nan Abhishek

Influence of media context on humorous advertising effectiveness

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the impact of three dimensions of media context – program type, break type, and pod position – on two types of humorous advertisements: incongruity resolution (IR) and arousal safety (AS). The study aims to demonstrate that different humor types are evaluated differently under similar media context elements and a particular humorous advertisement can be evaluated differently under different elements of media context. Design/methodology/approach The hypotheses were tested through two experiments which were planned and conducted as “between-subjects” design. The analysis of collected data were done through ANOVA using IBM SPSS 22. Findings The results indicated that the adverse impact of negative mood (vs positive mood) was greater on IR advertisements as compared to AS advertisements. Similarly, the negative impact of an abrupt break (vs smooth break) was greater on IR advertisements. However, both humor types were effective when placed in positive mood programs and smooth breaks. Practical implications The findings suggest that campaign and media planners need to consider the media context as well as humor types to get better return on their adspend. Results of this study can also be applicable for online medium. Originality/value This is the first study to test the impact of three dimensions of media context on two types of humorous advertisements.

Adoption of sensor based communication for mobile marketing in India

Purpose – This paper aims to explain the applications of sensor-based communication in mobile marketing and how understanding its fast growth is important for marketers. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws from various examples used by companies in India and abroad to explain the phenomenon of sensor-based communication in mobile marketing. Findings – Marketers should be aware of the different ways in which sensor-based communication can be used to build and sustain customer engagement. Practical implications – The different typologies of applications of sensor-based communication, along with examples, will help the marketers to develop similar initiatives for their brands/products. Originality/value – This is the first paper to illustrate, explain and exhort the usage of sensor-based communication in the Indian context.

Shradhanjali.com: New Address for Memories of Our Ancestors

This case is about Vivek Vyas and Vimal Popat who have conceived an idea to start an online obituary advertising platform. It describes the situation faced by Vyas and Popat who face different options for starting an online obituary advertisement platform. The purpose of this case is to provide an opportunity for stepping into the shoes of Vyas and Popat and explore the best possible option for offering an alternate solution to print obituary advertisement. The case provides the context for students to examine alternate options for the print obituary advertisement amidst lack of entrepreneurial experience of Vyas and Popat.

Modelling situational factors in variety seeking behaviour: a conceptual approach

The importance of situational factors in variety seeking behaviour of consumers has been acknowledged in marketing literature. However, this paper is potentially the first to attempt to explicitly model situational factors in variety seeking behaviour. The conceptual model developed demonstrates that the incorporation of situational variables can result in a more comprehensive model to explain variety seeking behaviour. The paper also introduces the Indian retail scenario as a particularly apt context for operationalising the variables of the proposed model. This has implications for several emerging markets where similar retail contexts are present.

Q-Connect: Reaching Rural Customers with Assam Mobile Theatre

Dinesh Sibal, CEO of Q-Connect, was reading mails on his laptop after returning to his hotel room in Guwahati on a warm evening of April 2015. He was in Guwahati for a meeting with the field team in preparation for next season’s plans. One of the mails was from the marketing manager of a leading consumer durables company dealing in kitchen utensils and appliances. The company wanted to use the Q-Connect network to carry out demonstrations and sales of its products for target customers in Assam. Sibal was pleased, as this was the first instance of a consumer durables company reaching out to him for using the Q-Connect network. He wanted to share the good news with his colleague Gulancha Baruah with whom he had built this network.

Realigning Business Strategy to Cater to Customers with Disability (CwD) in the Indian Context

According to the United Nations, more than 500 million people in the world suffer from some form of disability (Despouy, 1988). India also reports high prevalence of disability. The Census data of 2001 revealed that in India there were about 21.9 million (2.13 per cent of the total population) people with disability (PwD), whereas the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) data of 2002 estimated these figures to be 49–90 million. The difference in estimates of Census (2001) and NSSO (2002) for different types of disabilities can be explained by the lack of universal definitions and criteria of disability used during the surveys (Walia, n.d.). As per the latest Census data of 2011, there is a substantial increase of 22.4 per cent in the disabled population of India during the decade, with over 26.8 million (2.21 per cent of the total population) people in the country suffering from one or the other kind of disability (Sivakumar, 2013). These figures at the national level can be considered as mere estimates and the actual disabled population can be much higher than the one mentioned above. One of the reasons for low reported figures can be the stigma attached to disability that prevents many people, especially women and rural disabled, from declaring their disability (Hiranandani & Sonpal, 2010; Jeffery & Singal, 2008). This fear or stigma can be attributed to the way people perceive disability. A disability refers to a physical, sensory or mental limitation that interferes with a person’s ability to move, see, hear or learn (Ministry of Social Affairs National Committee for the Disabled, 2003–2004). A person may be either born disabled or may become so later in life due to an illness or an accident. According to Census 2011, 20.3 per cent of the disabled are locomotor impaired, followed by hearing impaired (18.9 per cent) and visually impaired (18.8 per cent). Nearly, 5.6 per cent of the disabled population suffers from mental impairment, a classification introduced in the 2011 Census (Sivakumar, 2013).