What is a Brand Lift Study? A Comprehensive guide

Move beyond clicks and impressions—discover how brand lift studies reveal the real story behind campaign performance

Measuring the success of an advertising campaign goes beyond clicks and impressions. Marketers, ad agencies, and brand managers need deeper insights into how consumers perceive their brand and how advertising influences awareness, consideration, and behavior. This is where a brand lift study becomes essential.

A brand lift study is a research-backed method to measure the incremental impact of advertising on consumer perceptions and behaviors. Unlike basic metrics that offer surface-level insights like impressions, brand lift studies dig deeper into the effectiveness of your campaigns, showing whether they’re truly driving results for your brand.

This blog explores the advantages of brand lift studies and how DISQO's Brand Lift solution provides marketers with precise, high-fidelity insights to measure and optimize their campaigns effectively. 

1. What is a brand lift study?
2. Why are brand lift studies important?
3. How does DISQO's brand lift stand out?
4. Running a brand lift study with DISQO
5. Key use cases for brand lift studies

6. Realizing incrementality with DISQO's brand Lift

7. Are you measuring what matters?

What is a brand lift study?

A brand lift study measures the effectiveness of advertising campaigns by evaluating consumer attitudes and behaviors before and after exposure to an ad. The core idea is to determine the incremental lift created by your advertising efforts.

Brand lift studies typically assess metrics like:

• Brand Awareness (unaided and aided)
• Ad Recall
• Message Association (linking the ad to your brand)
• Brand Favorability
• Purchase Intent

Modern brand lift studies integrate behavioral data to add another layer of depth. Beyond surveys, they deterministically measure the actual actions people take after seeing an ad, such as visiting a website, conducting a search, or making a purchase. This blend of attitudinal and behavioral insights delivers a more holistic view of campaign performance.

Why are brand lift studies important?

1. Move beyond surface-level metrics 

Click-through rates and impressions only tell part of the story. A brand lift study paints the bigger picture of how ads shape consumer perceptions, contributing directly to brand growth.

2. Optimize ad spend 

With precise insights into what works and what doesn’t, marketers can fine-tune their strategies to maximize ROI, reducing wasted ad spend on ineffective channels, creatives, or targeting strategies.

3. Measure true impact across channels 

Consumers interact with ads across multiple platforms and touchpoints. Effective brand lift studies allow advertisers to see how campaigns perform across channels, ensuring a consistent narrative and impact.

4. Benchmark performance 

Industry benchmarks, like those provided by DISQO, help brands measure their performance relative to competitors, ensuring their campaigns stay relevant and effective.

How does DISQO's brand lift stand out?

DISQO has redefined brand lift studies by incorporating deterministic, first-party data and blending attitudinal research with behavioral analytics. Here’s why DISQO's Brand Lift solution is a game-changer for marketers:

1. Cross-channel measurement 

DISQO measures campaign effectiveness across display, video, social, CTV, TV, audio, and out-of-home channels, eliminating silos and showing the full impact of your efforts.

2. Future-proof methodology 

Unlike traditional metrics that rely on cookies or mobile IDs, DISQO uses identity-based measurement. This makes their analytics reliable, even in a privacy-first digital landscape.

3. Behavioral insights beyond the funnel 

DISQO's platform records how consumers engage post-ad exposure, tracking key metrics such as:

• Search Behavior (targeted terms for your brand/category/competitors)
• Website Visits (your site or competitors’)
• E-Commerce Actions (product views, add to cart, purchases)

For instance, campaigns measured by DISQO show:

• Exposed consumers are 5-6x more likely to search for a brand or product.
• Lift in branded site visitations by 10.1 percentage points for certain industries.

4. Comprehensive reporting & dashboards 

Always-on dashboards allow brands to monitor campaign performance in real time and optimize in-flight, providing granular insights across media partners, creatives, and audience segments.

5. Normative benchmarks for context 

DISQO provides benchmarks across industries and metrics, helping marketers understand how their campaigns compare to industry norms and peers.

Running a brand lift study with DISQO

Conducting a brand lift study with DISQO involves a systematic and transparent process that ensures accurate, actionable, and timely insights:

1. Define metrics and goals

Start by aligning your goals with the right metrics. DISQO helps you determine which aspects to measure, whether it’s brand favorability or purchase intent.

2. Set up exposed and control groups

DISQO creates two audience groups:

• Exposed group: Consumers who were shown your ads.
• Control group: Those who didn’t see the ads but are comparable in demographics and behavior.

Lift is calculated by comparing responses and actions between these two groups.

3. Collect attitudinal data 

Consumers in both groups are surveyed to assess their awareness, perception, and intent related to your brand. Questions are crafted with flexibility to suit campaign needs.

4. Analyze behavioral data

DISQO tracks consumer actions across the web, showing how your ads trigger search queries, site visits, and e-commerce activities.

5. Compare findings to benchmarks

Finally, compare your results to DISQO's industry benchmarks to contextualize your campaign performance.

Key use cases for brand lift studies

Brand lift studies are invaluable across various marketing objectives, such as:

• Launching New Products: Measure awareness and consumer interest in your new offerings.
• Refining Targeting Strategies: Identify which audiences respond best to your campaigns.
• Evaluating Brand Perception: Continuously track how consumers’ sentiment shifts over time.
• Demonstrating Media Effectiveness: Publishers can use brand lift data to prove the value of their inventory to advertisers.

Realizing incrementality with DISQO's brand Lift

At its core, a brand lift study evaluates brand incrementality. DISQO’s approach ensures that advertisers get a holistic understanding of their campaign's performance, from building top-of-mind awareness to driving measurable actions.

Investing in a brand lift study powered by DISQO empowers marketers, ad agencies, and brand managers to confidently make data-driven decisions that optimize future campaigns.

Are you measuring what matters?

If your current ad measurement strategy is limited to clicks and impressions, it’s time to go deeper. A brand lift study can reveal the true value of your campaigns and help you make smarter decisions.

Discover how DISQO Brand Lift can revolutionize the way you measure ad impact. Sign up today and connect with our experts to take your brand to the next level!