Advertising clutter in consumer magazines: dimensions and effects

A study is conducted to determine the impact of advertising clutter on the effectiveness of magazine advertising. Advertising clutter is defined as the amount of advertisements in a given advertising medium. Three dimensions of clutter are examined: quantity, competitiveness and intrusiveness. Quantity refers to the number of commercials and the proportion of the advertising space in the advertising medium. Competitiveness is the similarity between advertised products and the proximity of the advertisements of competing brands in the media vehicle. Finally, intrusiveness pertains to the extent to which commercials disrupts the flow of an editorial unit. Findings show that consumers' attitudes toward advertising are high when the quantity and the intrusiveness of clutter are low. Competitiveness of clutter has no significant impact on attitudes toward advertising.