some ways, this approach can sometimes overlook other important factors that determine advertising effectiveness, such as media quality. comScore sought to understand the extent to which media quality mattered in driving advertising effectiveness, and the value of premium inventory. Key findings from the study include:

• Display ads on DCN premium publisher sites had an average of 67% higher brand lift than non-DCN publishers, confirming that premium sites deliver premium performance.
• Premium publishers are more than 3x more effective in driving mid-funnel brand lift metrics such as favorability, consideration and intent to recommend.
• Premium publisher effectiveness is driven in part by higher viewability rates which include lower levels of invalid traffic.

"In the growing list of reasons why brand marketers need to know where their advertising campaigns are running, this independent report hits the nail on the head," said Jason Kint, CEO of DCN. "comScore's research clearly connects the dots between high-quality media brands and the value that trusted environments deliver."

This increased mid-funnel performance is especially significant for large consumer brands that drive the majority of digital ad spending. These brands tend to have already established high brand awareness, and therefore prefer to focus more on influencing how consumers feel about the brand so that they are more likely to purchase that brand when in the market to do so. The data suggest that premium publishers may do a particularly effective job at moving the needle at this key phase of the marketing funnel.

"The comScore study highlights what DCN's members and our brand advertising clients know - the best place to connect with customers is within our premium, trusted environments," said Christy Tanner, Senior Vice President and General Manager, CBS News Digital and DCN Board Co-chair.

"As a media company that creates premium-quality, authoritative brands and content, we've also prioritized creating big, beautiful, high-performing ad solutions that work with the user experience, rather than against it," said Marty Moe, President of Vox Media and DCN Board Co-chair.  "This independent data from comScore supports the value proposition we provide to brand marketers: smart and trusted content creates a premium environment for advertisers, delivering better, more meaningful business results."

To download a free copy of The Halo Effect: How Advertising on Premium Publishers Drives Higher Ad Effectiveness, please visit: www.comScore.com/HaloEffect

*Digital Content Next (DCN) is an industry trade group that represents many brand name digital publishers across a variety of content verticals. These well-known media brands tend to sell most of their inventory directly to advertisers and provide a context for their content that is more meaningful to their readers. This study was not commissioned by DCN or any of its member companies. While the results were shared with DCN prior to publication, DCN did not have any influence over the design of the research or its findings.

About comScore
comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a leading cross-platform measurement company that precisely measures audiences, brands and consumer behavior everywhere. comScore completed its merger with Rentrak Corporation in January 2016, to create the new model for a dynamic, cross-platform world. Built on precision and innovation, our unmatched data footprint combines proprietary digital, TV and movie intelligence with vast demographic details to quantify consumers' multiscreen behavior at massive scale. This approach helps media companies monetize their complete audiences and allows marketers to reach these audiences more effectively. With more than 3,200 clients and global footprint in more than 75 countries, comScore is delivering the future of measurement. For more information on comScore, please visit comscore.com.

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SOURCE comScore