Optimising your B2B advertising is key to increasing reach, frequency, dwell times and of course ultimately revenue.
Let’s take a look at dwell time and frequency.
Which is the better metric to optimise to? Frequency or dwell time?
Let’s start with some quick definitions.
Dwell time is the industry term for the time a person spends looking at something. In our situation, the ad.
Frequency is the number of times someone sees an ad.
Quite clearly, both together is ideal but which is more important?
Seeing an ad for short bursts multiple times, rather than once for a long time, is often more effective due to psychological and neurological principles related to attention, memory, and engagement.
Here’s why.
The Power of Repetition
Repetition enhances memory: Short, repeated exposures help reinforce the message in memory. This is known as the spacing effect, where information presented over time is better remembered than information delivered in one long session.
Multiple Touchpoints: Repeated exposure increases the likelihood that your audience will recall the ad and its message when they encounter your brand later.
Sustained Attention
Limited Attention Spans: Your audience today has shorter attention spans than ever before thanks to our huge access to information and constant connectivity.
A single long exposure risks losing their focus, making it less likely they’ll absorb the message fully.
Freshness Matters: Ads disappear into our distant memories and can easily be forgotten. Short bursts of advertising reinforce the memory and increase the amount of time before your brand is forgotten.
Overcoming long B2B Sales Cycles: Decision-making cycles are longer, so short bursts (at the right frequency) help maintain top-of-mind awareness without overwhelming prospects.
Leveraging the Mere Exposure Effect
Familiarity Breeds Favourability: People tend to develop a preference for things they see repeatedly. This phenomenon called the mere exposure effect, means short, frequent ad exposures can build a sense of familiarity and trust with the brand.
Some caveats though! The mere exposure effect is not enough on its own. Sticking a logo in front of someone more than another logo will create a shadow of trust but the ad still needs to connect emotionally and create a story that re-enforces why you are the right choice.
Also, as illustrated by the image above, there are diminishing returns from continuously increasing frequency.
Conclusion
So, while it is best to have more ads with long dwell times. When you are optimising your B2B advertising, it is better to have more ads (spaced out enough not to annoy) with short dwell times, than one ad with a long dwell time.