When a movie rolls out in stages, how do you decide where the ad dollars go first week in theaters, later weeks, discs and TVOD, then streaming? In this episode, Prof. Sönke Albers walks me through his Journal of Advertising Research article, “Optimal Rules for Advertising Budget Allocation Across Movie Versions Marketed in Sequential Distribution Stages.”

Sönke explains a simple, Excel-friendly rule that accounts for both stage size and long-term ad elasticity, plus the carryover and spillover that early ads create for later stages. The takeaway is clear: when there are meaningful carryover effects, front-loading spend early typically pays twice, but you still need to weight each stage by its expected profit and responsiveness. He also shows how the cascading structure scales to any number of release stages and why optimizing real profit beats rules that only look at elasticities.

We talk practicals for studios and any brand with staggered launches books, games, product lines and why getting decent elasticity estimates can materially improve outcomes.

Read the full paper here:
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00218499.2025.2464282

Listen to the podcast here:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2250188

And watch this and more content on our YouTube page:
https://www.youtube.com/@journalofadvertisingresearch

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How is generative AI changing the creative process inside agencies? In this episode, Carla Ferraro, Sean Sands, and Vlad Demsar join me to unpack insights from their Journal of Advertising Research article, “Harmony or Discord? The Intersection of Generative AI and Human Creativity in Advertising,” coauthored with Andrew Kohn.

We talk about what senior agency leaders are actually doing with GenAI right now, where it reliably speeds up ideation, testing, and production, and where human guidance is still essential. The team shares why originality, ethics, and over-reliance on historical data remain real concerns, plus practical guardrails around brand fit, copyright, and data privacy. We also get into training and transparency, how teams can treat AI as a creative partner rather than a replacement, and smart next steps for research on consumer reactions and team workflows.

Read the full paper here:
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00218499.2025.2464305

Listen to the podcast here:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2250188

And watch this and more content on our YouTube page:
https://www.youtube.com/@journalofadvertisingresearch

To keep up to date on the latest JAR news sign up for our newsletter:
https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/mtD04QN

And follow us on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/82528291/admin/

To keep up to date on the latest JAR news sign up for our newsletter:
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And follow us on LinkedIn:
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Does calling out AI in your creative spark conversation or scare people off? In this episode, Sara Hanson, Jeffrey Carlson, and Heather Pressler unpack their Journal of Advertising Research article, “The Differential Impact of AI Salience on Advertising Engagement and Attitude: Scary Good AI Advertising.”

We dig into AI salience, meaning how obvious it is that AI made the ad through disclosures or clearly AI-looking imagery. Across four studies, they find a split effect. AI-salient ads boost engagement like more likes and longer comments, but they also trigger fear and reactance that lower ad attitudes and can dampen conversion intent. The team talks about how to handle disclosures, where AI fits along the funnel, and why finding the right balance is key.

Read the full paper here:
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00218499.2025.2464307

Listen to the podcast here:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2250188

And watch this and more content on our YouTube page:
https://www.youtube.com/@journalofadvertisingresearch

To keep up to date on the latest JAR news sign up for our newsletter:
https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/mtD04QN

And follow us on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/82528291/admin/