Don’t Be Tardy When It Comes to Back-To-School Advertising, Samsung Ads Says

Marketers and students are in the same boat this time of year. It might feel like it's too early to start thinking about going back to school, but research from Samsung Ads says summer quickly runs out when it comes to back-to-school advertising. 

According to Samsung, the ideal time for back-to-school (B2S) brands to influence purchase decisions is mid-summer, or July. We’re marking you tardy if your brand’s not out there already.

Back-to-school ads were noticed in July by 49% of shoppers surveyed, with 82% of shoppers saying this is the most effective period for ads to have an impact.

That impact shrinks as we get closer to the first day of class. Impact on purchase decisions falls to 70% in August and 76% in September. 

While early is good, marketers should avoid being excessively early teachers pets. According to the survey 52% of shoppers said that ads that appear before the end of school in April or May have no impact on their decisions.

In store shopping for back-to-school items is still preferred by 53% of respondents, with 20% shopping via smartphones and 16% on laptops.

Despite that, back-to-school shoppers said interactive ads on TV are growing on them. In the study, 65% said they interact to learn more about the product, 62% said they purchase products by clicking on a “buy now” button, and 62% scan a QR code with a mobile device to learn more or buy the product.

The messages that resonate with shoppers this year focus on “lowest prices” and discounts, with 62% saying those were important factors in their purchase decisions. In the survey, 50% said they plan to buy store-brand or generic items, 49% said they’d only buy items that are on sale and 44% said they’d be buying items sold in bundled promotions.

Samsung asked viewers about how their perception about the economy will shape their shopping plans and found that 41% said they expect their back-to-school budget to be about the same as last year, with 33% saying they plan to spend more and 26% intending to spend less.

Inflation was the biggest reason (49%) cited by people who planned less spending, with 45% saying they wanted to save more this year and 40% pointing to lower income and employment changes.

The items shoppers said they’d be spending liess on included clothing and shoes (64%), school supplies (49%), extracurricular equipment, such as sports gear and musical instruments (38%) and furniture (34%).

Samsung’s survey was conducted by Suzy Inc., which interviewed 1,000 people 25 to 45 on July 21 and July 22.

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Nielsen and WPP Media—formerly GroupM— announced a new agreement for audience measurement spanning TV, streaming, audio, and cross-platform ad performance via Nielsen One. 

Insight from Nielsen data will be integrated into WPP’s i Open Media Studio. 

“At WPP Media, our priority is equipping clients with the intelligence and tools they need to drive measurable growth,” said Nicolas Grand, Executive Director of Research and Investment Analytics at WPP Media. “By integrating Nielsen’s advanced audiences into WPP Open, we’re building a more seamless, interoperable planning and measurement ecosystem that empowers advertisers to optimize performance and accelerate growth.”

“Collaborating with leading industry players like WPP Media helps us collectively power the future of audience measurement and technology that actually helps advertisers connect with audiences,” added Matt Devitt, Head of Advertisers and Agencies at Nielsen.

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Speaking of Nielsen, last week a jury decided that startup HyphaMetrics did not infringe on Nielsen patents, in a suit filed by Nielsen. 

“HyphaMetrics’ historic lawsuit victory against Nielsen is a monumental win for consumers and the entire media ecosystem. We are thrilled that the jury recognized Neilson’s allegations were baseless and predatory, and that HyphaMetrics’ single source data stream is a proprietary solution that will revolutionize media measurement” said Joanna Drews, CEO and co-founder of HyphaMetrics, in a statement. “The entire HyphaMetrics team is excited to move past this meritless lawsuit, so we can continue to help clients bridge the gap between streaming, linear, and digital with unified reporting. Stay tuned — lots more to come!” 

Nielsen said it is “reviewing the record and considering an appeal.”

In a statement, Nielsen notes that in testimony, it appeared that HyphaMetrics did not have a product yet. 

“We filed this suit because the product that HyphaMetrics marketed, promised, and said it sold is something we believed infringed Nielsen’s patents. As the trial evolved, we were surprised to learn that HyphaMetrics has no actual product, no data for sale, and no plans to use AI-enabled content recognition technology now or in the future,” Nielsen said. .”We imagine that the clients who signed up for the product that HyphaMetrics marketed will be interested and surprised to learn this as well.”

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Seedtag, which specializes in neuro-contextual advertising, said it has signed up for SafeGuard Privacy, which powers the IAB Diligency program.

"Privacy has always been at the core of Seedtag and is embedded in every layer of our offering," said Brian Danzis, Chief Revenue Officer at Seedtag. "This partnership streamlines the compliance process for onboarding and enables faster turnaround times. By integrating the IAB Diligence Platform into our operations, we are proactively safeguarding consumer data while maintaining the highest standards of privacy diligence."