Business Commons^™

The Effect Of Diversity Initiatives By Brands On Consumer Perceptions, Dolph F. Nelson Iv, Laura Boman

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Over the course of the last few years, there has been an increase in the number of brands that are using their platforms to raise awareness for and support social justice causes/initiatives, such as gender equality in sports, Black Lives Matter, and #MeToo. Cause-related marketing (CRM), the broader terminology under which this practice falls under, has been the primary subject of prior research projects. Westberg (2004) suggests that consumers respond more favorably to CRM initiatives compared to sponsorship and sales promotion, and that there is some support that CRM initiatives help in increasing consumer attitudes of a brand. Other prior …

Impact Of Model Gender On The Effectiveness Of Advertisements Targeted At Older Viewers: An Analysis In The Context Of Ageing, Corinne Chevalier, Gaelle M. Moal

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Advertising efficiency relies partly on the viewer’s identification to the model used in the ad and model gender facilitates the identification process. Relying on gerotranscendance theory (Tornstam, 2009), we assume that gender identification is not as important to seniors as it used to be when they were younger and that the gender of the model will have no effect on variables of the persuasion process. The results of a survey on 512 seniors aged 60 to 85 reveals that the model’s gender has little impact on the perception of ads by senior viewers. However, matching product gender and model gender …

Saving Face: Comparing The Effects Of Endorsement Marketing Strategies On Millennial Americans, Alessandra Noli, Sindy Chapa, Daniela Castillo, Tim O'Hara, Anna Dean, Tyler Trobert

AMTP Proceedings 2022

The rapid boom of social media in the 21^st century has positioned it as a key instrument in the realm of marketing. Social media has also given rise to a new kind of endorser: the influencer. The present study tested the effects of expert influencers vs traditional celebrities on brand attitude and purchase intentions of makeup products, within a cohort of millennials. Results showed respondents tended to favor the expert influencer in terms of perceived expertise, brand attitude and purchase intention. This has important implications for marketers when it comes to deciding upon an endorser for their brand, with …

Trends In Global Bridal Industry: Emergence Of Online Bridal Stores And Survival Of Brick-And-Mortar Stores, Libby Jones, Ismet Anitsal, Melek Meral Anitsal

AMTP Proceedings 2022

The growing global bridal industry and the different trends, traditions, and aspects of specific countries’ bridal industries are explored in this paper. It outlines western and eastern practices and how globalization contributes to their spread. A deeper focus is dedicated to the United States’ bridal industry and the issues brick-and-mortar bridal boutiques face as more brides have started shopping at online bridal stores. The relationship between brick-and-mortar and online bridal stores is explored based on various propositions about the bridal industry’s emerging challenges. Each proposition is evaluated according to each retail format’s reaction.

Trust issues in the retail environment, convenience, …

Developing Marketing Capabilities To Mitigate Perceived Cybersecurity Risk In Healthcare Organizations, Manisha Mathur

AMTP Proceedings 2022

The effective delivery of health care relies on sharing electronic health records across multiple providers in the healthcare system. On the other hand, cybersecurity efforts mostly rely on centralizing sensitive and valuable data and securing devices, networks, and electronic systems. Hence, cybersecurity in healthcare is complicated due to the contradictory characteristics of healthcare delivery and cybersecurity. The firms’ unsuccessful attempts to prevent massive data breaches in the recent past have heightened cybersecurity risk perceptions of customers and cybersecurity-related marketing challenges and opportunities. Therefore, it is critical for marketers to step up and devise strategies and tactics to avert the negative …

The New Grocery Retail Journey: Stimuli And Mobile Influences On A Consumer’S Unplanned Shopping And Spending Behavior, Dale A. Cake, Vikas Agrawal, Douglas Johansen, Wooyang Kim

AMTP Proceedings 2022

In the new digital age, knowing what new variables may be affecting unplanned shopping and spending in a grocery store environment has had little conclusive study academically, albeit is very important to academic theory, grocery store chain management and manufacturers. Many grocery shoppers are now utilizing mobile phones and other digital stimuli (via an app or website, pricing information, coupons, QR codes, or other information) in addition to traditional stimuli for product or promotional information during their in-store purchase phase. In past research, new in-store digital stimuli or mobile phone technology was shown to increase unplanned shopping and/or spending (Cake …

Attendance Of International Students At U.S. Colleges And Universities, Nader H. Shooshtari

AMTP Proceedings 2022

U.S. colleges and universities have traditionally been lauded as a Mecca for attracting international students. Touted as offering the best higher education in the world, international students from around the world have traditionally flocked to U.S. educational institutions. This influx brought opportunities for international students while providing U.S. higher education institution additional revenue and a diverse student body. Beginning with the Trump Administration’s inward tilt, the welcome mat for international students was removed and the COVID pandemic added to the uncertainty and difficulty of accepting international students to U.S. and indeed much of the western countries that traditionally served as …

The Perils Of Using Self-Deprecating Humor: Customer Evaluations Of The Firm After A Service Failure, Hyunju Shin, Lindsay R. Levine

AMTP Proceedings 2022

The current study investigates the firm’s potential use of self-deprecating humor in response to a service failure and examines resulting consumer evaluations. This study utilizes two scenario-based experiments conducted in the contexts of online retailing and restaurant service. The findings indicate that self-deprecating humor leads to customers’ negative evaluations of the company by decreasing forgiveness intentions toward the company. The mechanism which explains low forgiveness intentions is found to involve heightened perception of dishonesty. Moreover, when perceived benignness of the failure is low (vs. high), self-deprecating humor has a stronger adverse effect on perceived dishonesty. This study suggests that firms …

Chinese’ Impulsive Shopping Behavior In A Post-Pandemic Era: Exploring The Impact Of Long-Term Orientation On Self Control, And Utilitarian And Hedonic Shopping Values, Pei Wang, Sindy Chapa

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Based on previous premises, the present study proposed a model that aims to understand consumers’ impulsive shopping behavior in China. This study takes into consideration the cultural core value of long-term orientation of Chinese consumers to explore the moderating role of hedonic value, utilitarian value, and self-control on impulsive buying behavior. An online survey was employed using a convenience national sample in China. A total sample of 237 was collected and used to test the proposed model and hypotheses. Theoretically, the study provides an alternative model that explains the role of hedonic value, utilitarian value, and self-control on impulsive online-buying …

Slogans As Persuasive Accelerants Of Electronic Word-Of-Mouth Communication: A Preliminary Conceptual Model, Theo Lynn, Pierangelo Rosati, Charles M. Wood

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Brands have been conceptualized as being made up of three different components: name, logo and slogan (Keller 1993, Dass, Kumar, Kohli, & Thomas, 2014). Slogans are short, memorable phrases that are often used to sign off on advertisements. They characterize a large proportion of brand advertising and are designed to attract consumer attention, crystallize brand positioning, increase advertising memorability, and improve brand affinity (Keller, 1993). Slogans have been part of our world for millennia, and a staple in the advertising world since its inception. Less complex messages – i.e., slogans – have been associated with improved advertising effectiveness (Lowrey 1998). …

Bitcoin: Bringing New Meaning To Purchasing Power & Bridging The Wealth Gap, Fabienne Cadet

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Bitcoin has emerged as a hot topic in our marketplace. Launched in 2009, Bitcoin is considered the first cryptocurrency, which is a virtual currency, devoid of any physical form. This paper takes a strategic approach to investigating Bitcoin usage. Additionally, the paper provides insight on the societal impact of Bitcoin. As its demand increases, it appears that Bitcoin is here to stay, therefore gaining a better understanding of this new form of currency and its impact on the market is crucial. The paper begins with background information on Bitcoin, followed by an overview of current Bitcoin users, which provides insight …

Destruction And Reconstruction Of Corporate Reputation In The International Business Network Context, Nikolina Koporcic, Maria Ivanova-Gongne, Jan-Åke Törnroos, Olga Dziubaniuk

AMTP Proceedings 2022

The purpose of this study is to illustrate how a firm’s corporate reputation can be destroyed by the actions of business partners and other network actors, and what the company can do to reconstruct its reputation. The study case exemplifies the importance of reputation and close interactions with foreign business partners in developing countries. Secondary data of a Nordic-based MNC, Stora Enso, is collected, interpreted, and analyzed. We observed issues surrounding the reputation change of the MNC, while focusing on the actions of their business partners. The paper provides empirical insights into the process of reputation destruction and …

Communicating Temporary Brick-And-Mortar Store Closures During Covid-19 Lockdowns In The Uk, Zsofia Toth, Tristan Emerson, Nikolina Koporcic, Sally Mckechnie, Muzna Shehzad

AMTP Proceedings 2022

This research examines how retail businesses from central England’s Midlands region communicated temporary closure of their brick-and-mortar stores via shop window messages during the first two Covid-19 lockdowns in 2020. These closure notices represent important forms of crisis communication for businesses, which display various levels of information, emotional language, or functional intent, and offer signposts for business continuity. 417 shop window closure notices were photographed - 167 and 250 from the first and second periods of lockdown respectively. In order to analyse the data, a multimodal social semiotic framework was employed, allowing the study to examine the language, design and …

The Corporate Remedy Strategies For Product-Related And Business Ethical Misdeeds, Lei Huang

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Firms take various approaches to mitigate the negative impacts from the misdeeds and repair the damages of the consequences. The current study examines the moderation role of two types of misdeed, business ethics or product performance related, in the relationship between three major crisis remedy strategies and the purchase intentions for both current and potential consumers. The results from 440 participants suggest that a promptness apology is important for current consumers but not for potential consumers. More importantly, the response plan has less impact on the current consumers when a misdeed is business ethics related than product performance related while …

The Sport Marketing Portfolio Matrix: How Brand Relevance Aligns With Fan Behavior, Kirk D. Aiken, Richard M. Campbell, Ajay Sukhdial

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Many fan behavior studies leave applications for strategic sport marketing as afterthoughts. Likewise, studies of sport marketing practices often ignore the complexities of fan psychology. The purpose of this work is to propose a new model that accurately categorizes sport products, better recognizes fan behaviors, and provides sound guidance to sport marketers. The work applies the well-established theory of portfolio management (wherein, investors strive to receive higher returns with lower risks by managing an assortment of investments). Herein, sport fans are viewed as investors that “buy,” “hold,” and “sell” athletes and teams. From sport to sport and season to season, …

The Lonely Reason Impeding Compliance With Covid-19 Prevention Guidelines, Ainslie E. Schultz, Kevin P. Newman

AMTP Proceedings 2022

To reduce transmission of the 2019 coronavirus (COVID-19), the US Center for Disease Control recommends that all individuals follow a series of prevention guidelines (e.g., wearing a mask, physical distancing, and vigilant handwashing). However, some individuals have been unwilling to comply with them. In this research, we use reciprocal altruism theory to investigate the role of loneliness in compliance with COVID-19 prevention guidelines. Specifically, we find that lonely (vs. non-lonely) consumers report less willingness to comply with these guidelines. Process evidence demonstrates that this occurs because lonely individuals experience a lower sense of obligation to reciprocate. Importantly, the negative impact …

Transaction-Based Cause-Related Marketing: The Role Of Consumer Trust And Self-Congruity On Purchase Intention, Dawn D. Hart, Doug Johansen

AMTP Proceedings 2022

The link between corporations, their socially responsible activities, and business performance has become irrefutable (Marconi, 2002). Companies grapple with how to successfully implement their socially responsible marketing activities (Marconi, 2002). Corporate social responsibility has various initiatives including corporate philanthropy, corporate statesmanship, through-the-firm giving, and profit motivated giving (Varadarajan & Menon, 1988). Cause-related marketing includes a profit motive (Varadarajan & Menon, 1988). Several studies find cause-related marketing efforts have the potential to affect consumers’ purchase intentions (Webb & Mohr, 1998).

When The Going Gets Tough: Motivations Of Customer Helpers’ Further Green Helping Behavior Intentions, Estelle Van Tonder, Boitshepo Cl Mkhondo, Christo Bisschoff, Sam Fullerton

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Environmental conservation is a global concern. Consumers may contribute by persuading their reluctant peers to support green purchasing, but these influencers need to persevere when their advice is not followed. This study provides more insight into the cognitive, affective, and behavioral factors influencing further green helping behavior intentions. Survey data were collected from 452 green product supporters who previously advised someone about green purchasing behavior. Six hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling and bootstrapping. Affective commitment toward fellow customers and green helping behavior in general influences further green helping behavior intentions. Subjective norm and perceived behavioral control only have …

Anti-Consumption: A Preliminary Examination Of A Set Of Social Considerations That Impact A Consumer’S Decision To ‘Punish’ Marketers Deemed To Be Engaging In Irresponsible Behavior, Tammy Mccullough, Ania Izabela Rynarzewska, Sam Fullerton

AMTP Proceedings 2022

A sample of 175 students from two universities provided insight regarding the rationale for engaging in anti-consumption behavior. A review of the literature identified myriad reasons why consumers engage in personal boycotts. This study examines 12 of these reasons: environmental concerns, political stance, religious orientation/affiliation, country-of-origin (COO), attitudes towards the LGBTQ community, the size of the marketer, the use of disliked celebrity endorsers, the use of offensive marketing tactics (e.g. advertising), animal cruelty including the use of live animal testing, perceived violations of basic human rights, employing a nonunionized workforce, and employment-related discrimination based on the gender, age, race, religion, …

Gamification Usage And Platform Loyalty In Esports Livestreams: An Analysis Of Unobserved Heterogeneity With Fimix-Pls And Ipma, Yizhou Qian, Jeam Martinez, Robbie Matz

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Although gamification as a marketing strategy has been implemented by various domains, there is still a dearth of research on the use of gamification in social livestreams. In this study, we examined the relationships between technology acceptance model (TAM) variables, gamification usage, and loyalty toward a social livestreaming platform, where gamification was adopted to enhance the viewing of an esports event. Data from 396 viewers were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), finite mixture partial least squares (FIMIX-PLS), and importance performance map analysis (IPMA). To this end, our study underpinned the application and extension of TAM in …

Awareness Marketing: Cause Marketing Without Contribution, Elizabeth A. Minton, Frank Cabano

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Much research has examined the benefit of brands that participate in cause marketing initiatives and give a portion of proceeds or product to a charity. However, what has been lacking from this investigation is how consumers respond when brands raise awareness for a cause but do not take any further action to contribute resources to the cause – what we term awareness marketing. Through five studies, we examine awareness marketing specifically among the potentially divisive context of social justice causes. We show that consumers with higher levels of religiosity are more likely to support products marketed with awareness marketing, that …

Mothers With Empty Arms: Marketing, Stigma, And Bereaved Mothers, Elizabeth A. Minton, Carissa Anthony, Cindy Xin Wang, Alexa Fox

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Despite over one-quarter of females suffering baby loss, there is virtually no research in marketing examining the devastating impacts of such loss from a consumer standpoint. There are incredible stigmas that overshadow these vulnerable consumers and understanding how marketing helps and hurts consumers post-loss in the marketplace is of critical importance. Through 30 in-depth interviews with bereaved mothers in the U.S. (specifically mothers who lost a baby during pregnancy or within one year after birth), this research builds off stigma theory to shed light on the consumer journey post-loss in an effort to bring these consumers what they desire – …

Exploring The Impact Of Brands Roasting On Social Media, Sphurti Sewak, William F. Humphrey Jr., Jayati Sinha

AMTP Proceedings 2022

Brands regularly post content on social media and look for consumer engagement through these posts. However, this research uncovers a novel domain that shows increased consumer engagement but decreased persuasion: when brands resort to roasting on Twitter. We find that the perceived inappropriateness of the roasting posts lead to lower brand preference when brands choose to roast on social media and tease apart the difference between B2B and B2C roasting. This research establishes that not everything that goes viral leads to a favorable offline behavior. Social media managers of brands can use the findings of this research by understanding why …

An Examination Of Portrayal Of Disability In Brand Ads, Sphurti Sewak, Jayati Sinha

AMTP Proceedings 2022

This research explores why marketers can utilize disabled models to their advantage. Although brand inclusivity has attracted some attention, much is still unknown. The current research addresses this gap by establishing that using disabled brand models can lead to higher customer-brand relationships and also explores when it could potentially backfire by establishing that the personal attitude towards disability could moderate this main effect. The findings will help brands to be more open to including diverse models that do not exactly fit “the ideal” and fighting the prevailing prejudice towards disabled people in society. Representing them in their advertisements and online …

Seeking Stability: Consumer Motivations For Communal Nostalgia, Minju Han, George E. Newman

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Existing research has examined why consumers are drawn to things from their past (personal nostalgia). However, little empirical work has examined why consumers prefer products that were never a part of their personal history (communal nostalgia). For example, a consumer may purchase vinyl records even though she grew up listening to mp3 files. Here, we find that one reason why consumers may be drawn to communal nostalgia is that it can provide a sense of social stability. Drawing on System Justification Theory (Jost & Banaji, British Journal of Social Psychology, 33, 1994 and 1-27), we demonstrate that perceived threats to …

An Acccidental Academic: Reflections On An Exciting Journey, Karempudi Srinivas Reddy

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

My entry into academia was an accident—but what an exciting and rewarding experience it has been. I had applied for the MBA program at Columbia University Business School, but it did not admit me as they said that I already had an MBA degree from India. Instead, they admitted me into the Ph.D. program. To this day, I wonder why they gave me admission. My days as doctoral student were challenging but the most exciting days of life. My fellow Ph.D. students in Marketing, Terry Elrod, Dave Schmittlein and Chezy Ofir, along with those in other areas, Vikram Pandit, Brett …

Support For Increasing Low-Wage Workers’ Compensation: The Role Of Fixed-Growth Mindsets About Intelligence, Shilpa Madan, Anyi Ma, Neeraj Pandey, Aneeta Rattan, Krishna Savani

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Approximately 44% of U.S. workers are low-wage workers. Recent years have witnessed a raging debate about whether to raise their minimum wages. Why do some decision-makers support raising wages and others do not? Ten studies (four preregistered) examined people’s beliefs about the malleability of intelligence as a key antecedent. The more U.S. human resource managers (Study 1) and Indian business owners (Study 2) believed that people’s intelligence can grow (i.e., had a growth mindset), the more they supported increasing low-wage workers’ compensation. In key U.S. swing states (Study 3a), and a nationally representative sample (Study 3b), residents with a more …

An Investigation Of Teenagers’ Advertising Literacy In The Context Of The Brand-Rich Environment Of Social Media, Emma Sweeney

Doctoral

Teenagers are avid consumers of social media and consequently, constitute attractive target audiences for marketers. On social media, advertising can be integrated into content such as YouTube videos and Instagram posts which means the boundary between commercial content (the advertisement) and non-commercial content (e.g., the video in which the ad appears) becomes increasingly blurred. Therefore, in this context, the consumer must be able to navigate a minefield of overt and covert advertising that is disseminated by a range of sources, including brands and social media influencers. A resulting concern for academics, parents and policy makers alike relates to young people’s …

An Exploratory Study Of The Role And Contribution Of Absorptive Capacity Levels In The Commercialisation Of Knowledge In Knowledge Intensive Smes, Francis Martin Behan

Doctoral

Absorptive Capacity (ACAP) is a construct introduced by Cohen and Leventhal in 1990 to describe the process by which an organisation recognises and absorbs new external knowledge to increase its current stock of knowledge, thereby giving it increased capability to create value for its customers, stakeholders and wider society. ACAP, as a construct, has gained widespread acceptance within academia and the construct has been further refined and developed over the last thirty years. However, the application and testing of the construct, is in practice, still in the early stages of development. The aim of this exploratory study was to investigate …

Consumer Reactions To Alcohol Advertising Health Warnings In Ireland: An Experimental Research Study, Vania Filipova

Doctoral

Introduction and Aims As part of several measures to inform consumers about the health risks of alcohol and reduce alcohol consumption, the Irish Government signed into law the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018, with Section 13 requiring the implementation of multiple health warnings in all alcohol ads. While health warnings on product labels have been subject to intensive political discussion and academic research, health warnings in alcohol ads have received little attention and empirical support. This doctoral dissertation investigates whether health warnings in alcohol ads can promote cognitive and affective reactions in consumers. Furthermore, this thesis also examines whether the …