Does the 'Generation Effect' in Advertising Still Work?

The U.K. supermarket chain Tesco's recent advertising campaign creatively replaces letters with food items, prompting consumers to engage with the ad and enhancing recall through the generation effect.

The generation effect suggests that when people actively generate information, like identifying food items to form the word 'TESCO,' they show improved memory retention compared to passive viewing.

While the generation effect is well-documented, it diminishes when subjects are presented with both masked and complete terms, highlighting the importance of context in advertising effectiveness.

Studies indicate that less familiar words yield stronger recall, which may explain why Tesco's challenge—requiring the identification of unique food items—could lead to better overall memory of the ad.

Read at Psychology Today