Module 1: How advertising works?

A primer on the fundamentals of how and why advertising works to build brands and grow sales, how we define effectiveness, and what campaigns need to achieve to deliver business results.

Module 2: Investing for growth

The principle of Excess Share of Voice, the relationship between share of voice and share of market, and how to ensure your advertising budget is sufficient to achieve your business’ growth objectives.

Module 3: Targeting for Growth

The principle of growth through penetration, the pitfalls of loyalty, and how to build brand and business through the targeting of all category buyers.

Module 4: Managing long & short

The difference between short-term advertising that works to convert the existing demand in the market, and long-term advertising that works to create future demand – and how to balance those activities to achieve the most effective mix.

Module 5: Building mental availability

The difference between physical availability and mental availability, and how to use distinctive assets and harness brand familiarity to make brands easier to buy.

Module 6: The power of emotion

How emotion plays a role in human decision-making, and what that means for the commercial effects of emotionally-led vs rational, informational advertising.

Module 7: Creativity & effectiveness

How creativity works to create fame and commercial success, and how to use advertising creativity as a magnifier of campaign effectiveness.

Module 8: Creative commitment

How to manage key campaign variables of spend, duration and spread of media channels to maximise effectiveness potential.

Module 9: Objective setting, tracking & measurement

How to create clarity by correctly and robustly setting advertising objectives, demonstrate value by tracking and measuring advertising effectiveness, and nurture confidence by socialising results in powerful ways.

Module 10: Applying the principles to brands you work on.

How to take what you’ve learned on the programme and apply it to the brands you work on. A series of frameworks and canvases with which to apply your new knowledge to your day-to-day.

Exam week

Take this practical exam to test your knowledge of the programme material and earn your Master of Advertising Effectiveness certification.

The Master of Advertising Effectiveness is a six-week online programme that equips marketing and advertising professionals with a complete understanding of the evidence-based principles of advertising effectiveness and how to apply them to make advertising that creates consistently better commercial results.

It’s common for marketers and agencies to see outstanding business results from their very best advertising campaigns. What’s far less common is examples of brands that consistently achieve high levels of effectiveness with their advertising.

The reasons for this can seem complex and elusive — and while there is indeed an art to creating effective advertising, there’s also a huge body of science that has been developed over the past two decades, enabling much greater clarity on effectiveness best practice. When this best practice is fully understood and integrated into our day- to-day planning and execution of advertising, we can maximise the effectiveness potential of all of our advertising. 

We drive more reliable and sustainable business outcomes, and improve the value and reputation of marketing within our organisations. We love it when the stars align and we knock it out of the park with our advertising. What the Master of Advertising Effectiveness will give you is a better ability to align those stars yourself.

The Master of Advertising Effectiveness is an 'evidence-based' programme. This means that we’re teaching principles that have been developed from the analysis of major advertising effectiveness data sets, by the world’s leading independent marketing science academics and researchers, representing esteemed institutions like the IPA, the Ehrenberg Bass Institute and WARC. Nothing you’ll learn is based on anecdotal evidence or personal experience — although we do illustrate the principles using specific examples to bring each concept to life.

If you're involved in the commissioning of or creation of advertising — and especially if you're the person signing off on creative ideas and production and media budgets— it's critical that you have a strong working knowledge of advertising effectiveness. Specifically, the Master of Advertising Effectiveness has been designed for client-side marketers and agency professionals at all levels of seniority.

Upon completion of the programme and your certification as a Master of Advertising Effectiveness, you’ll go back to work with greater confidence, influence and value. You’ll have much greater confidence in your planning and decision making. You’ll be better equipped to influence others and sell in strategies, campaigns and budgets. You’ll be able to articulate the value of advertising and the commercial rationale for common advertising strategies. You’ll be more successful in your efforts to push for larger budgets or gain support for ‘braver’ advertising. And you’ll increase the value of your discipline. The value of marketing and advertising has never been more in question. The programme will sharpen your ability to articulate and champion that value. And more importantly, to create advertising that increases that value by better linking advertising activity and commercial performance.

No problem – shoot us a note at [email protected] and we’ll save you a spot until you can organise payment.

Yes – get in touch at [email protected] and we can organise split payment if your payment case isn't already covered in the pricing section.

The live sessions are a chance for students to ask questions about the content and delve deeper into the principles. Students can submit questions at any time for the next live session. James will answer these questions during the live session, which will also be accessible to stream after its conclusion.

Yes – the programme has been specifically designed for professionals in full-time roles. The time commitment is around 90 minutes per week, and our video modules can be watched at whatever time is most convenient for you.