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I have to politely disagree with this tweet. Remember when Microsoft claimed that Millennials had an 8 second attention span?

As for wrapping it in marketing speak, and calling it a consideration span is also unfair. Karen Nelson-Field has done a great deal of work on this area, and her book The Attention Economy lays out the facts. On a recent podcast, Byron Sharp claimed attention was “solved”.

To summarise her research:

Most ads are barely noticed

• Around half of ads are only half-seen for a second or two
• People scroll/flick fast, multi task and process ads with low attention

Attention Drives Sales

• Ads that capture and hold attention for longer will deliver a sales uplift
• An extra few seconds of genuine attention can make a big difference

Not all attention is equal

• High Attention (actively watching) is rare
• Low/Pre attention (glancing, subconscious) is common, and still useful for building memory if the branding is super clear

Creative must earn attention

• Surprise people by boldly breaking or subverting their expectations
• Use emotion to spark interest
• Make the brand big, clear and early (otherwise attention is wasted)

The key part that you need to take away: subvert expectations.