A meta-analysis of the effects of disclosing sponsored content

The amount of literature on the effects of disclosing sponsored content has increased greatly in recent years. Although the literature provides valuable insights into the effects of disclosing sponsored content, several research gaps remain, such as inconclusive findings, boundary conditions, and the mechanisms that explain how disclosures work. This article offers a meta-analysis of 61 papers that use 57 distinct data sets to address these research gaps. The results showed that disclosing sponsored content reduced brand attitudes, credibility, and source evaluation but increased recognition, persuasion knowledge, and resistance. Disclosure content, timing, and awareness, as well as product and sample characteristics, provide boundary conditions for the positive and negative effects of disclosures. A path model that tested the mechanism of disclosing sponsored content showed that, as suggested by memory priming effect, recognition of sponsored content increased memory but did not influence evaluation. Moreover, the understanding of sponsored content influenced evaluation, but memory remained unaffected, which corresponds to the flexible correction approach (i.e., consumers try to correct their answer to limit persuasive effects)

When the Medium is the Message:A Meta-Analysis of Creative Media Advertising Effects

Creative media advertising is a specific type of unconventional advertising in which a regular physical object serves as a medium to carry an advertising message. To better understand the workings of this type of advertising, we conducted a meta-analysis. In this study, we explore the direct effects of creative media advertising, several moderators, and the possible underlying mechanisms. The results show that exposure to creative (versus traditional) media advertising has an overall positive effect on brand association strength and persuasion (i.e., ad attitude, brand attitude, purchase intentions, and electronic word of mouth [eWOM]). Both these effects are moderated by metaphor use, meaning that the effects are stronger when the physical object is a good metaphor for the message it carries. Furthermore, indirect (e.g., social media, printed picture) exposure to the message positively moderates the effect of creative media advertising on brand association strength but not on persuasion. Brand familiarity does not play a moderating role. Finally, a meta-analytic structural equation modeling (SEM) procedure was used to show that the main underlying mechanism of creative media advertising persuasiveness is surprise—and not perceived persuasive intent. For practitioners, this study shows that creative media ads are more effective when leveraging surprise and metaphors

Self-Concept, Individual Characteristics and Counterfeit Consumption: Evidence from an Emerging Market

The study draws on a sample of over 350 consumers from 10 department stores in an emerging market where counterfeit products are available in abundance and there is a huge demand for such goods. The findings reveal that interdependent and independent self traits significantly affect individual characteristics, that is, susceptibility to normative influence, readiness to take social risk, and status acquisition (SA), which in turn influences counterfeit purchase intention. It was discovered that such individual characteristics play a mediating effect on the self‐concept—purchase intention relationship and that high degrees of interdependent self traits positively affect consumers' purchase intention. The study adds to the theory of reasoned action (TRA) by incorporating SA variables into the TRA framework and discovers their significant influence on purchase intention. Some novel insights surrounding counterfeit consumption in an emerging economy context are presented and several implications are extracted to help practitioners appeal to such individual characteristics for combating counterfeit consumption

Connecting the dots between brand experience and brand loyalty: The mediating role of brand personality and brand relationships

This article critically examines consumer–brand relationships from the perspective of interpersonal relationship theory. Specifically, the authors investigate the relationship between brand experience and the two components of brand loyalty, namely purchase brand loyalty and attitudinal brand loyalty. The study also examines the link between brand experience and brand relationship variables, brand trust, brand attachment and brand commitment. In addition, the mediating role of brand personality and brand commitment in the relationship between brand experience and brandloyalty is investigated. Drawing on the results of an empirical cross-brand study from three product categories, the authors demonstrate that brand experience, brand personality and brand relationship variables (brand attachment and brand commitment) all affect the degree to which a consumer is loyal to a brand. On the basis of the findings, the authors offer guidelines to managers on how to build and sustain purchase and attitudinal brand loyalty by enhancing brand experience. The theoretical and managerial significance of the findings together with directions for future research are discussed

Investigating web-based recruitment sources: Employee testimonials vs word-of-mouse

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Cross-Cultural Sexism and the Effectiveness of Gender (Non)Traditional Advertising: A Comparison of Purchase Intentions in Poland, South Africa, and the United Kingdom.

Findings regarding the effectiveness of (non)traditionally gendered advertisements are mixed and largely emanate from the United States. We tested the stereotype content model and ambivalent sexism theory cross-nationally in an advertising context and predicted that paternalistic (vs. envious) female stereotypes will trigger higher purchase intent (PI) irrespective of country (Hypothesis 1), viewers’ benevolent sexism will positively predict PI for paternalistic housewife advertisements (Hypothesis 2a), viewers’ hostile sexism will negatively predict PI for envious businesswoman advertisements (Hypothesis 2b), and these relationships with sexism will be confined to less gender egalitarian countries (i.e., Poland and South Africa) (Hypothesis 3). Statistical analyses of data from 468 Polish, South African, and British university students supported Hypothesis 1 and partially supported Hypotheses 2 and 3. The predicted patterns held for South Africa, but in Poland, viewers’ benevolence positively predicted PI for both advertisement types, with the exception of highly hostile women. British viewers’ hostility positively predicted PI for the housewife advertisement. Our findings support the cross-cultural applicability of the stereotype content model to advertising and suggest that the predictive role of sexism changes depending on its type, advertisement type, country, and gender. We recommend that advertisers should adopt a nuanced approach in predicting the effectiveness of gendered advertisements

Advances in Advertising Research, Volume 6: The Digital, The Classic, The Subtle and The Alternative

This book provides insights into the inspiring and multifaceted field of advertising research, which is confronted with challenges regarding ad content and execution, media placement, as well as online and social media. Distinguishing between digital, classic, subtle, and alternative advertising formats, renowned scholars from around the globe contribute state-of-the-art research on these issues in 30 chapters. Advances in Advertising Research are published by the European Advertising Academy (EAA). This volume is a compilation of research presented at the 13th International Conference in Advertising (ICORIA), which was held in Amsterdam (The Netherlands) in June 2014. The conference gathered around 150 participants from diverse countries from Europe, North-America, Asia, and Australia

The causal relation between children’s life satisfaction and materialism and the role of advertising exposure

This longitudinal survey study was designed to determine the causal direction of the relation between materialism and life satisfaction among children. We tested the hypothesis that life satisfaction negatively affects materialism. In addition, we tested the hypothesis that this effect would be moderated by exposure to television advertising. Structural equation modeling analyses showed that life satisfaction had a negative causal effect on materialism. The moderating effect of advertising exposure was not significant, but there was a clear pattern notable in which the relation between life satisfaction and materialism only held for children who were exposed to television advertising relatively often