Congruity and processing fluency

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the benefits of Ad-Video and Product-Video congruity for embedded online video advertising. A conceptual model is constructed to test how congruity between online advertisements, advertised products and online videos impact consumer post-viewing attitudes via processing fluency. Design/methodology/approach An online experiment with eight versions of mock video sections (with embedded online video advertisements) was conducted. The study is a 2 (type of appeal: informational vs emotional) × 2 (Ad-Video congruity: congruent vs incongruent) × 2 (Product-Video congruity: congruent vs incongruent) full-factorial between-subject design. A total of 252 valid responses were collected for data analysis. Findings Results show that congruity is related to the improvement of processing fluency only for informational ads/videos. The positive effect of Ad-Video congruity on processing fluency is only significant for informational appeals but not emotional appeal. Similarly, the positive effects of Product-Video congruity on processing fluency are only significant for informational appeals but not emotional appeal. Involvement has been found to be positively related to processing fluency too. Processing fluency has a positive impact on the attitudes toward the ads, advertised products and videos. Research limitations/implications The finding that congruity is related to the improvement of processing fluency only for informational ads/videos extends the existing literature by identifying the type of appeal as a boundary condition. Practical implications Both brand managers and online video platform owners should monitor and operationalize the content and appeal congruity, especially for informational ads on a large scale to improve consumers’ responses. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper to examine the effects of Ad-Video and Product-Video congruity of embedded advertisements on video sharing platforms. The findings of this study add to the literature on congruity and processing fluency.

Mobile contextual marketing in a museum setting

“…Marketing researchers use this concept to explain consumers' responses (e.g. valuation judgments, attitudes toward advertisements and advertised products, behavioral intentions) to promotional and other types of corporate-sponsored messages in various contexts (Alter and Oppenheimer, 2008;Herrmann et al, 2013;Jiang et al, 2019;Zhang and Mattila, 2015). Previous studies reveal consistent effects associated with higher-level fluency, including increased liking, perceptions of greater value and judgments of truth and lower risk (Ko et al, 2015;Winkielman and Cacioppo, 2001;Zhang and Mattila, 2015).…”

“…cultural backgrounds) (Alter and Oppenheimer, 2008;Brakus et al, 2014;Ko et al, 2015). Especially, consumers tend to respond to highly congruent informationsuch as a marketing stimulus received in the presence of a relevant contextual cuespontaneously and favorably, as the information better matches their category schemes and yields a quick and effortless evaluation (Brakus et al, 2014;Jiang et al, 2019). Moreover, researchers indicate that processing fluency may be generated at a very early stage of information processing and felt at the periphery of conscious awareness, thus does not require any complicated mechanisms or one's focused attention on the stimuli (Herrmann et al, 2013;Winkielman and Cacioppo, 2001).…”

“…mobile app marketing in retailing) can give museums a head start in providing added value to visitors and broadening their own sources of revenue (Camarero et al, 2015;Li and Liew, 2015). Especially when the mobile-app-based marketing stimulus indicates congruity and enhances processing fluency, it becomes a facilitator of enjoyable experiences for museum visitors, which may, in turn, lead to more favorable evaluations and behavioral intentions (Herrmann et al, 2013;Jiang et al, 2019).…”