What is the AIDA model? Explanation, functionality, and examples

According to the AIDA model, potential new customers go through four phases, which give the advertising effectiveness model its name. The acronym AIDA stands for Awareness, Interest, Desire, and Action. It marks four sub-goals of strategic communication measures within marketing.

What is the AIDA model?

As early as 1898, the American advertising strategist Elmo Lewis formulated the three-part formula:

• attract attention
• maintain interest
• create desire

Later, Lewis added get action, creating an action phase, and thus the AIDA model was born.

Originally developed for the structuring of sales conversations, the formula soon found application in all areas of marketing. Even today, AIDA is one of the best-known models in advertising effect research. The model is an integral part of curricula in schools and universities and is still used in advertising practice as a guideline for creating and analyzing advertising materials. However, despite its popularity, the model’s validity has become controversial.

How does the AIDA model work?

Assuming that brand perception is largely promoted and influenced by advertising and marketing measures, the AIDA model (also known as the AIDA formula, AIDA concept, AIDA principle, or AIDA schema) offers an explanation of how advertising and other promotional activities are involved in brand choice.

According to the AIDA model, advertisers must achieve 4 communication goals to move potential customers from the initial perception of a product to its purchase. The AIDA approach is thus part of the hierarchical advertising effect models, which assume a linear-sequential process of the purchase decision process, where consumers go through a series of cognitive and affective stages culminating in an (purchase) action.

A – Attract Attention

Attention, please! – For targeted individuals to engage with an advertising message, advertisers must first capture their target audience’s attention. The advertising goal of the first phase of the AIDA model is to initiate activation, perception, and emotional processes. Advertising utilizes various strategies for this purpose, focusing on the content of the advertising message, its presentation, or its placement.

Content that grabs attention typically stands out by containing new, contradictory, or provocative information, or by deliberately omitting important information:

• “Only at Walmart: Square Watermelons!”
• “Costco Apples: $0.95 per Pound!”

Other classic elements through which an advertising message reaches potential customers include the following:

• Graphic design elements: The visual presentation is essential for capturing attention. On festival posters, for instance, the main acts stand out in bold as eye-catchers, while less marketable artists are barely readable in the last line. Display ads in browsers catch the eye, especially when they change, move, or blink. However, it is important to gauge the target audience’s tolerance and not exceed it.
• Auditory elements: On TV, radio, or the internet, advertisers rely on auditory elements and proceed more or less subtly. In almost all ad-supported audiovisual media, commercial breaks are played significantly louder than the actual program. Additional decibels ensure that the advertising messages are received, often accompanied by catchy jingles or current pop songs.
• Olfactory stimuli: Some advertisers use olfactory stimuli to attract customers. Whether potential buyers are truly drawn into sales areas by scenting the business environment is debated. However, in the food sector—especially bakeries and pastry shops—this strategy is certainly not far-fetched.
• Key stimuli: Certain stimulus patterns are particularly effective at capturing human attention. These include, for example, eyes, faces, the baby schema, or erotica (following the well-known motto: Sex sells).

I – Maintain Interest

Once a consumer’s attention is captured, the next step is to spark interest and maintain it long-term. In this phase of the customer journey, products and brands are showcased, their benefits highlighted, usage scenarios demonstrated, and various purchasing options presented. The advertising goal of the second phase of the AIDA model is achieved when the customer engages deeply with the advertising materials and shows interest in the featured products or services.

Advertisers excel in the second phase of the AIDA model when they know what interests the target audience, what matters to them, their needs, and the problems they want solved. AI-based tools and web analytics software provide online shop operators with detailed information about the nature and browsing behavior of users, allowing them to determine their current status in relation to the AIDA model or other marketing models—and to respond accordingly.

D – Create Desire

In the third phase of the AIDA model, consumers develop a specific purchase intention from general interest. Now it is important to convey to a person interested in Bluetooth headphones that they should buy one of the models offered in the advertised online shop—because they offer more features, are more affordable, or look better than competitors’ models!

In this phase, advertising measures should provide information that highlights the advantages of the company’s products and brands over competing products. The goal is to positively influence the target audience’s perception of the advertising company, its brands, products, and services.

A – Get Action

Once a desire for specific products or services has been aroused in the target audience, this must lead to action in the final phase of the AIDA model. The advertised product should ultimately be purchased or the offered service utilized. Advertising intended to provoke action typically includes a Call-to-Action (CTA). Classic calls-to-action of this type are:

• “Order Bluetooth headphones now!”
• “Simply call and get advice!”

Such a call-to-action is sometimes accompanied by time restrictions intended to create additional pressure on the potential buyer.

• “Bluetooth headphones - bargain price today only.”
• “Order Bluetooth headphones online now and save 20 percent.”
• “Limited Edition. Only for a short time.”

The willingness to act can be further increased by an explicit concession that promises customers security or additional services.

• “… test for free with a trial subscription.”
• “Buy one get one free.”
• “10 percent discount on first order.”
• “Now with free return shipping.”
• “Double data volume when you sign a new contract.”

The AIDA model in practice

Advertising success formulas are used in marketing to illustrate processes. They aim to provide approaches for optimizing operations. Hierarchical advertising impact models, such as the AIDA formula, trace the development that consumers undergo during the purchase decision process.

Each phase is characterized by different needs that must be considered when designing advertising measures. The number of potential customers moving to the next phase continuously decreases during the purchase decision process. This is known as the purchase funnel.

In practice, the model provides advertisers with a kind of checklist that allows for the analysis and optimization of communication measures in advertising, sales talks, and presentations and moderation. Online shop operators could use the formula to check whether all aspects of an optimal purchase decision process have been considered in product presentation. Possible questions might include:

• Is the shop easy to find?
• Does the shop design capture the target audience’s attention?
• Do the product descriptions provide the necessary information to spark the interest of potential customers?
• Do image galleries, product videos, or augmented reality elements give prospects an impression of how the products would enrich their lives?
• Does the overall product presentation create a desire in the customer to “want to have” it?
• Does the website contain call-to-action elements that suggest potential buyers make an immediate purchase, or even make it appealing through incentives like discounts or free shipping?
• Has the ordering process been cleared of all hurdles and barriers (such as inappropriate data collection, limited payment options, uncomfortable delivery conditions, etc.)?

The list of possible checkpoints based on the AIDA formula is far from complete.

Criticism of the AIDA model

Since the development of the AIDA model more than a hundred years ago, the understanding of advertising and marketing communication has fundamentally changed, especially with the digital revolution. The secret to the advertising success formula is its simplicity. This allows the staged model to be applied to many areas of marketing. Generally, single-stage communication measures (advertising, B2C telemarketing) can be depicted more effectively than multi-stage processes used in dialogue-oriented media.

The reduction of the buying decision process to a simple stimulus-response schema is considered outdated. Additionally, the linear progression of a staged model can hardly trace modern sales processes and the increasingly erratic customer journeys. Critics also note that purchasing decisions depend on a variety of other factors such as availability, price expectations, advice, customer satisfaction, or recommendations (User Generated Content, reviews, influencer marketing, etc.). The influence of emotional aspects on brand perception is also minimally considered in the AIDA model.

Since the 1990s, however, insights from emotion research have been applied to marketing questions within the framework of neuromarketing, providing important insights for the design, analysis, and optimization of advertising measures. Therefore, the AIDA model should be seen for what it is: a simplified formula.

Extensions and alternatives for the AIDA concept

A major shortcoming of the AIDA model is that the consideration of the purchasing decision process ends with the acquisition of the respective company’s offer. All post-purchase effects such as satisfaction, dissatisfaction, customer reviews, repeat purchases, or referrals are ignored.

Over time, various approaches have been developed based on the AIDA formula that extend or adapt the model, sometimes also considering the role of modern, dialogue-oriented media like social media.

The “Hierarchy of Effects” model

The “Hierarchy of Effects” model by Lavidge and Steiner also assumes a hierarchical sequence of various advertising effects and divides the purchasing decision process into a total of six stages:

• Awareness: In the first phase of the “Hierarchy of Effects” model, advertising efforts aim to inform potential customers about the existence of the advertised products.
• Knowledge: Following the awareness phase is the knowledge phase, where the product features are introduced in more detail.
• Liking: In the third phase, interested individuals should develop a liking for the advertised products.
• Preference: The liking culminates in the fourth phase as a preference for specific products over competing offers.
• Conviction: In the fifth phase, the purchase decision is made. The recipient is convinced of the product and aims to acquire it.
• Purchase: The final phase of the “Hierarchy of Effects” model includes the intended action: the purchase.

The DAGMAR formula

Building on the AIDA model, American advertising researcher Russell H. Colley published the so-called DAGMAR Formula in 1961, an acronym for the book title Defining Advertising Goals for Measured Advertising Results. DAGMAR is also a hierarchical advertising effect model based on the assumption that advertising must primarily fulfill communicative tasks alongside economic goals. These can be divided into four areas:

• Awareness: Advertising must create awareness for the advertised brands and products.
• Comprehension: Advertising must ensure an understanding of the function and benefits of the advertised company’s services.
• Conviction: Good advertising is convincing by outlining the personal benefits and advantages over alternatives.
• Action: At the end of the purchase decision process is the acquisition of the advertised company’s service.

The AIDAS model

The AIDAS model adopts the four phases of the AIDA model and expands them with “Satisfaction” as a fifth phase, which integrates the post-purchase effect of satisfaction into the advertising effectiveness model.

• Attention
• Interest
• Desire
• Action
• Satisfaction

What happens after consumers become customers? The “Satisfaction” phase addresses exactly this question. Advertising efforts don’t end with the acquisition of the promoted company service. The goal of advertisers is a satisfied clientele that happily returns and shares positive experiences with others. Once a person reaches the “Satisfaction” phase within the purchasing process, it is important not to lose sight of them.

The AISDALSLove model

The AISDALSLove model by Bambang Sukma Wijaya also emphasizes the importance of post-purchase effects and adds the phases “Search,” “Like/dislike,” “Share,” and “Love/hate” to the AIDA model.

• Attention
• Interest
• Search
• Desire
• Action
• Like/dislike
• Share
• Love/hate

With the “Search” phase, the advertising effectiveness model takes into account that consumers today are significantly more critical of advertising promises. The internet provides consumers with a comprehensive research tool to verify facts and compare offers.

The “Like/dislike” phase considers the experience after acquiring a company’s service. Satisfaction usually results in repeat purchases. The same goes for dissatisfied customers. If a product delivers as advertised, repeat purchases or recommendations are likely. When a customer shares experiences with other potential customers, it’s referred to as Word-of-Mouth Marketing. In the AISDALSLove model, such repeat purchase effects are considered as a separate stage with the “Share” phase.

Furthermore, the AISDALSLove model assumes that advertising measures can also achieve long-term effects, leading to positive or negative feelings toward products, brands, or companies. This aspect is highlighted in the “Love/hate” phase.

The 5A model

While classic models like the AIDA model and its extensions predominantly describe linear processes of advertising impact, the 5A Model developed by Philip Kotler takes the changed conditions in the digital age into account. It focuses on customers and their connected behavior and understands purchasing decisions not merely as reactions to advertising but as the result of a complex information and relationship process.

The 5A model divides the customer journey into the following phases:

• Aware: Initial perception of a brand
• Appeal: Brand is perceived as relevant or attractive
• Ask: Targeted research – such as through Google searches, product reviews, or social network recommendations
• Act: Product purchase or utilization of the service
• Advocate: With a positive experience, customers become brand advocates and recommend the brand further – online or in personal settings

Unlike traditional funnel models, the decision-making process in the 5A model is not always linear. Opportunities like digital channels and social media allow consumers to flexibly switch between phases at any time. This model addresses not only emotional and rational aspects of decision-making, but also explicitly the influence of communities, platforms, and reviews.