The Wall Street Journal
By Nathalie Tadena
The rivalry between electronics giants Samsung and Apple continues to heat up, but the brand with the most effective TV advertising in the mobile phone space this year is actually Amazon, a newcomer to the phone business, according to research firm Ace Metrix.
Ace Metrix, which uses a sample of more than 500 viewers to score an ad’s effectiveness based on traits such as persuasion and likeability, found that Amazon’s series of ads for its new Fire phone had the highest average effectiveness score among mobile phone brands that aired three or more ads this year.
But those cute ads, in which little kids show off the phone to highlight its unique capabilities, didn’t quite convince consumers to open their wallets. Amazon disclosed a $170 million charge on the Fire phone in its latest earnings report and analysts have said the phone is selling poorly.
For each of the four Amazon Fire ads, an average of 15% of consumers said the ad’s characters — the kids — were the best part of the spot, much higher than nearly any other mobile phone brand, Ace Metrix said.
Samsung had the second highest average ad effectiveness score among mobile phone brands, followed by Windows, Apple and LG Mobile Phones, according to Ace Metrix.
Samsung has been struggling to maintain market share in a highly competitive phone market. Despite its aggressive advertising, the South Korean electronics company on Thursday reported a sharp decline in third-quarter earnings amid weak smartphone sales and noted it will have to boost marketing efforts further in the face of anticipated year-end launches from rivals.
In contrast to Samsung’s results, rival Apple earlier this month reported a 13% increase in quarterly profit driven by strong sales of its new bigger-screen iPhones.
Samsung actually had four of the five most effective ads so far this year in the category. But because it runs so many ads — and many others had low scores — its average score was below Amazon’s.
Here’s the rundown of the top five most effective mobile phone ads this year, as ranked by Ace Metrix:
1. Samsung’s “Water Resistance”
2. Samsung’s “Makes Everyday Better”
3. Samsung’s “Wall Huggers”
4. Amazon’s “Fire Phone”
5. Samsung’s “Health Help”
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