Arousal, memory, and impression-formation effects of animation speed in web advertising

Animated advertisements on the Web come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors; they also animate at different speeds. Although recent studies have shown animated ads to be more effective than still ads, the role played by the rate of motion in animated ads has been neglected. An experiment was designed to address this issue by focusing specifically on the physiological and psychological effects of animation speeds in Web ads. Hypotheses derived from motion effects, excitation transfer, limited capacity, and vividness effects theories were tested via a mixed-design experiment wherein participants (N = 47) were exposed to both slow-paced and fast-paced animated ads in one of two sequences (fast then slow, or slow then fast). Arousal was monitored during reception, while memory, conation, and impression formation were measured via a postexposure paper-and-pencil questionnaire. Results indicate that animation speed is a psychologically significant variable. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.