Consumer Reactions Research Articles

From greenwashing to brand avoidance: the roles of perceived risk, trust and negative word-of-mouth

PurposeThis study explores the intricate relationships between greenwashing (GW), negative word-of-mouth (NWoM) and brand avoidance (BA), emphasizing the pivotal roles of green perceived risk (GPR) and green trust (GT). By analyzing these dynamics, the study sheds light on the effect of GW on consumer reactions and behaviors toward brands engaging in green marketing practices.Design/methodology/approachThe current study used a survey dataset of 512 customers in Saudi Arabia and applied partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to assess the paths within the proposed model.FindingsThe findings of this study indicate that consumers’ perceptions of GW can harm brands. Specifically, GW positively influences BA through both GPR and GT. Moreover, GW directly affects NWoM and indirectly via GPR.Practical implicationsThe study provides actionable insights for practitioners, emphasizing the importance of avoiding deceptive green marketing (i.e. GW) to build consumer trust and reduce negative behaviors like BA and NWoM. By adopting transparent practices and leveraging third-party environmental certifications, brands can enhance credibility, mitigate risks and maintain customer loyalty in sustainability-focused markets.Originality/valueDrawing on signaling theory and expectancy violation theory, this study builds a new framework to highlight the harmful effects of GW on brands. By integrating these theories, the framework effectively explains how GW can trigger extreme responses such as NWoM and BA, thereby contributing to research that has previously overlooked the connections between these factors.

Personal data strategies in digital advertising: Can first-party data outshine third-party data?

As Google explores new personal data strategies, it aims to strike a balance between enhancing privacy and maintaining personalization, ensuring that consumers' data is handled responsibly while still delivering relevant and personalized advertising. This study, based on the privacy calculus framework, employs a mixed-methods approach to address two key objectives: 1) understanding how different levels of personalization impact advertising performance based on the type of data utilized, and 2) exploring the underlying mechanism of consumer reactions to personalized advertising using different types of personal data. To achieve the first research goal, Study 1 integrates Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) analysis of survey data from 25 advertisers with econometric analysis of advertising data from a European beauty company. To achieve the second research objective, Study 2 explores consumer perceptions through in-depth interviews and an online survey. The key findings of this study are as follows. The AHP analysis revealed that advertisers prioritize first-party data, especially purchase history, for enhancing personalized targeting. The econometric analysis suggested that while third-party data is currently most effective for enhancing advertising performance, first-party data emerges as a promising alternative in light of evolving advertising policies. Qualitative and quantitative analyses revealed complex interactions between personalization levels, data types, and consumer responses, highlighting the tension between personalization benefit and risk. These insights provide valuable guidance for advertisers, platforms, and policymakers in navigating the changing landscape of digital advertising and personal data privacy.

The impact of speciesism on customers' acceptance of service automation

PurposeThe marketplace is becoming increasingly automated, with consumers frequently expected to interact with machines. Not all consumers are receptive to this trend. We examine how the individual difference of speciesism impacts consumer reactions to automation in the marketplace.Design/methodology/approachWe conducted three studies, including an exploratory correlational survey and two two-factor studies.FindingsStudy 1 provides survey evidence of a positive relationship between one’s level of speciesism and their belief that customer service automation is justified. Study 2 finds that speciesists have more favorable attitudes toward brands using automated (vs human) customer service. Study 3 finds that the more speciesists perceive that tasks they are required to perform at their own work are illegitimate (i.e. unreasonable), the more favorable their reactions to automation, which provides support for our theorizing that speciesists appreciate automation’s ability to relieve humans of such work tasks.Practical implicationsWe recommend that marketers target speciesists as early adopters of chatbots. Further, brands targeting customers likely to be high on speciesism can benefit from adopting chatbots for routine tasks, as this can improve this segment’s brand attitudes.Originality/valueThis research identifies that speciesists, people who strongly ascribe to the belief that humans are superior to other species, are particularly receptive to automation in customer service (in the form of chatbots). We provide evidence suggesting that speciesists appreciate that automation relieves their fellow humans of automatable tasks.

When Does Collaborating With Green Influencers Backfire? An Experimental Analysis of how Authenticity Components Shape Consumer Reactions to Sponsored Content

ABSTRACTThis study explores the role of perceived authenticity in shaping the persuasiveness of sponsored content by green influencers. We examine how variations in the importance of six authenticity component judgments—accuracy, connectedness, integrity, legitimacy, originality, and proficiency—influence consumers' intentions to change their behavior following green influencers' advice in the case of sponsored and nonsponsored content. To this end, we conducted an experiment with 486 active social media users who follow at least one green influencer. Results indicate that, although sponsored content typically diminishes the intent to follow green influencer advice, this effect is contingent upon the relative importance attributed to the authenticity components by consumers. Further, cluster analysis identified distinct consumer segments that vary in their response to sponsored content based on their perceptions of authenticity. We offer guidance to green influencers and companies on how to authentically tailor their sustainable collaborations.

High hopes, hard falls: consumer expectations and reactions to AI-human collaboration in advertising

This paper explores what people expect from AI-human collaboration in a creative domain and how they react when the outcomes fall short of those expectations. Study 1 utilized open-ended questions and content analysis to establish that consumers expect ads created through AI-human collaboration to be of superior quality compared to those created through AI-AI or human-human collaboration. This expectation arises from consumers’ beliefs in enhanced informational task management, the generation of innovative ideas, improved creative research, and greater efficiency in collaboration when AI and humans work together. Given these high expectations, Study 2, conducted in an experimental setting, reveals that consumers evaluate subpar ads produced through AI-human collaboration more negatively due to negative expectancy disconfirmation. Study 3 further examines individual differences as a moderating factor, demonstrating that the negative impact of expectancy disconfirmation is more pronounced among individuals with higher expectations of AI-human collaboration superiority.

From Social Media to E-Commerce: Mitigating the Impact of Negative Online Reviews Through Influencer Inoculation Messages

Drawing from inoculation theory and influencer marketing, this study explores how different inoculation messages from influencers affect consumer reactions to negative online reviews, focusing on message types (inoculation-same, inoculation-different, supportive) and consumer preexisting brand stance (identifiers vs. non-identifiers). Study 1 involved 600 Instagram users and observed minimal attitude changes with the inoculation-same message for both groups. However, inoculation-different and supportive messages showed varied effects: positive changes for non-identifiers and negative for identifiers. Study 2 further surveyed 340 Instagram users, examining the sequential effects of threat, refutation, and attack, revealing that the inoculation-same message reinforced resistance among identifiers but had limited impact on non-identifiers due to their varying brand views. The inoculation-different message failed to prevent negative shifts among identifiers but enhanced perceptions among non-identifiers. The supportive message, without prior warnings, led to negative shifts in identifiers but positively affected non-identifiers. These findings address the research gap regarding the use of various inoculation message types by incorporating both prophylactic and therapeutic perspectives.

Collective Layoffs and Offshoring: A Social Contract Account

Abstract Collective layoffs can occur for many reasons, often related to a firm’s pursuit of greater efficiency and cost reduction, and they tend to trigger negative reactions among the public. Anecdotal evidence suggests that offshoring, one of the most controversial and politicized aspects of globalization, evokes particularly negative reactions. We propose a social contract account of consumer reactions to collective layoffs and demonstrate differential consumer responses to collective layoffs due to offshoring versus other reasons, such as automation. Layoffs due to offshoring are perceived as an especially egregious violation of the normative expectation that firms should support members of their society. Data from nine experimental studies (N = 5,568; seven reported in the main paper and two in the General Discussion), public consumer responses to layoffs in a large online community (N = 29,045), and layoff announcements in the European Union (N = 1,261) show that consumers react more negatively to collective layoffs due to offshoring compared to other reasons. Supporting our social contract account, the negative effect of offshoring is stronger when offshoring affects workers in the consumers’ home (vs. foreign) country, when the firm is domestic (vs. foreign), and when most customers are domestic (vs. foreign).

NEUROMARKETING: ESSENCE, PRINCIPLES, METHODS, PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS

Neuromarketing is a relatively new innovative trend in the modern world, the essence of which is that it goes beyond the boundaries of classical marketing and studies more in depth the internal mechanisms of consumer decision-making regarding their purchases. The purpose of the article is to study the main principles of neuromarketing research, analyse the impact of certain neuromarketing tools on consumer behaviour and the possibilities of solving the use of neuromarketing problems. The examples of successful application of neuromarketing in the modern world are given, which clearly proves the use of such main channels of interaction as sight, hearing, touch and smell in neuromarketing communications. The article presents the basic principles of neuromarketing, which are based on the use of neuroscientific methods to understand consumer behaviour and allow for a deeper understanding of consumers at the subconscious level. These principles are defined in four blocks. Firstly, they help businesses to understand better the perception of their products and advertising campaigns; secondly, they contribute the development of more accurate and balanced marketing, where decisions are based on objective consumer data; thirdly, they help to increase the effectiveness of marketing strategies by making them more adapted to the peculiarities of the consumer's brain reaction; fourth, they expand the scope of neuromarketing, providing opportunities for a deeper understanding and effective use of the psychological aspects of consumer behaviour in different contexts. The use of instrumental methods for assessing neuromarketing, such as magnetic resonance imaging, functional magnetic resonance imaging, electroencephalography, lie detector, face-reading, eye-tracker, allows measuring neurological reactions, which is useful for optimising marketing strategies. Prospects for the development of neuromarketing include the following key areas: technology improvement; integration of artificial intelligence; expansion of the scope of research; development of open platforms for faster exchange of research results; search for new measurement methods; use of human emotional intelligence; expansion of links with psychology, medicine, education and entertainment; personalisation of marketing strategies based on individual consumer characteristics; greater attention to individual consumer reactions and protection of their privacy.

Exploring Product Innovation and Consumer Attitudes in Molecular Gastronomy: Marketing Insights for the Gourmet Food Industry.

The increasing popularity of social media and the growth of gourmet food culture have elevated molecular gastronomy as a unique dining experience that enhances consumers' perceptions of value through innovative food presentation and sensory marketing strategies. This study investigates consumer acceptance of molecular gastronomy by utilizing the value-attitude-behavior (VAB) model and the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). We examine the interplay between utilitarian and hedonic values, product innovation, and sensory stimulation to understand consumer reactions and attitudes toward molecular gastronomy. Through convenience sampling, we surveyed individuals who had experienced molecular gastronomy, collecting 407 valid responses, with a response rate of 95.3%. Our findings reveal that both utilitarian and hedonic values significantly influence consumers' attitudes (β = 0.635, p < 0.01; β = 0.750, p < 0.01). Attitudes, perceived behavioral control, and sensory stimulation play crucial roles in shaping behavioral intentions (β = 0.770, p < 0.01; β = 0.719, p < 0.01; β = 0.791, p < 0.01). Although subjective norms and product novelty also have positive effects on intentions, their impact is less significant (β = 0.511, p < 0.01; β = 0.416, p < 0.01). These insights suggest that practitioners in the dining industry should prioritize utilitarian value, hedonic appeal, consumer attitudes, perceived behavioral control, and sensory experiences when creating and marketing molecular gastronomy dishes. This research not only enhances our understanding of consumer behavior within this innovative culinary domain but also offers practical strategies for boosting market acceptance and engagement with such avant-garde dining experiences.

Understanding consumer reactions to chatbot service failures: Evidence from a Wizard-of-Oz experiment.

Previous studies have found that individuals react differently to online customer service interactions with chatbots than human agents. However, it remains unclear which agent is more effective at mitigating negative consumer evaluations in the context of service failures. This article explores whether online customer service agents, informed by social perception theory, can influence consumer evaluations by simulating service failure scenarios for future reference. In this study, human participants responded to a service failure interaction task with the Wizard-of-Oz method. This study conducted the pretest to verify the validity of stimuli and the main experiment to verify the proposed hypotheses. Results indicated that participants in human conditions were more likely to mitigate negative evaluations brought about by service failures, while a chatbot aggravated this negative effect. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the dynamics between online chatbots and human agents in the context of service failures. Interactions with human agents can mitigate consumers' negative evaluations of services, as human agents are perceived to demonstrate higher competence than chatbots.

The role of mortality salience in tourism marketing messages during a global health crisis

Terror Management Theory suggests that health messages can trigger mortality thoughts, influencing consumer behavior. Two studies were conducted to explore this mortality salience effect in the context of travel marketing during a pandemic. Findings from Study 1 showed that health-focused travel ads led to more mortality thoughts and increased travel intentions. Both low and high levels of these thoughts boosted travel intentions, while moderate levels deterred them. Drawing on Protection Motivation Theory, Study 2 examined the roles of trust in destination and perceived health risk in the effects of message-induced mortality-related thoughts on travel intentions. Travel ads that evoked mortality thoughts encouraged both domestic and international travel when health risks were perceived as low, but discouraged it when risks were high. Furthermore, the findings suggest that trust in the destination can mitigate the negative effects of mortality-related thoughts. This study offers insights into consumer reactions to health-related travel ads, with both theoretical and practical implications.

Testing a consumer-based brand equity model for wine tourism destinations

PurposeConsumer-based brand equity (CBBE) has been used in tourism and hospitality to measure the success of firm-level as well as destination-level brands. As wine tourism gained attention during the past two decades, researchers endeavored to use CBBE to understand consumer reactions to different wine tourism destinations. However, research in this domain has been divergent, with many models of CBBE with diverse components, without being validated for different destinations.Design/methodology/approachThe current study tested the validity of a CBBE model with the six most-widely used components, namely brand familiarity, brand image, perceived quality, consumer value, brand value and brand loyalty. The model was first tested for five domestic wine tourism destinations in the United States (n = 247) and retested for five global wine tourism destinations (n = 248). Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) of data from 495 respondents was used for analysis.FindingsFindings indicated that a four-component CBBE model with brand familiarity, brand image, consumer value and brand loyalty may be a more parsimonious model in the wine tourism destination context.Practical implicationsKnowledge of the CBBE of the destination within which the winery is located will enable the winery to understand the extent to which it can rely on this CBBE for the sale of their wines versus the extent to which they must rely on their own marketing activities to develop CBBE in their specific wine brand(s).Originality/valueThe study is unique in using multiple wine tourism destinations to test a CBBE model.

Do you remember? Consumer reactions to health-related information on snacks in repeated exposure

Do you remember? Consumer reactions to health-related information on snacks in repeated exposure

Displaying AI Information: Consumer Reactions to AI-Based Content

Displaying AI Information: Consumer Reactions to AI-Based Content

The Influence of the Credibility of Brand Content on Social Media Platforms on Consumers’ Purchasing Decisions and Its Communication Mechanism

The increased usage of social media for communicating with brands has made the credibility of content even more important in influencing purchasing behavior among consumers. The perceived authenticity, authority, and transparency of branded content on social media platforms identify consumer purchasing behavior. Focusing on familiar brands such as Nike and Adidas, the present study pursues research relevant to credibility in terms of establishing consumer trust and amendment of purchase intentions. These will be achieved through a mixed-method approach, where both quantitative and qualitative methods will be employed. The questionnaire to be administered to 500 respondents will measure perceptions of the content’s credibility and their subsequent derived impact on purchasing behavior. Additionally, there will be an experimental method of real-time social media engagement to assess immediate consumer reactions to brand messaging in a controlled environment. It is expected that the results will show a strong positive relationship between the credibility of content and consumer trust, and therefore, transparency and authenticity are expected to have the most influence. This supports the findings that clear and honest communications are what brands should focus on to advance the credibility of content and drive purchasing decisions. It therefore follows that the findings of this research provide useful information on how credibility in brand content can be leveraged efficaciously in the enhancement of consumer trust and improved marketing outcomes on social media platforms.

Looking Beyond Conventional Advertising Platforms: Exploring Interactive Marketing for Menstrual Brands on Social Media

The advent of the digital era has transformed marketing practices and reshaped consumer behaviour. Social media is a type of communication media that allows interactive marketing and has gained popularity among marketers due to its advantages over traditional communication channels. Brands can utilize interactive marketing on social media to engage in marketing endeavours such as product launches, communicating with both existing &amp; potential consumers, and expanding their business networks. Brands are doing interactive marketing on social media to captivate the consumer's interest and attention. Social media has sparked a movement of menstrual activism that aims to normalize and destigmatize menstruation, emphasizing that it is a natural bodily process that should not be hidden or avoided in discussions. While social media encourages open dialogue between menstrual brands &amp; consumers, the stigma surrounding menstruation in many societies prevents people from freely discussing it. Hence, this paper aims to understand the key drivers of interactive marketing for menstrual brands on social media platforms, including factors such as interactive content, gratifications, interactive videos, personalized content, and social media influencers. Also, this paper analyzes the role of interactive marketing in consumer purchases of menstrual products and examines the consumer reactions towards the interactive marketing approaches adopted by menstrual brands on their social media channels. This study uses a quantitative approach and the data are collected through questionnaires from female social media users. The hypotheses of this study are analyzed using two-way ANOVA. The findings highlight the significance of interactive marketing on social media platforms for menstrual brands, shedding light on the factors that contribute to the success of interactive marketing approaches on social media channels. The results also show that interactive marketing methods on social media increase the sales of menstrual products among consumers. While numerous studies have explored the relationship between interactive marketing and social media, there is a noticeable gap in the existing literature when it comes to the specific intersection of interactive marketing on social media platforms and menstrual brands. In terms of managerial impact, this study emphasizes the potential for menstrual brands to employ interactive marketing strategies on social media platforms as a means to encourage increased consumer purchasing behaviour.

The point of no return? Restrictive changes to lenient return policies and consumer reactions to them

AbstractRetailers face a challenging trade‐off in maintaining versus restricting long‐established lenient return policies. On the one hand, lenient return policies have become an important part of retailers' value propositions and play a significant role in stimulating consumer purchases. On the other hand, lenient return policies increase the volume of product returns, which hurts profitability. Motivated by observing an increase in restrictive changes to long‐established lenient return policies, we investigate consumer reactions to such changes and their managerial implications. Through a series of experiments with diverse consumer samples, we find that restrictive changes, such as shortening return time windows or introducing restocking fees, decrease consumer trust in retailers and lead to lowered purchase, positive word‐of‐mouth, and loyalty intentions. We also find that providing managerial transparency, in the form of communicating the rationale for restrictive changes, can attenuate the negative consumer reactions to such changes. Moreover, rationales that emphasize the cost of handling returns versus blaming opportunistic and abusive returners are similarly effective. Our findings contribute to the growing academic literature on consumer return policy design and provide actionable insights to retail managers.

Consumer reactions to multiple and single health warnings on static alcohol ads: A factorial survey experiment with a convenience sample of adults in Ireland.

As part of several measures to inform consumers about the health risks of alcohol, 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. Although health warnings on product labels have been subject to intensive political discussion and academic research, health warnings in alcohol ads have received little attention. A between-subject factorial survey experiment was conducted with a convenience sample of adults in Ireland (n = 932) to compare single-text, multiple-text and shocking image-and-text health warnings displayed on two types of static alcohol ads-an ad with social imagery featuring people drinking alcohol and an ad featuring only the alcohol product. Believability of health warnings, negative emotions, perceived risks of alcohol use and self-efficacy to drink less were measured after viewing each alcohol ad with or without health warnings. Single-text health warnings, with and without shocking imagery, were more effective in increasing negative emotions than multiple-text health warnings (p ≤ 0.001), whereas multiple-text warnings were found to be more believable than single-text warnings (p ≤ 0.001). No significant effects were found on perceived risks of alcohol use and self-efficacy to drink less (p > 0.05). The warnings did not differ across demographic groups and the type of alcohol ads on all outcomes (p > 0.05). A single health warning emphasising cancer risk could be a useful starting point for policymakers when implementing health warnings in alcohol ads.

The Current Position of Neuromarketing as a Tool of Marketing and Communication Strategy

Neuromarketing is a tool used to investigate real consumer preferences that are not subjectively influenced, e.g. bias towards a certain brand, marketing communication tools, etc. It studies brain functions when deciding to buy a product. The goal is to find and identify the differences between the customer’s conscious assertion and subconscious behaviour. It monitors how the brain reacts to certain stimuli contained in an advertisement, brand, etc. For this, it uses studies that examine the influence of marketing stimuli on consumer reactions. The goal of our study is to provide an objective and comprehensive overview of new scientific findings that point to certain gaps in research methods and thinking about consumer behaviour and decision-making. We focus on the field of neuromarketing in general, on its methods, the concept of intuitive consumer behaviour. The core parts are practical applications of neuromarketing in the field of marketing and marketing communication. The research part describes the course and results of the applied experiment, using two methods of neuromarketing research to influence the senses of the consumer and to find the differences between conscious and unconscious decision-making, and at the same time, how these findings can manifest themselves in the area of marketing and communication strategy. Key findings are clearly summarised in the summary and conclusion.

Research on cognitive neural mechanism of consumers convinced by intelligent recommendation platform eavesdropping

The negative inference that consumers hold ‘eavesdropping’ views concerning the intelligent recommendation services of digital platforms is fostering their selective exposure to information that aligns with their preferred viewpoints. This, in turn, exacerbates their psychological defense against digital platforms, causing consumers to become more prone to verifying existing beliefs and fostering the polarization of information choices. This phenomenon directly impacts the effectiveness of smart recommendations and the accuracy of digital platforms’ predictions of consumer behavior, potentially even adversely affecting brand trust and the long-term stability of platform usage. From the perspectives of self-verification and cognitive closure, this study delves into the influence of ‘eavesdropping’ inference cues within intelligent recommendation systems on consumers’ selective exposure to information and the underlying psychological mechanisms. Experimental findings indicated: (1) Behavioral results showed that consumers who believed in eavesdropping by digital platforms, under conditions of high comprehensibility, were more inclined to selectively engage with consistent information as opposed to inconsistent information. Under conditions of low comprehensibility, however, information consistency had no significant effect on consumers’ selective exposure. (2) EEG results revealed that, based on the need for cognitive closure, individuals in the high comprehensibility group, during the self-verification process, exhibited more cognitive conflict and required greater cognitive effort when presented with inconsistent information compared to those in the consistent information group. This, in turn, elicited higher N2 and N450 amplitudes. This study uncovered the psychological mechanism underlying this phenomenon. When consumers developed a skeptical perspective on perceived eavesdropping by digital platforms within intelligent recommendation systems, they promptly engaged in self-verification, driven by the need for cognitive closure. The study’s findings offered practical guidance to digital platforms on how to alleviate consumer suspicions when designing intelligent recommendation services, thereby mitigating negative consumer reactions to the perception of ‘eavesdropping’. This insight held significant theoretical and practical value at the intersection of digital marketing and psychology.