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This article contrasts narrative self-referencing with analytical self-referencing. I propose that narrative self-referencing persuades through transportation, where people become absorbed in a story--in this case, in their storylike thoughts (Green and Brock 2000). When ad viewers are transported by these narrative thoughts, persuasion is not negatively affected by weak ad arguments. Conversely, analytical self-referencing persuades via more traditional processing models, wherein cognitive elaboration is enhanced by relating incoming information to one's self or personal experiences, which results in a differential persuasive effect of strong versus weak arguments. I also propose that ad skepticism moderates the effect of narrative transportation. My assertions are tested in two experiments in the context of mental simulation as a form of narrative self-referencing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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From an extensive literature review, we created a model of client-agency marketing information sharing, identifying five major failure points that can prevent critical marketing information from reaching creative staffers. We identified six specific types of marketing information (target audience demographic profile, customer product usage information, client's product performance information, competitors' product performance information, marketing strategy information, and a main selling point supplied by the client) that are considered critical to the creation of effective advertising. Using a "knowledge gap" analysis in a national survey of creative directors, copywriters, and art directors (N = 583), we demonstrate the existence of critical gaps where vital information often does not reach creative staffers. The lack of significant differences among creatives at different levels within agencies for how often information is provided imparted evidence that internal agency communication, or agency politics, was not responsible for these gaps. We provide specific suggestions for both clients and agencies to address these industry-wide knowledge gaps. Our model provides a clear road map for future research in this most important area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author investigates the standardization/adaptation issue in international advertising from an organizational perspective, introducing two variables: knowledge of local market conditions at the center (exporter/headquarters level) and headquarters' influence on local marketing decisions. The author interviewed 150 Norwegian exporters by mail on their experience in this respect. The results reveal that the two dimensions indeed have some impact on how firms develop their international marketing strategies. Knowledge of local market conditions seems to play an overriding role, leading to a more standardized approach by firms. Not surprisingly, centralized decision power seems to lead to more negative reactions at the intermediary level. In contrast, firms that have a more relaxed stance on the standardization issue and leave the marketing decisions to the local representatives seem to have better relations with these representatives than do other firms. The author discusses implications for global brand management and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditional definitions of advertising include a series of elements that distinguish the field from others. Each innovation in communication has been used for advertising, and in some way, each has changed advertising, which in turn has changed the set of elements used in its definition. However, there are or should be some essential elements that determine whether an activity is advertising. Unfortunately, a discussion identifying these elements is lacking in the marketing and advertising literature. This study is designed to begin an open discussion of what constitutes those essential elements, with the ultimate aim of constructing an improved definition of advertising. The Delphi method, originally developed for financial forecasting, is used to engage a diverse group of advertising experts in a dialogue to reconsider those elements and construct a new definition of advertising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the enormous benefits of early-detection products, consumers are reluctant to use them. The authors explore this reluctance, testing alternative approaches to communicating the consequences of detection behaviors. The results suggest that anecdotal messages are more involving than statistical messages and that positive anecdotes (about gains from screening) are less persuasive than negative anecdotes (about the losses from failing to get screened); positive anecdotes appear to cause a 'boomerang' effect. The authors discuss implications for promoting consumer risk-reduction behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasingly, social marketers are using sexual information in public service announcements and collateral material for a wide range of causes. This study builds on previous research to explain how sexual appeals can affect cognitive processing and persuasion for "help-self" social marketing topics. It also goes beyond traditional single-message research designs by testing matched pairs of appeals (sexual/nonsexual) for 13 social marketing topics. The major finding was that sexual appeals were more persuasive overall than matched nonsexual appeals for social marketing topics. Sexual appeals also stimulated more favorable ad execution related thoughts but had a negative effect on cognitive elaboration (e.g., support and counterarguments). Respondents also reported that sexual appeals were more attention getting, likeable, dynamic, and somewhat more apt to increase their interest in the topic than were nonsexual appeals. These findings suggest that persuasion is largely the result of peripheral processing and distraction from somewhat unpleasant messages when receivers are expected to counterargue the message or be resistant to change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much research has focused on how consumers and competitors respond to short-term changes in advertising and promotion. In contrast, the authors use Procter & Gamble's (P&G's) value pricing strategy as an opportunity to study consumer and competitor response to a major, sustained change in marketing-mix strategy. They compile data across 24 categories in which P&G has a significant market share, covering the period from 1990 to 1996, during which P&G instituted major cuts in deals and coupons and substantial increases in advertising. The authors estimate an econometric model to trace how consumers and competitors react to such changes. For the average brand, the authors find that deals and coupons increase market penetration and surprisingly have little impact on customer retention as measured by share-of-category requirements and category usage. For the average brand, advertising works primarily by increasing penetration, but its effect is weaker than that of promotion. The authors find that competitor response is related to how strongly the competitor's market share is affected by the change in marketing mix and the competitor's own response and to structural factors such as market share position and multi-market contact. The net impact of these consumer and competitor responses is a decrease in market share for the company that institutes sustained decreases in promotion coupled with increases in advertising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability of three advertising cues--third-party product endorsement, brand popularity, and event sponsorship to affect consumer perceptions with regard to product quality, uniqueness, manufacturer esteem, and corporate citizenship is the focus of this study. A factorial experimental design, with cue level as either present or absent, yields eight cells with a total of 185 respondents. Results suggest significant main effects for both endorsement and sponsorship cues, with endorsement affecting perceived quality, uniqueness, and esteem, and sponsorship affecting only citizenship. The popularity cue lacks a significant main effect. The three cues do not significantly interact with each other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to examine the perceived differences between political marketing and mainstream marketing. It looks at the justifications for marketing strategies in the political context and suggests that the importance of image may, regularly, outweigh that of policy. It discusses nine areas of supposed differentiation including the single transaction date, non-pricing, collective choice, winner takes all, product complexity, new and extended brands, brand leadership, negative advertising and local campaigning. Generally it finds both comparisons can be made, and potential lessons learnt, from mainstream marketing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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 product groups. Study results indicate that current advertising practices may not be the most effective in terms of advertisement performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study represents a supportive test of the attractiveness aspect of the "match-up" hypothesis of celebrity/product congruence discussed in depth by Kahle and Homer (1985). The hypothesis implies that the physical attractiveness of a celebrity endorser may only enhance both product- and ad-based evaluations if the product's characteristics "match-up" with the image conveyed by the celebrity. Empirically, it was found that for an attractiveness-related product, use of a physically attractive celebrity (Tom Selleck) was observed to significantly enhance measures of spokesperson credibility and attitude toward an ad, relative to use of a physically unattractive celebrity (Telly Savalas). Alternatively, the physically attractive celebrity was found to have no effect on various spokesperson-, product-and ad-based dependent measures relative to the physically unattractive celebrity for an attractiveness-unrelated product. Implications of these findings for advertising strategy are discussed, and directions for future research are outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper provides a discussion and an empirical assessment of alternate/parallel form reliability in the context of conjoint analysis. The empirical findings from the investigation indicate that the successive evaluative preference judgments gathered via alternate conjoint forms are far more consistent than one would expect by chance. In addition, empirical support for the equivalency of the two most commonly used conjoint forms is provided. These findings should be reassuring to users and advocates of conjoint analysis, and as a result, conjoint analysis should now be used with greater confidence by advertising and marketing researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A content analysis of the major networks and three cable networks was conducted to investigate the current status of animation in television advertising. A total of 2,454 advertisements were analyzed over a seven-day period. Findings suggest that advertisers are using animation as a method of execution in their TV advertisements directed at adults as well as children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It may be ill-advised for advertisers to avoid technical language in print media messages directed to household consumers. Results of an experiment reported here suggest that technical wording levels in ads combine with the audiences educational levels and product experience to generate a series of product perceptions, advertising evaluations, and purchase considerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an overview of the periodical on it's fortieth anniversary. The author focuses on contributions the journal has made to American business during the past four decades. It is suggested that the periodical is responsible for supplementing the marketing knowledgebase and changing the way business professionals approach advertising. The journal is also praised for making education related to the field of marketing an ongoing process. The author also discusses the future of the publication.

The article reports on the consumption patterns of American consumers and the implications for the international field of marketing. The authors focus on using information collected on the subject of consumer behavior to develop marketing strategies. The results of an international study comparing the preferences of consumers living in France and the U.S. are analyzed. The results indicate that, despite the economic similarities between the two countries, patterns in consumer behavior remain fundamentally deferent. Implications for marketing personnel are also discussed.

Although advertisers have employed humor extensively as the motivational basis for their appeals, relatively little is known about the persuasive effect of humor. This article assesses the role of humor in persuasion and suggests an approach to future humor research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author's study suggests that competition can lead to low-quality advertisers competing against and gaining market shares from lower-priced, high-quality non-advertisers. Evidence in support of this market outcome comes from optometry, a service that has experienced advertising deregulation over the past two decades. The author discusses various explanations of this outcome, including the possibility that self-deceiving consumers relying on "illusory qualities" believe they can judge product quality as measured by the firm, though they cannot. Thus, those consumers are ultimately satisfied with low-quality products at high prices--"sweet lemons." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors analyze results of 389 BEHAVIORSCAN® matched household, consumer panel, spilt cable, real world T.V. advertising weight, and copy tests. Additionally, study sponsors--packaged goods advertisers, T.V. networks, and advertising agencies--filled out questionnaires on 140 of the tests, which could test common beliefs about how T.V. advertising of the tests, which could test common beliefs about how T. V. advertising works, to evaluate strategic media, and copy variables unavailable from the BEHAVIORSCAN® results. Although some of the variables did indeed identify T.V. advertising that positively affected sales, many of the variables did not differentiate among the sales effects of different advertising treatments. For example, increasing advertising budgets in relation to competitors does not increase sales in general. However, changing brand, copy, and media strategy in categories with many purchase occasions in which in-store merchandising is low increases the likelihood of T.V. advertising positively affecting sales. The author's data do not show a strong relationship between standard recall and persuasion copy test measures and sales effectiveness. The data also suggest different variable formulations for choice and market response models that include advertising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MacKenzie, Lutz, and belch have enhanced our understanding of the mediating role of attitude toward the ad (AM). The current study replicates and extends the structural equation tests of the four competing models they presented. Two independent datasets are used to examine the role of processing involvement. Consistent with the earlier findings, the dual mediation hypothesis model provides the "best" fit of the data in both experiments. However, the hypothesized causal path between brand cognitions and brand attitudes that emerges for each of the datasets conflicts with the earlier findings. Contrary to expectations, processing involvement does not produce substantial differences in the specification or strength of the causal paths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recognition tests are a very popular means of assessing the memory effectiveness of advertisements. Unfortunately the recognition scores obtained by current methods reflect both the memory for an advertisement and the response biases of the respondents. The authors introduce the theory of signal detection (TSD) which can be used to secure independent estimates of memory and response bias in recognition tests. They discuss how TSD can be used to improve ad recognition testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a dynamic model of advertising rivalry between competitors in a duopoly, the author obtains analytical results for the case of pure market share rivalry in a mature market. A more general model, allowing for market expansion as well as market share rivalry, is analyzed numerically. An empirical illustration indicates that the advertising behavior of the two leading national brewers, Anheuser-Busch and Miller, is consistent with theoretical conclusions that competitors dynamically increase advertising expenditures to take advantage of a growing market for both. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors report findings bearing on the reliability of measures used in industrial marketing research surveys to identify the structure of buying groups. Results obtained in a pilot study of the purchase of lithographic plates by small printing firms reveal a lack of consensus about purchase influence between pairs of informants from the same organizations. Further, the ratings appear to differentiate among roles but not stages in the decision process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Griliches' test is not completely adequate for discriminating among several popular models of advertising effectiveness and, as a result, its use by several researchers in that area has produced inconclusive results. The authors review some past applications of Griliches' test and develop a testing procedure which will properly discriminate between models of current and cumulative advertising effects. Finally, an empirical example of the proposed procedure is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The results of a large-scale study of adolescent consumer socialization are presented. A general conceptual framework of socialization is outlined to serve as a blueprint for discussing variables and hypotheses in the specific context of consumer socialization. The authors then examine the development of several consumption-related skills as a function of variables derived from sociological and developmental theories of socialization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Test-retest correlations often are reported as measures of the reliability of copy testing procedures with little or no attention to the conditions under which such an interpretation is meaningful. Some checks are suggested for assessing the consistency of test-retest data with certain requirements which should be met if a test-retest correlation is to serve as reliability index. Ambiguities and shortcomings of many available reliability estimates are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unique field experiment data provided by the Milwaukee Advertising Laboratory were used to investigate the individual and interactive effects upon market shares of some marketing mix variables at two controlled levels of aggregate TV advertising exposure opportunity. The analysis showed interactive effects to be among the significant determinants of brand share. Market response to advertising, for instance, was found to depend upon the experimental brand's relative price level. Also, an exploratory hypothesis that high levels of TV advertising may correspond with a shift of relative effectiveness from TV advertising to other promotional variables was tested and supported. The results suggest the benefits of controlled field experiments and the importance of including interactive variables in models of market demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The statement, "advertising influences primary demand,'' is one that forms the basis for many marketing plans and forecasts In addition to its practical relevance, this assertion about the effect of advertising on total industry (or primary) demand is an important element in any explanation of advertising-sales behavior Recent work on the measurement of sales response to marketing decision variables, particularly is beginning to catch the attention of marketing managers because many researchers and practitioners share the same basic goal to predict and control the consequences of a firm's actions on its sales and profit The practical relevance of such work lies in application of the model to real market situations The application no doubt would be by staff marketing or operations researchers, perhaps not until the scientific process of scrutiny and refinement is complete Nevertheless, the ultimate goal is to explain market behavior, and thus to provide managers with answers to basic questions about the effectiveness of advertising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports an empirical study designed to provide advertisers with information concerning the personality and life-style characteristics of television program audiences. The results indicate that audiences are relatively heterogeneous in terms of psychographic characteristics. These variables appear to be of limited value for describing audience composition or predicting viewing behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research and reviews on comparative advertising report mixed results. The authors report the results from a meta-analysis that examines the efficacy of comparative advertising. The analysis shows that comparative ads are more effective than noncomparative ads in generating attention, message and brand awareness, levels of message processing, favorable sponsored brand attitudes, and increased purchase intentions and purchase behaviors. However, comparative ads evoke lower source believability and a less favorable attitude toward the ad. Additional analyses of moderator variables find that market position (sponsor, comparison, and relative), enhanced credibility, message content, and type of dependent measure (relative versus nonrelative) affect some of the relationships between advertising format and cognition, brand attitudes, and purchase intentions. New brands comparing them- selves to established brands appear to benefit most from comparative advertising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers have tried for several years to explain variations in advertising and promotion/sales (A&P/S) ratios across brands, product-market categories, firms, and industries. Market share (MS) and market growth (MG) have been included as explanatory variables in almost all of these studies. A recent article by Balasubramanian and Kumar (1990) presents a parsimonious yet powerful model explaining A&P/S ratios using these two variables and their interaction. Though the MG-MS matrix provides a possible rationale for the use of these variables in an interaction model, the authors argue that it is more consistent with strategic business unit (SBU)-level data than firm data. They attempt to replicate the model with two other data sets (SBU and brand data) as well as a version of the firm data used in the original study. Being unable to find empirical support for the model with any of the three data sets, they argue that further research should rely on other variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author examines the medieval literary tradition of allegory and relates it to contemporary advertising. Allegory is characterized by the use of metaphor, personification, and moral conflict. This tradition is the basis of advertisements that use fear to convey didactic instruction to mass audiences. The author describes the use of allegory in advertising strategy in terms of message appeal, product benefits, target audience, and media design. Five areas for future research are suggested: content analysis of allegorical advertisements, cross-cultural implications, fear and guilt appeals, taxonomy of personifications as presenters, and effects of metaphors and symbols on advertising recall and comprehension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Has usage situation been overlooked in market segmentation? A general framework is offered which positions situation and person within situation as theoretically legitimate and potentially useful bases for segmenting demand and targeting marketing strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous problems can arise in attempting to use conventional, textbook approaches in social marketing programs. This article contains a review of these problems and draws on the experiences of the authors for supporting arguments and examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethnicity of models used in advertisements and the advertised product's country of origin are manipulated experimentally to study how attitudes toward advertising and products lead to behavioral intention. A sample of Singaporean students' traditional Eastern values about the family and conformity are also examined. Patterns of results for three products are consistent with theoretical predictions of cognitive processes, and attitude--intention links appear stronger than do those in similar tests in the West. Culture has mixed effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of the feeling of warmth created by a commercial, as measured by the "warmth monitor," is explored in a series of three studies. The first study examines the relationship between warmth and arousal as measured by skin response. The other studies explore the relationship between warmth and advertising responses such as liking of the ad and purchase likelihood through testing ads with warm and other execution strategies. They also test the effects of sequences of commercials on warmth responses and on the impact of the ad. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Different advertising effects on purchase behavior of consumers of varying brand loyalty are investigated. In a frequently purchased product class, consumers of high loyalty increase brand and product purchase when advertising for that brand increases. Little switching occurs from competitive brands into the advertised brand. At low loyalties there is little impact. Effects of increased advertising carry over for a few months after advertising is lowered back to normal levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A procedure for identifying misleading advertising is presented, based solely on measured consumer beliefs. An advertisement is misleading if an exposed group holds more false beliefs than a comparison group. When ten allegedly misleading advertisements were tested, two were identified as incrementally misleading, and four others were shown to be exploitively misleading. In this paper, we propose and test a procedure for identifying misleading advertising. Contrary to custom, the procedural problem is confronted first, and a definition of misleadingness follows. The procedure is empirically based, as it relies on the measurement of consumer beliefs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How can the behavioral sciences be used more effectively in marketing? What procedures should be followed? What are the inherent limitations confronting the marketer working with behavioral science tools? These and other questions are discussed. The process of scientific inference for marketing and the behavioral sciences is presented, and several reasons are offered for studying the behavioral sciences in a marketing context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A program for the systematic review of company advertising can result in better information concerning what advertising should accomplish, what company advertising has actually accomplished, and what can be done to create more effective advertisements in the future. This article describes a continuing program designed to aid management in evaluating advertising effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article contains a section of abstracts regarding marketing research and research techniques from various publications. Some of the articles include "Libraries and Librarianship in Advertising, Marketing, and Communications Media," "Scouting The Trail for Marketers," and "The Application of Survey Research Methods to "Model Line" Decisions."

Many readers will be surprised to learn of the timely marketing practices and institutions which characterize the small nation of Finland. Its "Americana" marketing appearance, exemplified by planned shopping centers, television advertising, and self-service stores seems incongruous with a common border with the Soviet Union. Wholesaling, retailing, and advertising are some of the areas included in this firsthand report of Finnish marketing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The high costs of television make it increasingly important that TV commercials appear on programs which reach the right prospects for the advertised products and for isolating program audiences in large numbers for subsequent analysis of characteristics. The authors believe that a method now exists. Their article describes a method to expand the sample, without expanding cost unduly, and without affecting reliability of data obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has often been alleged that advertising people are faddists, that they "jump on the bandwagon" whenever a new creative idea comes along. By careful statistical analysis of advertising formats that have appeared in two consumer magazines, the authors have tested the validity of this charge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here is a new look at contests, and contestants. Generally, a count of contest entries is used as a gauge of success. This article shows why a count of entries is a poor measure of number of people involved, and an even poorer measure of prospects attracted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]