Research

AdComs is a commercial research venture specialising in communications. It delivers research on the future of advertising formats and business, as well as testing communications ideas and media before products or services are launched.

Details of research taking place

AdComs ambition is to generate quality research for commercial application (classic knowledge transfer) spanning strategic, creative and production communications, delivered by research and teaching staff, research (sometimes undergraduate) students at Bucks New University. The University’s management has supported the Centre in testing its potential interdisciplinary capabilities for the benefit of UK (and now global) communications industries. AdComs capitalises on opportunities initially generated by the publication of the book Ads to Icons, How Advertising Succeeded in a Multimedia Age (Kogan Page, 2007) by Paul Springer, supported by a CommercialiSE business training fellowship in 2009.

The problem it seeks to solve

The Centre bridges industry’s fast-turnaround knowledge requirements with the ambitions of emerging researchers, using a semi-autonomous Research Centre model. Alongside fast-response research the Centre uses long-term (doctoral and post-doctoral) research formats to support communications agents and brands in adapting to communications digital era. This involves forecasting, up-skilling in-work staff, ideas (and IP) share as well as the design and production of examples.

How it will make a difference in the future (impacts/timescales)

Researchers with expertise in Creative Advertising, Business and Management, Marketing Communications, Graphic Design, Audio and Film Production have generated research that is creative (branding and web design for the Creative Campus Initiative linked to the 2012 London Olympics and 13 UK Universities, 2010), strategic (doctoral research redesigning national breast cancer diagnosis communication protocols, 2008-11), pedagogic (creation of The Jeddah College of Advertising for Saudi communications industries, 2010-ongoing) and production-based (films and forthcoming documentary for the Henley Rowing Museum, 2010-12).

Successes include:

• research and sharing of good advertising and marcoms practices by the Football Association (2011);
• strategic information (and IP) share with the Planning Unit of Universal McCann (2010);
• target group index research on infrequent users of the internet; shared project with MediaCom (2011);
• Members of the European Foundation of Commercial Communications Education (2011 – not to post yet, but we will be holding their annual European Conference at Bucks in May 2012).

Other outcomes include a Captive Agency offering students paid work experience on projects (2011 ongoing), Knowledge Transfer Partnerships and a publication on digital advertising pioneers in conjunction with Microsoft.

Contact details

Email: paul.springer@bucks.ac.uk
Tel: 07810 056878