Article
Military-Madrasa-Mullah Complex
The Information Processing
of Advertisements by
Urban Young Men of India
449
Global Business Review
11(3) 449–462
© 2010 IMI
SAGE Publications
Los Angeles, London,
New Delhi, Singapore,
Washington DC
DOI: 10.1177/097215091001100309
http://gbr.sagepub.com
Tuhin Chattopadhyay
Abstract
The purpose of this article is to explore the most effective print advertising strategy in terms of
message strategy and execution framework for young men in India. Young men (n = 400) watched
20 advertisements in which message strategy and execution framework were manipulated in a 2 × 10
completely crossed factorial design and were asked to rate their attention, comprehension, retention,
attitudes and purchase motivation about these advertisements. Results suggest that cognitive message
strategy along with comparison as execution framework is the most effective for young men. Findings
are then discussed.
Keywords
Advertising message strategy, advertising execution framework, information processing, young men
Introduction
The study of consumer information processing has been an important development in communication
research. As creative complexity and artistic expression continue to be the norm in contemporary print
advertising, a further understanding of how consumers process advertisements can only enhance future
advertising efforts (Lapidus 1991). As the marketplace continues to become more competitive with
hundreds, if not thousands, of advertisers competing for the consumers’ attention (Webb and Ray 1979),
marketers must develop a better understanding of the consumer if they are to reach their desired target
audience efficiently and effectively. It is a fact universally acknowledged that matching ad format to a
consumer’s mode of information processing enhances advertising effectiveness. Most print ads utilize
texts and pictures to communicate with consumers. Research has begun to examine how the processing
of these texts and pictures are influenced by its structure (for example, whether it is in narrative format
or presented as a list of attributes; Adaval and Wyer 1998; Escalas 1998). When ad format is compatible
with processing mode, information processability is enhanced, making the message more persuasive and
ad evaluations, brand evaluations and purchase intentions more favourable than when ad format and
processing mode are incompatible. It is a matter of study for the academicians to find out the most effective advertising strategy for the segmented target markets. In considering the many and varied effects of
advertising, a very central issue is how the information in an ad is processed, that is, how people understand and remember what an ad said.
Tuhin Chattopadhyay is Assistant Professor at Galgotias Business School, Greater Noida, India. E-mail:
[email protected], [email protected]
India Quarterly, 66, 2 (2010): 133–149
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
450
Tuhin Chattopadhyay
The consumer is constantly being bombarded with information which is potentially relevant for making choices.
The consumer’s reaction to that information, how that information is interpreted, and how it is combined or
integrated with other information may have crucial impacts on choice. Hence, decisions on what information
to provide to consumers, how much to provide, and how to provide that information require knowledge of how
consumers process, interpret and integrate that information in making choices. (Bettman 1979)
The way in which information is received, processed and recalled by the human mind is necessary to
know if advertising is to be efficiently devised and created to elicit the highest possible effect. Information
processing models generally gain their power when they are applied to make predictions regarding what
types of information will and will not be recalled.
In an attempt to understand consumer choice in advertising, the approach taken is to focus on the
information used by consumers and how that information is processed. ‘A clearer understanding of the
stages of the processes involved in responding to advertisements would certainly have practical as well
as theoretical importance’ (Harris 1983).
The basic approach to studying choice in advertising is to view the consumer as a processor of information; that is, the consumer is characterized as interacting with his or her choice of environment, seeking and taking in information from various sources, processing this information and then making a
selection from among some alternatives. The purpose is to provide an integrated view of choice from an
information processing perspective.
Since the right message strategy and the right execution framework will be different for different target audiences, the present research has taken into consideration the young men and tries to explore the
right combination of message strategy and execution framework which will be the most effective for
each of them. The present study on information processing has been carried out by treating print advertisements as information sources and young men as information processors.
Objective
This study is designed to extend knowledge of cognitive processing of advertising messages by young
men in India. The objective of the research is to give the advertising industry a definite guideline while
targeting the young men. The research tries to bring forward the most effective combination of message
strategy and execution framework for the young men. The specific objectives of the research are as
follows:
1. To find whether advertisement elements like message strategy and execution framework influence
processing and understanding of advertising messages by young men.
2. To explore the most appropriate strategies for creating print advertisements in terms of message
strategy and execution framework while targeting towards the young men of India.
Literature Review and Theoretical Framework
The understanding of how the mind processes and stores information is invaluable to advertisers as they
plan for message strategy and execution framework in advertisements. If there is little to no understanding
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
The Information Processing of Advertisements by Urban Young Men of India
451
of the information processing skills of the consumers with whom one is working, it would be almost
impossible to design advertisements that contribute to high levels of effectiveness. However, attempting
to understand the myriad theories of information processing and cognitive development can be overwhelming and contradictory. There are means of structuring advertisements, though that can incorporate
the best of all of these ideas, and in order to help consumers process the information from the advertisements in the right way, advertisers must draw from all these theories.
Message Strategy
Advertising message strategy is a well-researched topic in both the academic as well as practitioners
community. Ray (1982) classifies commercials by ‘format’, for example, warmth, testimony, refutation,
repetition and fear. Aaker and Myers (1987) used the term ‘message factors’. Rothschild (1987) refers to
classes of creative appeal (rational versus emotional) and execution style (slice of life, product comparison,
problem/solution, music, sex and humour). Belch and Belch (1990) used the term ‘Appeals’ (rational,
emotional and combinations) and ‘Execution Styles’ (factual message, scientific/technical evidence,
demonstration, comparison, testimonial, slice of life, animation, personality symbol, fantasy, dramatization, humour and combinations).
Information Processing
The quantity and quality of information retained by an individual depend largely on the perceptual and
cognitive operations employed at the time of encoding (Benton et al. 1983). In terms of historicity, it is
now common knowledge that consumers seek and use information to assist them in decision processes
in order to maximize utility, reduce levels of risk or solve problems. In the nineteenth century, economists
such as Alfred Marshall started to employ the concept of economic utility as a means to describe how
people used information when they made judgements about available choices. As early as 1910, John
Dewey had published the five stages in problem-solving activity, still commonly used by marketers to
define the information requirements of promotional efforts towards customer segments: problem recognition, search, evaluation, purchase decision, post-purchase evaluation (see Runyon and Stewart
1987). Cognitive psychologists hold that the consumers seek and use information to assist them in decision processes in order to maximize utility, reduce levels of risk or solve problems. In 1960, McGuire
suggested that the impact of persuasive communications could be understood in terms of three information
processing phases: (i) attention to the message, (ii) comprehension of its contents and (iii) acceptance of
its conclusions. McGuire further extended the model into six steps which are as follows:
1. Presentation: The message recipient must first be presented with the persuasive message.
2. Attention: The recipient must pay attention to the message in order for it to produce attitude
change.
3. Comprehension: The overall position the message advocates and the arguments provided to support the position must be comprehended.
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
452
Tuhin Chattopadhyay
4. Yielding: The recipient must yield to, or agree with, the message content that has been comprehended
if any attitude change is to be detectable.
5. Retention: The recipient must retain, or store in memory, his changed attitude if this change is to
persist over a period of time.
6. Behaviour: The recipient must behave on the basis of his changed mind.
McGuire’s six steps give a good overview of the attitude change process, reminding us that it involves
a number of components. Meanwhile, the literature concerning the importance of information processing
in marketing has not remained static. In 2000, LeDoux and Damasio in the book, Descartes’ Error, proposed that emotions cause attention to shift towards the stimulus that causes an emotion, as a result of
the limbic system’s autonomic reaction. In 2005, Erik du Plessis proposed that the emotional and rational
are not two conflicting things in the brain, but work together towards the survival of the organism:
emotions direct attention, so that the organism recognizes things it should avoid or approach.
Towards a Research Method: Drawing to a Conclusion
There are a huge number of variables involved in information processing, ranging from cultural variables
to specific experiences, to memory recall, to personality traits, to motivations and attitudes, to mental
capacity, to situation-specific criteria, and so on. It is therefore a complex task to model or codify the way
the mind processes information when it constructs understanding and a sense of meaning. The complexities
of elements within this subject, however, also encourage recognition of the value of inductive modes of
investigation when it comes to interpreting the deviations and departures in the character of processing
mechanisms and the way these may be interpreted and modelled. While most of the researchers try to
find out how consumers process information by developing models and theories, little attempt was made
to find out the cognitive style of different segments differentiated by sex and age.
Hypotheses
The initial encoding of the message by the advertiser is an area of research which might possibly receive
the least amount of attention. Researchers have concentrated on information processing and associated
behavioural response, but have seemingly bypassed the structure (message strategy and execution framework) of the advertising stimulus. The hypotheses have been framed to bridge the existing gap in the
previous research. In order to fulfil the proposed object, an experimental design was prepared, with two
between subject factors to be controlled: message strategy and execution framework. The message strategy was divided into two treatments: cognitive or rational advertisements, and affective or emotional
advertisements. The execution framework was divided into 10 levels: animation, slice of life, testimonial,
demonstration, fantasy, informative, scientific/technical evidence, comparison, personality symbol and
dramatization. The independent variables and their levels have been selected keeping in mind the seminal
works of the academicians (Belch and Belch 1990) on advertising format. As for the dependent variables,
the five dependent variables have been identified in line with McGuire’s Information Processing Theory.
They are ability to gain attention, message comprehension, retention of the advertisement, attitude
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
The Information Processing of Advertisements by Urban Young Men of India
453
towards the advertisement and purchase motivation of the consumers by watching the advertisement.
The hypotheses are as follows:
H1: The vectors of means (centroid) of young men’s attention, message comprehension, attitude,
retention and purchase motivation remain the same across different levels of message strategies
and execution framework.
Historically, following a significant MANOVA with ANOVAs on each of the p variables was
one of the first methods recommended for interpreting group differences (Cramer and Bock
1966). Once a significant interaction effect has been found, the next step is to investigate the
specific differences between groups. As in ANOVA, this involves determining which groups are
responsible for significant omnibus test. In addition, the follow-up analyses are used to evaluate
which variables are important for group separation.
H2: The mean level of young men’s attention towards advertisements remains the same for all combinations of message strategies and execution framework.
H3: The mean level of young men’s comprehension of the advertisements remains the same for all
combinations of message strategies and execution framework.
H4: The mean level of young men’s retention of the advertisements remains the same for all combinations of message strategies and execution framework.
H5: The mean level of young men’s attitude towards advertisements remains the same for all combinations of message strategies and execution framework.
H6: The mean level of young men’s purchase motivation remains the same for all combinations of
message strategies and execution framework.
Methodological Framework
Advertisement Treatment Selection
The 2 × 10 experimental design described requires the control of 20 different experimental treatments.
Therefore, 20 different print ads need to be selected to show the members of the sample. The researcher
took almost all print media advertisements (300) targeted towards young men published in India from
2005–07 by the 15 leading advertising agencies of India and for all practical purposes, the collection was
considered to be exhaustive. A panel of eight judges viewed over 300 advertisements to select 20 advertisements. The entire selection was done through Quick-sort procedure to maintain objectivity in the
research. Following the procedures adopted by Childers and Houston, several pre-tests were then conducted to arrive at a final set of stimuli to be used in the study. The 20 advertisements for young men
represented all permutations of two types of message strategy (cognitive message strategy and affective
message strategy) and 10 types of execution framework (animation, slice of life, testimonial, demonstration, fantasy, informative, scientific/technical evidence, comparison, personality symbol, dramatization).
Cognitive was defined as ‘appealing to the “rationality” of the receiver’ and affective was defined as
creating a mood and appealing to the emotions. The advertisements were ‘strong’ representations of both
types of appeals. All advertisements were familiar products or brands that might conceivably be purchased
by the subjects.
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
454
Tuhin Chattopadhyay
Subjects and Design
A total of 400 young men in the age group of 20–35 years were chosen through area sampling from all
over India. The sample was spread out among four different geographic areas in India: southern area
(city of Kozhikode), western area (city of Ahmedabad), eastern area (city of Kolkata) and northern area
(city of Delhi). The sample was taken from the eastern, western, northern and southern India to ensure
representation of people from different culture and value system, so that any regional prejudice against
any advertisement can be ruled out. The sample was equally divided among the four cities (100 individuals
in each city).
The 400 young men were shown the 20 advertisements with different combinations of the two types
of message strategy and 10 types of execution framework. Questionnaires were also provided to them
while watching the advertisements. The five dependent variables of the research, namely attention, comprehension, attitude, retention and purchase motivation, are measured on a five-point semantic differential scale for each of the 20 advertisements which represent the 20 combinations of message strategy
and execution framework. A random ordering of 20 advertisements were assigned to the 400 young men
in a 2 × 10 factorial design of message strategy (cognitive message strategy and affective message strategy) and execution framework (animation, slice of life, testimonial, demonstration, fantasy, informative,
scientific/ technical evidence, comparison, personality symbol, dramatization).
Measurement of Dependent Variables
As for the dependent variables, attention paid to the ad was measured by asking the respondent to
indicate to what extent his attention was attracted by the ad shown on a five-point semantic differential
scale (1: not attracted, 5: highly attracted).
The approach to the measurement of comprehension comprises asking consumers how much subjective comprehension occurred. David Mick (1992) has argued that the deeper the level of such subjective comprehension, the more effective the ad will be in credibility, in being liked, in persuasion and
to recall.
Retention for advertisements was measured with ad recognition. Participants were shown the test
advertisement they read and asked if they had seen the advertisement in that issue of the magazine. Ad
recognition was used because previous studies show that this measure results in a significantly higher
correct claim of remembrance of the ad than do recall measures that make use of verbal instead of visual
cues. This result was especially found for magazine advertisements compared with television commercials
(DuPlessis 2001; Smit 1999; Zielske 1982). If people indicated that they had seen the advertisement, a
control question was posed that measured if the respondent had seen the ad in another magazine as well
to rule out the effect of pre-existing ad familiarity.
Attitude towards the ad was measured by asking the respondents to evaluate the message they had
been exposed to using four items measured on a five-point semantic differential scale: bad–good,
dislike–like, irritating–not irritating and uninteresting–interesting.
To measure the purchase intention, the consumers were asked to a imagine a situation in which they
needed to buy that category of product right then and to indicate what the probability would be that they
bought the brand they had seen advertised, using a single five-point semantic differential scale (1: not at
all likely to buy, 5: very likely to buy).
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
The Information Processing of Advertisements by Urban Young Men of India
455
Results
Reliability for scales with multiple items ranged from 0.84 to 0.93. The name of the advertised brand did
not affect any of the measures (all p’s > 0.27), so analyses were performed on aggregated data. Familiarity
and involvement with the category and the perceived importance of product attributes did not differ
across advertisements (all p’s > 0.10).
To investigate the predicted interaction between message strategy and execution framework on the
young men’s attention, message comprehension, attitude, retention and purchase motivation 2 (message
strategy) × 10 (execution framework), MANOVA was used. There was a significant interaction between
message strategy and execution framework (Wilks’ lambda = 0.89, F [45, 3.568E4] = 19.12, p < 0.01).
Thus, the result refutes hypothesis 1 and provides sufficient statistical evidence that the differences in
young men’s attention, comprehension, retention, attitude and purchase motivation between cognitive
message strategies and affective message strategies depend on the execution frameworks, or the differences among execution frameworks vary with message strategies with respect to young men’s attention,
comprehension, retention, attitude and purchase motivation. A complete summary of MANOVA results
can be found in Table 1.
Table 1. Multivariate Tests
Effect
Value
F
Hypothesis df
Error df
Sig.
MessStrat ∗ ExeFrame Pillai’s Trace
Wilks’ Lambda
Hotelling’s Trace
Roy’s Largest Root
0.105
0.899
0.108
0.052
18.986
19.122
19.213
45.938
45.000
45.000
45.000
9.000
3.990E4
3.568E4
3.987E4
7.980E3
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
Source: Author’s own.
ANOVA was used to analyze the second hypothesis considering attention of the young men towards
the advertisement as the dependent measure. The interaction effect between message strategy and execution framework (F [9, 7980] = 16.227, p < 0.01), was found to be significant. Thus, the result refutes
hypothesis 2 and provides sufficient statistical evidence that the mean level of young men’s attention
towards advertisements are different for different combinations of message strategies and execution
framework. A summary of the interaction effect of ANOVA with attention of the young men as dependent
measure can be found in Table 2. A significant interaction between message strategy and execution
framework has also been illustrated in Figure 1 which shows how the young men’s attention gets increased from affective message strategy to cognitive message strategy for each level of execution framework and it is the highest for comparative ads (M = 4.54) when the message strategy is cognitive.
To test the third hypothesis also, ANOVA was used, considering comprehension of the advertisement
by the young men as the dependent measure. The interaction effect between message strategy and
Table 2. Dependent Variable: Attention of the Young Men towards the Advertisement
Source
MessStrat ∗ ExeFrame
Error
Type III Sum of Squares
123.343
6739.553
df
9
7980
Mean Square
13.705
0.845
F
16.227
Sig.
0.000
Source: Author’s own.
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
456
Tuhin Chattopadhyay
Figure 1. Message Strategy by Execution Framework on Young Men’s Attention towards Advertisement
Source: Author’s own.
execution framework (F[9, 7980] = 29.913 p < 0.01) was found to be significant. Thus, the result refutes
hypothesis 3 and provides sufficient statistical evidence that the mean level of young men’s comprehension
of the advertisements are different for different combinations of message strategies and execution frameworks. A summary of the interaction effect of ANOVA results with young men’s comprehension of the
advertisements as the dependent measure can be found in Table 3. A significant interaction between message strategy and execution framework has also been illustrated in Figure 2 which shows how the young
men’s comprehension gets increased from affective message strategy to cognitive message strategy for
each level of execution framework and it is the highest for comparative ads (M = 4.48) when the message
strategy is cognitive.
ANOVA was used to analyze the fourth hypothesis considering retention of the advertisement in
memory as the dependent measure. The interaction effect between message strategy and execution
framework (F [9, 7980] = 12.13, p < 0.01) was found to be significant. Thus, the result refutes hypothesis 4 and provides sufficient statistical evidence that the mean level of young men’s retention of the
advertisements are different for different combinations of message strategies and execution frameworks. A summary of the interaction effect of ANOVA results with retention of the advertisement as the
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
The Information Processing of Advertisements by Urban Young Men of India
457
Table 3. Dependent Variable: Comprehension of the Advertisement by the Young Men
Source
MessStrat ∗ ExeFrame
Error
Type III Sum of Squares
137.124
4064.537
df
Mean Square
F
Sig.
9
7980
15.236
0.509
29.913
0.000
Source: Author’s own.
Figure 2. Message Strategy by Execution Framework on Young Men’s Comprehension of the Advertisement
Source: Author’s own.
dependent measure can be found in Table 4. A significant interaction between message strategy and
execution framework has also been illustrated in Figure 3 which shows how the young men’s retention
gets increased from affective message strategy to cognitive message strategy for each level of execution
framework and it is the highest for comparative ads (M = 4.44) when the message strategy is cognitive.
To test the fifth hypothesis also, ANOVA was used, considering attitude towards the advertisement by
the young men as the dependent measure. The interaction effect between message strategy and execution
framework (F [9, 7980] = 22.57, p < 0.01) was found to be significant. Thus, the result refutes hypothesis 5 and provides sufficient statistical evidence that the mean level of young men’s attitude towards the
advertisements are different for different combinations of message strategies and execution frameworks.
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
458
Tuhin Chattopadhyay
Table 4. Dependent Variable: Retention of the Advertisement in Memory
Source
MessStrat ∗ ExeFrame
Error
Type III Sum of Squares
df
Mean Square
F
Sig.
102.821
7517.572
9
7980
11.425
0.942
12.127
0.000
Source: Author’s own.
Figure 3. Message Strategy by Execution Framework on Young Men’s Retention of the Advertisement
Source: Author’s own.
A summary of the interaction effect of ANOVA results with attitude towards the advertisement as the
dependent measure can be found in Table 5. A significant interaction between message strategy and
execution framework has also been illustrated in Figure 4 which shows how the young men’s attitude
gets increased from affective message strategy to cognitive message strategy for each level of execution
framework and it is the highest for comparative ads (M = 4.64) when the message strategy is cognitive.
A similar analysis was also conducted using purchase motivation as the dependent measure to test the
sixth hypothesis. Again, the interaction effect between message strategy and execution framework
(F[9, 7980] = 11.9, p < 0.01) was found to be significant. Thus, the result refutes hypothesis 6 and provides sufficient statistical evidence that the mean level of young men’s purchase motivation on watching
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
The Information Processing of Advertisements by Urban Young Men of India
459
Table 5. Dependent Variable: Attitude of the Young Men towards the Advertisement
Source
MessStrat * ExeFrame
Error
Type III Sum of Squares
112.778
4431.345
df
Mean Square
F
Sig.
9
7980
12.531
0.555
22.566
0.000
Source: Author’s own.
Figure 4. Message Strategy by Execution Framework on Young Men’s Attitude towards the Advertisement
Source: Author’s own.
the advertisements are different for different combinations of message strategies and execution frameworks. A summary of the interaction effect of ANOVA results with purchase motivation as the dependent measure can be found in Table 6. A significant interaction between message strategy and execution
framework has also been illustrated in Figure 5 which shows how the young men’s purchase motivation
gets increased from affective message strategy to cognitive message strategy for each level of execution
framework and it is the highest for comparative ads (M = 4.53) when the message strategy is cognitive.
Ordinal interactions are evident in all the five interaction effects as the effects of execution framework are not equal across two levels of message strategies, but the magnitudes are always in the same
direction.
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
460
Tuhin Chattopadhyay
Table 6. Dependent Variable: Purchase Motivation of the Young Men
Source
MessStrat * ExeFrame
Error
Type III Sum of Squares
71.773
5349.837
df
9
7980
Mean Square
7.975
0.670
F
Sig.
11.895
0.000
Source: Author’s own.
Figure 5. Message Strategy by Execution Framework on Young Men’s Purchase Motivation from the
Advertisement
Source: Author’s own.
Conclusions and Managerial Implications
From the present research, it can be inferred that advertisement elements like message strategy and
execution framework influence processing of advertising messages by young men of India. On testing
the first hypothesis, it has been found that the young men’s attention, message comprehension, attitude,
retention and purchase motivation are different across different levels of message strategies and execution
frameworks. The testing of the second hypothesis revealed that the mean levels of young men’s attention
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
The Information Processing of Advertisements by Urban Young Men of India
461
towards advertisements are different for different combinations of message strategies and execution
framework, and the attention is the highest for advertisements with cognitive message strategy and comparison execution framework. The testing of the third hypothesis revealed that the mean levels of young
men’s comprehension of the advertisements are different for different combinations of message strategies and execution framework, and the comprehension is best for advertisements with cognitive message strategy and comparison execution framework. The testing of the fourth hypothesis revealed that
the mean levels of young men’s retention of the advertisements are different for different combinations
of message strategies and execution frameworks, and the retention is best for advertisements with cognitive message strategy and comparison execution framework. The testing of the fifth hypothesis revealed
that the mean levels of young men’s attitude towards the advertisements are different for different combinations of message strategies and execution frameworks, and the mean of attitude is highest for
advertisements with cognitive message strategy and comparison execution framework. The testing of the
sixth hypothesis revealed that the mean levels of young men’s purchase motivation towards the advertisements are different for different combinations of message strategies and execution frameworks, and the
purchase motivation is highest for advertisements with cognitive message strategy and comparison
execution framework. Since it has been found that for all the dependent measures of attention, comprehension, retention, attitude and purchase motivation, the mean level is the highest when the advertisement comprises cognitive message strategy and comparative execution framework, it can be inferred that
advertisements with cognitive message strategy and comparative execution frameworks are the most
effective for young men in India.
Creating and producing effective advertising is one of the main aims pursued by publicists and advertising agencies, as well as being one of the major worries. In this task, both groups constantly search for
new advertising strategies that will help get their message across the public as effectively as possible.
The present research gives a guideline to the practitioners to use rational ads with comparative execution
framework while targeting the young urban men of India.
Limitations and Directions for Future Research
The premise of the study was examining how message strategy and execution framework influence the
processing of advertisements. Since the choice of the message contents were taken from the existing
advertisements, prior exposure and familiarity with the ads among the respondents would affect their
recall, comprehension, and so on. Thus, the effect of non-random prior exposure and differential prior
exposure among various respondents which has not been considered in the present article is one of the
limitations. As dependent measures, attention, comprehension, retention, attitude and purchase motivation
were used to determine an ad’s effectiveness. Other measures of effectiveness, especially the sales, warrant further research. Further levels of message strategy and execution framework may also be incorporated in future studies. Additionally, other significant advertisement components (that is, colours used
in the advertisement, location or placement of the advertisement in the newspaper or magazine, size of
the advertisement) need further looking into. Further objectivity can be brought into future research by
measuring the cognitive functions of consumers through brain scanning devices like fMRI, EEG and
MEG while they watch the advertisements. The problem of the subjective measure used in the present
study is that consumer is not capable of exactly expressing how long the ad attracted his attention, which
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016
462
Tuhin Chattopadhyay
means that the measurement’s validity is not totally adequate (Pechmann and Stewart 1990a). The future
academic researcher may use eye camera and pupilometer for objective measurements of attention.
Another improvement of the present research can be done by pursuing further research on industryspecific advertisements which could yield sector-specific results. Last but not the least, besides gender
and age, other parameters could also be employed as per the segmentation variable of that particular
product or service.
References
Adaval, Rashmi and Robert S. Wyer. 1998. ‘The role of narratives in consumer information processing’, Journal of
Consumer Psychology, 7(3): 207–45.
Aaker, D.A. and J.G. Myers. 1987. Advertising Management. Prentice-Hall.
Belch, G.E. and M.A. Belch. 1990. Introduction to Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Perspective. Chicago, IL: Richard D. Irwin.
Benton, S.L., J.A. Glover and R.H. Bruning. 1983. Levels of processing: Effect of number of decisions on prose
recall. Journal of Education Psychology, 3: 382–90.
Bettman, J.R. 1979. ‘An information processing theory of consumer choice’, Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley
Pub. Co.
Cramer, E.M. and R.D. Bock. 1966. Multivariate analysis. Review of Educational Research, 36: 604–17.
Dewey, J. 1910. How We Think. Boston: DC Heath & CO.
DuPlessis, E. 2001. Reclame en ons brein [advertising and our brains]. Alphenn aan den Rijn, The Netherlands:
Samson.
Escalas, J.E. 1998. Advertising narratives: What are they and how do they work? Representing Consumers: Voices,
Views, and Visions (pp. 267–89). New York: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Harris, R.J. 1983. Information-Processing Research in Advertising. Hillsdale NJ: Erlbaum.
Lapidus, R.S. 1991. Visual Information Processing of Print Advertising: Cognitive and Experiential Response to
Artistic Style. ETD collection for University of Nebraska: Lincoln. Paper AAI9200144.
Mick, David Glen. 1992. ‘Levels of subjective comprehension in advertising processing and their relations to ad
perceptions, attitudes, and memory’, Journal of Consumer Research, 18(4): 411–24.
Ray, M. 1982. Advertising and Communications Management. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Rothschild, M.L. 1987. Advertising: From Fundamentals to Strategies. Lexington, MA: Heath.
Runyon, K.E. and D.W. Stewart. 1987. Consumer Behavior and the Practice of Marketing. USA: Merrill Pub. Co.
Columbus.
Smit, E.G. 1999. Mass Media Advertising: Information or Wallpaper. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Spinhuis.
Webb, P. and M. Ray. 1979. Effects of TV Clutter. Journal of Advertising Research, 19: 7–12.
Zielske, H.A. 1982. ‘Does day-after recall penalize “feeling” ads?’, Journal of Advertising Research, 22 (February/
March): 19–23.
Global Business Review, 11, 3 (2010): 449–462
Downloaded from gbr.sagepub.com at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on March 5, 2016