Showing papers in "Journal of Advertising in 1997"
TL;DR: This paper examined the predictors of ad avoidance in four media: magazines, newspapers, radio, and television, and found that ad avoidance is most prevalent for television and magazines, while age and income were the best demographic predictors across media.
Abstract: The authors examine the predictors of ad avoidance in four media: magazines, newspapers, radio, and television. A national survey of 946 adults found that ad avoidance is most prevalent for television and magazines. The predictor variables were demographic characteristics, media-related variables, attitudes toward advertising in each medium, and communication problems related to advertising. Ad perceptions were the strongest predictors of ad avoidance and were best in differentiating print from broadcast media. The results indicate that age and income were the best demographic predictors across media. Breadth of media use was an important broadcast media predictor. Among the communication problems considered, search hinderance had the greatest effect on ad avoidance.
503 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the potential merits of taking a narrative approach to communicating service brand image through advertising, and suggest that experience is a useful conceptualization for understanding servicebrand image because it represents the customer's perspective of a service and the symbolic meanings created during service consumption.
Abstract: The authors discuss the potential merits of taking a narrative approach to communicating service brand image through advertising. On the assumption that a primary goal of advertising should be to create a vivid image of the brand in consumers' minds, they assess past definitions of brand image and adapt them to the marketing of services. They review metaphors used previously to understand services, and emphasize that the experiential aspect of services should play an important role in how service brand image is conceptualized. Specifically, they suggest that experience is a useful conceptualization for understanding service brand image because it represents the customer's perspective of a service and the symbolic meanings created during service consumption. Using their conceptualization of service as experience, the authors discuss how to view consumers' comprehension of services, and thus how to communicate about services through advertising. They draw on narrative theory to suggest that narrati...
465 citations
TL;DR: The authors propose that consumers' relationships to non-advertising forms of mass media are an essential aspect of the perceived meanings they derive from advertisements and discuss the results of an in-depth grounded theory investigation that identifies three key interpretive relationships between consumers and mass media vehicles.
Abstract: We propose that consumers' relationships to nonadvertising forms of mass media are an essential aspect of the perceived meanings they derive from advertisements. After presenting a multidisciplinary theoretical framework, we discuss the results of an in-depth grounded theory investigation that identifies three key interpretive relationships between consumers and mass media vehicles.
396 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, eye movement data were collected while consumers chose businesses from telephone directories and found that consumers spent 54% more time viewing ads for businesses they ended up choosing, which demonstrates the importance of attention for subsequent choice behavior.
Abstract: Process tracing data help researchers understand how yellow pages advertisement characteristics influence consumer information processing behavior. In a laboratory experiment eye movement data were collected while consumers chose businesses from telephone directories. Consumers scan listings in alphabetic order. Their scan is not exhaustive. As a result, some ads are never seen. Consumers noticed more than 93% of the quarter-page display ads but only 26% of the plain listings. They perceived color ads before ads without color, noticed more color ads than noncolor ads, and viewed color ads 21% longer than equivalent ads without color. Also, they viewed 42% more bold listings than plain listings. Consumers spent 54% more time viewing ads for businesses they ended up choosing, which demonstrates the importance of attention for subsequent choice behavior.
384 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used social comparison theory as a framework to find that young girls compare their physical attractiveness with that of advertising models and, subsequently, their self-perceptions and self-esteem may be affected, depending on the motive for social comparison.
Abstract: One of advertising's “unintended effects” is the impact highly attractive models may have on female pre-adolescents and adolescents. Using social comparison theory as a framework, the authors propose that young girls compare their physical attractiveness with that of advertising models and, subsequently, their self-perceptions and self-esteem may be affected, depending on the motive for social comparison. They report a study with a mixed-model design in which motive was manipulated. Girls in grades four, six, and eight participated. The results suggest that motive is important, as support was found for all hypotheses. However, the support was not consistent across all grades or for all dependent variables. The authors consider possible reasons for the inconsistency and discuss the implications of the findings for advertisers and educators.
357 citations
TL;DR: The authors found that consumers associate high product quality with high levels of repetition because they see repetition as costly and think higher costs reflect the manufacturer's commitment to the product, which would lead to an inverted-U relationship between advertising repetition and product quality perceptions.
Abstract: The author proposes that consumers infer brand quality from the level of advertising repetition for unfamiliar brands. Consumers are posited to associate high product quality with high levels of repetition because they see repetition as costly and think higher costs reflect the manufacturer's commitment to the product. However, at very high levels of repetition, consumers may perceive the expenditures as excessive and begin to doubt the manufacturer's confidence in product quality, which would lead to an inverted-U relationship between advertising repetition and product quality perceptions. The author demonstrates that the relationship between repetition and perceived brand quality is mediated by perceptions of the manufacturer's effort and confidence in quality rather than by irritation or boredom. The hypotheses were tested in an experiment in which the level of repetition and the color of the ad were varied.
280 citations
TL;DR: The authors further clarified the distinction between threats and psychological responses to the threats and test an expanded model based on that distinction that provides further understanding of consumer fear arousal responses to advertising stimuli, and showed that consumers are more likely to respond to threats than to literal threats.
Abstract: Most research in the area generally known as “fear appeals” has examined the persuasive effects and effectiveness of different types of threat-based communications on various groups of consumer subjects, often failing to distinguish between the threats, the literal communication stimuli, and the actual fear arousal response that different types of threats might engender. Building on a noteworthy exception to that pattern of past work, which provided a basis for a model of fear arousal, the authors further clarify the distinction between threats and psychological responses to the threats. They test an expanded model based on that distinction that provides further understanding of consumer fear arousal responses to advertising stimuli.
260 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, an experimental study in a print advertising context suggests that two imagery-eliciting strategies, use of pictures and use of copy containing instructions to imagine, stimulate mental imagery processing, which in turn influences attitudinal judgments.
Abstract: Results of an experimental study in a print advertising context suggest that two imagery-eliciting strategies, use of pictures and use of copy containing instructions to imagine, stimulate mental imagery processing, which in turn influences attitudinal judgments. Specifically, an ad containing a concrete picture of a product in use was more effective in stimulating vivid visual imagery processing and favorably influencing attitude toward the advertisement and brand than either an ad containing a considerably less concrete picture or one without a picture. Copy containing instructions to imagine also stimulated vivid and elaborate visual imagery processing and enhanced attitudes. Tests for mediation indicate that mental imagery processing explains all or some of the direct effects of the two imagery-eliciting strategies' influence on attitudes.
258 citations
TL;DR: The authors found that Asian male and female models are overrepresented in terms of proportion of the population (3.6%), appearing in 8.4% of the commercials, and Asian women are rarely depicted in major roles.
Abstract: Asian-Americans are a growth market. Their affluence, high education, and work ethic position them as a “model minority.” However complimentary that term may seem, it nonetheless represents a stereotype whose prevalence must be documented to examine the intersection of minority status and gender in mass media portrayals. The authors report a content analysis of more than 1300 prime time television advertisements conducted to assess the frequency and nature of Asian-American representation. They found that Asian male and female models are overrepresented in terms of proportion of the population (3.6%), appearing in 8.4% of the commercials. However, Asian models are more likely than members of other minority groups to appear in background roles, and Asian women are rarely depicted in major roles. Further, the findings indicate that portrayals of Asian-Americans put so much emphasis on the work ethic that other aspects of life seldom appear. For example, Asian models are overrepresented in business ...
252 citations
TL;DR: A content analysis of guilt advertisements in 24 magazines reveals that guilt appeals appear in advertising at a level comparable to that of other appeals (e.g., humor, sexual, and comparisons).
Abstract: The authors document advertisers' application of guilt appeals as a method of influence. A content analysis of guilt advertisements in 24 magazines reveals that (1) guilt appeals appear in advertising at a level comparable to that of other appeals (e.g., humor, sexual, and comparisons), (2) guilt appeals appear in every magazine type, but are most common in news and general editorial magazines, (3) the majority of guilt ads have anticipatory guilt appeals, (4) the single most common guilt statement is the statement of fact, (5) guilt is typically employed in the ad copy or in both the copy and visual images, and (6) guilt appeals appear most often in ads for charities and health-related products. Implications of the content analysis are considered and research directions outlined.
232 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the effectiveness of television commercials with varied levels of information content (high vs. low) in the United States and the Republic of Korea was compared, and the U.S. subjects responded more favorably to commercials with high information levels than did the Korean subjects.
Abstract: The authors report the findings of an experiment comparing the effectiveness of television commercials with varied levels of information content (high vs. low) in the United States and the Republic of Korea. Cultural differences were used as a basis for the hypotheses. Consistent with expectations based on those cultural differences, the U.S. subjects responded more favorably to commercials with high information levels than did the Korean subjects.
TL;DR: This paper examined humor effectiveness by using a conceptual framework adapted from Speck along with a product-contingent focus, which affords a clearer understanding of the appropriate use of humor through the examination of humor mechanisms employed, the intentional relatedness of humor to the ad or product, and the type of product advertised.
Abstract: Every year billions of dollars are spent on advertising that uses humor to sell products. How is that spending decision made? Despite much research examining humor effects in advertising, many advertisers make the decision on faith. Many past studies lack a clear conceptual focus to guide the investigation of humor effects in advertising. The authors examine humor effectiveness by using a conceptual framework adapted from Speck along with a product-contingent focus. The resulting approach affords a clearer understanding of the appropriate use of humor through the examination of (1) the humor mechanisms employed, (2) the intentional relatedness of humor to the ad or product, and (3) the type of product advertised. The descriptive results of the study indicate that current practice for many advertisers is to employ incongruity-based humor in a humor-dominant context. That practice is contrasted with others to examine the influence of humor on the effectiveness of print advertisements for different ...
TL;DR: In this paper, a qualitative study was conducted based on a new conceptualization that characterizes complex advertising images as figures of rhetoric from which consumers infer advertising messages and found that consumers use cultural, product, and advertising knowledge to infer meaning from advertising images.
Abstract: The qualitative study reported is based on a new conceptualization that characterizes complex advertising images as figures of rhetoric from which consumers infer advertising messages. Informants interpreted the meanings of six ads containing pictorial metaphors. The interpretations indicated that shared strong implicatures as well as multiple weak implicatures were drawn from images in the ads. In general, consumers' interpretations matched the intentions of the ads' producers. Informant responses also suggested that consumers use cultural, product, and advertising knowledge to infer meaning from advertising images.
TL;DR: The authors conducted an experiment to determine the effects of negative comparative political advertising on candidate and advertising evaluations, and found that negative comparative advertising lowers targeted-candidate evaluations without lowering sponsoring-candidates evaluations, despite the low credibility ratings received by such advertising.
Abstract: Currently, political candidates employ a mix of strategies that includes the use of comparative advertising as a means of communicating negative information about an opponent to prospective voters while avoiding the stigma attached to purely negative “attack” advertising. An experiment was conducted to determine the effects of negative comparative political advertising on candidate and advertising evaluations. The results indicate that negative comparative advertising lowers targeted-candidate evaluations without lowering sponsoring-candidate evaluations, despite the low credibility ratings received by such advertising. The results are discussed in relation to other research findings and in terms of both campaign strategy and public policy implications.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors propose intimacy theory as the basis of services relationships communicated by advertising and advocate it as more generalizable across services marketing situat-a-tation.
Abstract: The article proposes intimacy theory as the basis of services relationships communicated by advertising. It advocates intimacy theory as more generalizable across services marketing situat...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used the content analysis method to investigate differences in several message elements in the context of the two types of services advertisements and found significant differences between business-to-business and consumer services advertisements in the types of message appeals used.
Abstract: Several studies have investigated differences between goods and services advertisements, but no research has examined differences between business-to-business services advertising and consumer services advertising. The authors use the content analysis method to investigate differences in several message elements in the context of the two types of services advertisements. In their sample of 186 advertisements, 91 ads were for business-to-business services and 95 were for consumer services. The specific message elements evaluated were message appeal, headline usage, price information, quality claims, and the inclusion of an Internet address. The findings indicate significant differences between business-to-business and consumer services advertisements in the types of message appeals used.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report a longitudinal analysis of the impact of clutter on the circulation and advertising revenue of 10 selected magazines and find that advertising clutter yields negative circulation returns and diminishing advertising revenue returns when a magazine's clutter level exceeds historical averages.
Abstract: Advertising clutter is a phenomenon that arose from advertisers' need for advertising space. When too much space is devoted to advertising, clutter can jeopardize the audience's editorial interest. Commercial pay media such as magazines have to balance the conflicting needs of the advertiser and the audience. The authors report a longitudinal analysis of the impact of clutter on the circulation and advertising revenue of 10 selected magazines. They find that advertising clutter yields negative circulation returns and diminishing advertising revenue returns when a magazine's clutter level exceeds historical averages. Entertainment-oriented magazines appear to be more susceptible to the negative impact of clutter than news-oriented magazines.
TL;DR: A conceptual review of the services advertising literature from 1980 to 1995 is presented in this article to assess the current state of services advertising research and to encourage additional investigations, and to provide a comprehensive summary of the general findings across studies.
Abstract: Although services advertising has been studied heavily, researchers concur that programmatic research with a strategic emphasis is still needed on that topic. Such efforts may be hampered without a comprehensive summary of the general findings across studies. Therefore, to assess the current state of services advertising research and to encourage additional investigations, the author offers a conceptual review of the services advertising literature from 1980 to 1995. Those 15 years parallel the last two evolutionary stages of dramatic growth in general services marketing research.
TL;DR: In this paper, a broad overview of the circumstances leading to the development of the special issue of Journal of Advertising devoted to the advertising of services is presented, along with suggestions for future investigations.
Abstract: This article presents a broad overview of the circumstances leading to the development of the special issue of Journal of Advertising devoted to the advertising of services. In addition, a brief synopsis of each of the articles appearing in the special issue is given. Observations regarding the current state of inquiry into the advertising of services are posed, along with suggestions for future investigations.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors report the findings of a national survey undertaken to ascertain the opinions of executives (representing the leading advertisers, ad agencies, media firms, and regulatory / self-regulatory bodies) on a variety of issues pertaining to fine print in television advertising.
Abstract: In recent years, the use and relative effectiveness of fine print messages have been the focus of research attention in the marketing / advertising literature. However, no study has examined those issues specifically from the practitioner's perspective. The authors report the findings of a national survey undertaken to ascertain the opinions of executives (representing the leading advertisers, ad agencies, media firms, and regulatory / self-regulatory bodies) on a variety of issues pertaining to fine print in television advertising. The results indicate that most respondents considered the use of fine print in television advertising an ineffective means of communicating with consumers and that, given the prevalence of the practice, some adjustment to industry and regulatory standards may be in order. The study findings shed light on relevant managerial and regulatory issues facing advertisers and ad agencies, and explain some of the dynamics at work in the marketplace that contribute to the use (...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report the results of a survey examining what large-agency media specialists think of newspapers as a national-account advertising medium in comparison with other media options, finding that newspapers fall short as an advertising medium for such accounts on several decisional dimensions.
Abstract: Advertising practitioners' opinions about newspaper advertising for national accounts are important to the newspaper industry. Since the mid-twentieth century, newspapers' revenues from national advertising accounts have declined steadily. The authors report the results of a survey examining what large-agency media specialists think of newspapers as a national-account advertising medium in comparison with other media options. Findings suggest that newspapers fall short as an advertising medium for such accounts on several decisional dimensions, especially in comparison with network television, and that judgments about newspapers hold constant regardless of the personal, professional, and agency backgrounds of the respondents.
TL;DR: In this paper, the role of advertising in product liability litigation is examined and managerial and public policy recommendations based on their analysis are developed. But the authors do not consider the impact of advertising on consumer behavior leading to injury-causing situations.
Abstract: Since the late 1970s, advertising has become increasingly important in product liability litigation when consumers have been harmed by faulty products. Courts seem willing to consider the impact of advertising on consumer behavior leading to injury-causing situations. If consumer reliance on the content of advertising can be established, the marketer may be subject to liability under a variety of theories of recovery, including warranty, misrepresentation, negligence, and strict liability. The authors examine the role of advertising in product liability litigation. They also develop managerial and public policy recommendations based on their analysis.
TL;DR: Preston et al. as mentioned in this paper, The Great American Blowup: Puffery in Advertising and Selling, Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1996, pp. 64-65.
Abstract: (1997). Ivan L. Preston, The Great American Blowup: Puffery in Advertising and Selling, Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1996. Journal of Advertising: Vol. 26, Special Issue on Services Advertising, pp. 64-65.