The impact of advertising appeals on impulse buying

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the varying impact of advertising appeals on customers’ impulse buying (IB) for vice and virtue products.

Design/methodology/approach

This research used two experiments varying humor/scarcity (high/low) and product category (vice versus virtue).

Findings

Humor (scarcity) enhances IB of vice (virtue) products through anticipation of enjoyment (perception of uniqueness).

Research limitations/implications

This research identifies a new antecedent of IB, advertising and additionally, a new moderator, product type (vice/virtue) in the ad appeal–IB relationship.

Practical implications

Practitioners managing vice (virtue) brands may use humor (scarcity) appeals to promote impulse buying.

Originality/value

This paper demonstrates that humor (scarcity) appeals enhance impulse buying of vice (virtue) products and shows the underlying mechanisms behind these effects.

Citation

Deshpande, B., Pradhan, D., Sivakumaran, B. and Lyngdoh, T. (2022), "The impact of advertising appeals on impulse buying", Marketing Intelligence & Planning, Vol. 40 No. 3, pp. 358-371. https://doi.org/10.1108/MIP-11-2021-0390