The Effectiveness of Covert vs. Overt Brand Visibility in Video Advertising

This research is a mixed-methods (qualitative and quantitative) and semi-structured (survey and interview) study on the effectiveness of covert vs. overt commercials towards the influence of the brand attitude and purchase intention of consumers. Covert commercials are video advertisements that present the promoted brand and sponsor unclearly, and make its marketing nature hard to recognize at first sight. Overt commercials are video advertisements that present the promoted brand and sponsor clearly, and disclose its sponsor and marketing nature expressively. The survey and interview are designed to measure participants’ responses to four commercials, either covert or overt, with regards to the AIDA model, advertising skepticism, perceived believability, and brand attitude. This research contributes to the present literature regarding covert and overt video advertising, and gives advertisers and businesses valuable insights into covert commercials and their implications for improving marketing strategies and future study