The effect of consumer-perceived COVID-19 ad value on health-protective behavior: Mediating role of engagement

Summary, in English

Though the pandemic has passed, social media-based messaging continues to exhibit COVID-19-related cues (e.g., wearing a face mask to stay safe), continuing to foster consumers’ health-protective behavior. However, it remains unclear how social media communications (e.g., advertising) affect such behavior, exposing an important literature-based gap. Addressing this gap, we deploy Ducoffe’s advertising value model to examine how pandemic-related advertisements (e.g., those urging consumers to stay safe, including post-the pandemic) impact their health-protective behavior. We also examine how consumer engagement (CE) mediates these associations. To explore these issues, we collected data from a sample of 301 Gen Z consumers, which was analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). We find that informative, credible, irritating, and obtrusive ads raise consumer engagement and health-protective behavior. Engagement was also found to strengthen these associations, revealing their strategic value. We conclude by outlining important theoretical and practical implications that arise from our analyses.

• Author: Mir Abdur Rafeh; Amir Zaib Abbasi; Linda Hollebeek; Muhammad Asghar Ali; Ding Hooi Ting
• Department/s: Marketing
• Publishing year: 2024
• Language: English
• Publication/Series: Health Marketing Quarterly
• Links: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07359683.2024.2355378
• Document type: Journal article
• Publisher: Routledge
• Topic: Business Administration
• Keywords: Advertising value; consumer engagement; COVID-19; Ducoffe’s advertising model; health-protective behavior
• Status: Epub
• ISBN/ISSN/Other: ISSN: 1545-0864