© 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: Based on congruency theory, this study aims to examine the effects of celebrity endorsement on endorser credibility in Japanese over-the-counter (OTC) drug advertising using multiple celebrity categories. In particular, this research explored brand–endorser congruence and endorser–consumer congruence and their roles in attitude formation. Design/methodology/approach: A 3 (endorser categories: actor/actress, athlete and talent/TV personality) × 2 (endorser’s gender) factorial experimental design with 480 Japanese consumers was used in the study. Findings: In Japanese OTC drug advertising, actors/actresses and athletes were regarded as more credible than talents (TV personalities) by Japanese consumers. Endorser categories also had a significant influence on identification with the endorser through ideal self-congruency. Additionally, endorser credibility mediated the relationship between identification and advertising evaluations. However, it did not mediate the relationship between perceived similarity with the endorser and advertising responses. Originality/value: Little is known about the effectiveness of celebrity endorsers in OTC drug advertising from a source credibility perspective. This study attempted to shed light on the role of endorser fit in the framework of source credibility in drug advertising that usually places an emphasis on informational cues rather than peripheral cues such as source effects.

Based on the Elaboration Likelihood Model, the current study investigates information types that are cross-promoted in Japanese pharmaceutical advertising. The results from a quantitative content analysis of OTC drug brands' TV commercials broadcasted in Japan between 2014 and 2015 and their corresponding product websites (n = 150) show that Japanese OTC drug promotions feature more informational cues in the latter
cues such as price, safety, quality, components, and guarantees/warranties are particularly prominent. Furthermore, product websites tend to focus more on rational appeals, whereas TV commercials emphasize emotional appeals. No difference is found between these media types regarding celebrity and noncelebrity endorser usage.

This study attempts to identify the potential determinants of advertising avoidance in the context of personalized advertising media, including unsolicited commercial e-mail, postal direct mail, telemarketing, and text messaging. Using a self-administered survey (n = 442), the proposed model is tested with structural equation modeling analysis. The findings indicate that while ad skepticism partially mediates the relationship between ad avoidance and its three determinants (perceived personalization, privacy concerns, and ad irritation), both privacy concerns and ad irritation have a direct positive effect on ad avoidance. However, increased perceived personalization leads directly to decreased ad avoidance. © 2012 American Academy of Advertising. All rights reserved.

While e-mail remains a popular advertising medium for marketers, consumers' privacy concerns about the medium have become a serious issue. In this study, an online survey examined how two aspects of privacy-perceived intrusiveness and psychological reactance-influenced consumers' attitudes toward unsolicited commercial e-mail and marketing in general. The results indicate that the more intrusive an individual perceives an e-mail, the stronger their reactance will be against it, the more they will avoid it, and the more negative their attitudes toward it. Implications for marketers and academics, as well as suggestions for industry regulations, are also addressed. © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Significant buying power positions Asian Americans as an attractive market for advertisers. However, little is known about this group with respect to advertising responses and even less with respect to in-group differences. In this exploratory study, life-stage is identified as one of the potential factors that may differentially influence important advertising relevant variables for student and working Asian American females. The results of an experiment indicate differences between the two groups in terms of their ethnic media use, ethnic identification, and advertising evaluations. © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

The current study examines some of the cultural influences for Asian Americans on perceived model credibility. Specifically, the effects of racial congruency and ethnic identification are examined between consumers and ad stimuli as well as the role that similarity plays in the process. The findings reveal that model-consumer racial congruency is an important consideration for enhancing source credibility. However, similarity with the model in terms of values and cultural background was found to mediate the relationship. In contrast to other ethnic groups, strength of ethnic identification did not have a significant impact on Asian Americans' perceptions of source credibility. © 2008 Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.

One way of generating revenue from broadband media content rests upon the assumption that multi-media content may trigger a greater intent to buy products and services impulsively. An experiment was performed in order to explore the effects of media formats on the emotions and impulse buying intentions for music compact discs (CDs). Three distinct media formats of World Wide Web pages were set up: (1) the text of the lyrics, (2) still images from the song's music video and (3) the music video itself. Each had a varying degree of visual/verbal intensity while simultaneously playing the soundtrack in all three conditions. The results of this study indicate that displaying the text of the lyrics had a greater effect on the impulse buying intent than showing still images of the music video. In addition, different media formats caused emotional responses that can explain the participant's impulse buying intent to buy the CD. Unexpectedly, the still images and video did not necessarily generate more buying intention than combinations of the text and music. Therefore, it is recommended that electronic commerce and marketing managers explore innovative ways of integrating visual and verbal media formats for eliciting an effective consumer response.