Magazine ads viewed on tablet computers are more effective than magazine ads viewed on e-readers in garnering consumer attention and engagement, according to data collected by Starch Advertising Research from May-July 2011. Starch data reveals that, on average, 55% of consumers who read a magazine on a tablet “noted,” meaning they saw or read a magazine ad on their device.
In comparison, 41% of e-reader magazine app users noted an ad. This means tablet readers are 34% more likely to note a magazine ad. To put these findings in perspective, the average noting score for all hard copy magazine ads Starch measured in 2010 was 53%.
Tablet Magazine Ads Drive Engagement
Starch data shows that magazine advertising on tablets also appears to more strongly drive engagement, compared with e-readers, among consumers who read/saw an ad. For instance, of consumers who noted a magazine ad on a tablet, 26% had a more favorable opinion of the advertiser after viewing the ad (37% more than the 19% for e-reader ads) and 21% of tablet ad noters looked for information about the product or service after viewing the ad (40% more than the 15% of e-reader ad noters).
And while an equal percentage (22%) of ad noters on both tablets and e-readers said that a magazine ad drove them to consider purchasing the product/service, the tablet was still more effective since Starch analysis shows that more consumers noted an ad on a tablet in the first place.
Tablet Ads Drive Interaction
Consumers are also much more likely to interact with magazine ads on tablets compared to ads on e-readers. Twenty-three percent of respondents who read a magazine ad on a tablet accessed a web site via an ad, 9% viewed multiple pages of advertising content and 8% watched a video or commercial embedded in the ad.
By comparison, less than 1% of respondents who viewed a magazine ad on an e-reader took any of these actions. Starch says this finding might reflect that ads on e-readers typically have fewer interactive features.
Pew: E-reader Growth Outpaces Tablets
The share of adults in the US who own an e-book reader doubled to 12% in May 2011 from 6% in November 2010, according to data from the Pew Research Center Internet & American Life Project. This is the first time since the Pew Internet Project began measuring e-reader use in April 2009 that ownership of this device has reached double digits among US adults.
Meanwhile, Pew data shows 8% of US adults owned a tablet computer in May 2011. This is roughly the same percentage of adults who reported owning this kind of device in January 2011 (7%), and represents 60% growth in ownership since November 2010
About the Data: Starch Advertising Research, a unit of GfK MRI, surveyed approximately 7,000 users of magazine apps on Tablets and e-readers between May and July of 2011.
