Brand Linkage

Also known as: Brand Attribution, Ad-to-Brand Linkage, Brand Credit

Degree to which a consumer correctly associates an ad or campaign with the advertised brand.

Brand Linkage (or Brand Attribution) is the ad testing metric measuring the percentage of consumers who, after seeing an ad, correctly associate it with the advertised brand. It is the bridge between ad recall and brand recall.

An ad with high recall but low brand linkage is a serious problem: the consumer remembers the ad but doesn't know which brand it is, potentially benefiting a competitor. This occurs especially when the ad doesn't integrate the brand organically and memorably.

Brand linkage is particularly critical in highly advertising-saturated categories where ads are similar among competitors. Brands with strong visual identity (colors, mascot, jingle) typically have higher brand linkage.

Atlantia measures brand linkage as a standard component in all its Ad Testing studies.