Kenneth E. C lowUnivers i ty o f Lou is iana at Monroe

Karen E . JamesLouis iana State Univers i ty in Shreveport

Sarah E . S i skUnivers i ty o f Lou is iana at Monroe

Source Credibility & Visual Strategy

in Print Advertisements

What is the study about?

Source Credibility the credibility of the endorser, spokesperson, or

individual in an advertisement spokesperson may be actual customer, company

employee, celebrity, or typical person modelExperimental design examines dimensions

Expertise Trustworthiness Attractiveness Similarity Liking

How was the study conducted?

Visual Strategies for comparison Fantasy Emotional Slice-of-Life

Student sample using credit cards as service category

Ethnicity and gender of the model also examined

Why is source credibility important?

Increasingly service-oriented economy in U.S. Advertisers must overcome service characteristics

Intangibility Inseparability Variability Perishability

A consumer’s ability to identify with spokesperson affects: Attitude toward ad Attitude toward brand Advertising effectiveness Purchase intentions

How was visual strategy impact measured?

Eighteen print ads using fictitious brand of credit card company Based on the three visual strategies Three model ethnicities: African-American, Caucasian,

Asian Varied between male and female models

Surveys administered in various classrooms at three different Midwest universities Each student was shown 1 of the 18 ads 560 surveys completed

Gender Ethnicity

Male45%Female

55%

African A.

16%

Caucasian73%

Other11%

Demographic Profile

Classification Age

Fr.8%

So.13%

Jr.32%

Sr.43%

Gr.4%

18-2017%

21-2373%

24-2617%

27+12%

Demographic Profile

Source Credibility by Visual Strategy

Expertise Trust Liking1

2

3

4

5

6

7

3.4

4.94.2

3.3

4.8

4.04.2

5.4

4.4

Fantasy Emotional Slice of Life

Expertise Trust Attractive Similarity Liking1

2

3

4

5

6

7

3.6

4.9

3.5 3.74.1

3.4

4.9

3.4 3.64.0

4.3

5.6

3.9 4.24.6

Fantasy Emotional Slice of Life

Source Credibility: African-American Models

Expertise Trust1

2

3

4

5

6

7

3.5

4.8

3.7

5.1

4.3

5.4

Fantasy Emotional Slice of Life

Source Credibility: Asian Models

Expertise Trust Liking1

2

3

4

5

6

7

3.2

4.94.4

2.9

4.53.94.1

5.3

4.4

Fantasy Emotional Slice of Life

Source Credibility: Caucasian Models

Expertise Trust1

2

3

4

5

6

7

3.5

4.9

3.3

4.74.1

5.2

Fantasy Emotional Slice of Life

Source Credibility: Male Models

Expertise Trust Attractive Similarity Liking1

2

3

4

5

6

7

3.4

4.8

3.7 3.74.2

3.3

4.9

3.7 3.8 4.04.4

5.6

4.1 4.24.6

Fantasy Emotional Slice of Life

Source Credibility: Female Models

So what does all this mean?

When designing service advertisements Both ethnicity and gender of model affect credibility

views Slice-of-life visuals appear to have highest impact

overall Fantasy and Emotional visuals may prove as effective

depending on advertiser’s credibility goalsFuture studies should

Expand beyond college students and credit cards Consider research of goods as well as services Utilize field design rather than experimental design to

increase external validity

Thank you!

~ Please ask questions at this time ~