Dentsu’s Brand Reset report involved one of the biggest advertising effectiveness studies ever conducted and is the first study to link attention to both brand equity and sales. Built by Dentsu in partnership with Kantar and Lumen, it draws on 10 next-gen platforms plus Linear TV, involving 20 brands across nine verticals, with 40,000 respondents across the US and UK.
Cheryl Ingram, founder and CEO of The Digital Media Collective (TDMC), said this report should act as a wakeup call for marketers and brand managers across South Africa. ‘The core argument is simple: brands have been chasing cheap clicks at the expense of brand building, and now there’s hard data to prove why that is a mistake,’ said Ingram.
Ingram shares her top five key findings from the report and what they mean for brands:
1. Digital video builds brands long-term, not just short-term
The data confirms that digital video is not merely a short-term performance tool. Short-form formats deliver superior efficiency, achieving a lower cost per 1% long-term lift than Linear TV. ‘That kills the old ‘TV builds brands, digital drives clicks’ narrative,’ said Ingram.
2. One single ad exposure has lasting impact
The industry study found that a single brand exposure is projected to generate between 1% and 5% more sales in the long-term over the next three years, compared to no exposure. Each exposure also has a short-term effect of between 2% and 15%. ‘That is a powerful argument for quality over quantity. The brands bold enough to commit to that truth today will be the ones defining their categories tomorrow,’ said Ingram.
3. Connected TV is now nearly as powerful as Linear TV
Connected TV platforms deliver a 3.21% long-term sales lift, compared with 4.43% for Linear TV. The gap is closing fast, and audience behaviour has fundamentally shifted.
4. Voluntary attention beats forced attention
Advertising on skippable formats that succeeds in holding attention can have a huge brand-building effect if attention is sustained. ‘While skippable formats have lower impact when viewed for one to two seconds, their impact surpasses non-skippable ones if people choose to keep watching. What this really means is: earn the attention, do not force it,’ said Ingram.
5. More attention isn’t always better: 20 seconds is the sweet spot
More attention reaps greater brand-building effects. ‘However, after 20 seconds, the study shows that attention delivers little additional impact,’ said Ingram. ‘This calls into question the assumption that more attention is always better.’
Ingram stressed that brands need to adapt quickly to catch up with their audiences, who have already moved. She uses the example of coverage for the upcoming FIFA World Cup in South Africa to highlight just how quickly things are shifting.
From 2010 to 2022, SuperSport held exclusive pay-TV rights to the FIFA World Cup, but for the 2026 championship, a streaming platform that did not even exist in South Africa 12 months ago now has also secured the right to broadcast. ‘SportyTV secured all 104 FIFA World Cup 2026 matches in South Africa, a deal that was confirmed on 13 April 2026,’ said Ingram. ‘And on 8 January 2026, TikTok became FIFA’s first-ever Preferred Platform for the World Cup, meaning South African fans could be watching matches content on a short-form social app, not a decoder.’
With Bafana Bafana back in the World Cup for the first time since 2010 and the South African team playing one of the host nations, Mexico, in the opening game on 11 June, Ingram has a stark warning for brands: ‘Your audience will be watching on a screen you might not have planned for. And while no one is saying TV is dead, the facts are the facts.’
What do brands need to do? First, said Ingram, they need to urgently scrutinise their media plans to ensure they are keeping pace with the changes. ‘They also need to make sure that their agency has the tools and expertise at their disposal to adapt and evolve.’
“This report points out that for brands striving for sustainable growth through video, the era of focusing on short-term results through cheap clicks and performance outcomes are over. It highlights that in this Algorithmic Era, the winners will be those who understand the necessity of balancing brand and performance investment so that the brand can thrive in both the short and long-term,’ said Ingram.
TDMC
https://tdmc.co.za
