Adesegun Oyedele

Consumer Culture Plots in Television Advertising from Nigeria and South Africa

The goal of this study is to respond to Taylors recognition of the dearth of cross-national advertising and globalization studies in emerging markets. To fill this theoretical gap in the literature, we employ semiology to evaluate the plots and stories used in promoting global consumer culture in television advertisements from the two major economic powers in sub-Saharan Africa: Nigeria and South Africa. Unlike previous cross-national advertising and globalization studies that suggest that advertising is a reflection of cultural and global consumerism values, our findings suggest that advertisements reflect a romanticized view of middle-ground politics promoted by political establishments both at the national and the international level. We also found that the reflection of middle-ground politics in advertisements may be more prevalent in countries undergoing major ideological change.

Signals of global advertising appeals in emerging markets

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate advertising appeals and cultural values in television advertisements from newly emerging markets. Specifically, the paper hypothesizes that the advertising appeals in the advertisements of sub‐Saharan African (SSA) emerging consumer markets (ECMs) with higher level of economic development (South Africa) will reflect more hedonic appeals than the ones from SSA ECMs with a lower level of economic development (Ghana). The paper also developes hypotheses in relations to Munene, Schwartz, and Smiths cultural value framework in SSA.Design/methodology/approach – The research approach used in this paper, entails a combination of qualitative and empirical content analysis of 505 unduplicated advertisements from Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa. Content analysis technique is appropriate if the paper is focused on testing how environmental trends (e.g. cultural values, economic situations, etc.) impact the content of sampled advertisements from different regions...

Customer typology: 3D virtual world

Purpose – The goal of this paper is to develop a customer typology for 3D virtual world by grouping similar Second Life (SL) virtual world users into homogeneous groups.Design/methodology/approach – The research method entails the empirical analysis of 176 survey respondents. The evaluation of the data was done using cluster analysis technique. The use of cluster analysis is appropriate for developing marketplace typology.Findings – The outcome of the study reveals the presence of three distinct customer clusters in SL virtual world: virtualskeptics, evirtualist, and virtualcentrist. Overall, the three distinct customer clusters differ on individual flow state and individual attitude toward SL.Research limitations/implications – Marketers can implement specific marketing strategies/tactics that take into consideration the similarities and differences among the members of the three groups identified in the analysis.Originality/value – The study reveals the existence of unique customer use behavior in the 3...

The coproduction construct and the decision to coproduce: managerial implications in the service context

The purpose of this study is to explicate a comprehensive framework of consumer coproduction behaviour based on the principles of buyer behaviour and consumer behaviour theories. A comprehensive review of the coproduction literature both from inside and outside the marketing discipline was conducted with specific reference to studies relating to the private and the public value aspects of consumer coproduction behaviour. The literature review is combined with relevant aspects of the buyer behaviour and the consumer behaviour theories in developing a comprehensive framework of consumer coproduction behaviour. This study contributes to the literature by: 1 developing a definition of coproduction that recognises two non-firm categories of derived benefit or value from coproduction activities – individual derived value or public derived value 2 explicating a comprehensive framework of the coproduction decision process.

Consumer Readings of Green Appeals in Advertisements

This study evaluates consumers’ interpretation of green advertisements. The overarching theme that surfaced from the findings was that of “convenience.” The themes brought out by respondents of “not compromising your lifestyle,” a “simple-fix,” and a “collective participation/minor changes” all reiterated the theme of convenience. This suggests that the environmental initiatives of many companies/brands are focusing on minor green activities rather than sustainable activities. Additionally, all advertisements alluded to anthropocentric considerations, a human-centered system of values that regards nature as subject to the demands of human-utility, as opposed to ecocentric considerations that provide a non-contingent basis for protecting the natural world.

Emerging adulthood, sharing utilities and intention to use sharing services

This study aims to test Lamberton and Rose’s (2012) commercial sharing utility model of access-based consumption use in three different contexts: car-sharing, room-sharing and household goods purchases. More importantly, this research extends the model by examining the effects of emerging adulthood as a life-stage on perceived value of social applications that facilitate and promote transaction utility, called shareaids.,A questionnaire designed to evaluate the effects of emerging adulthood and sharing utilities on intention to use sharing services was developed and administered to 345 respondents at a Midwestern US university. The data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling.,Results indicate that flexibility utility had the strongest direct impact on intention to use sharing consumption while also having indirect effects in all contexts examined. The emerging adulthood life-stage was found to affect transaction utility and shareaids as predicted, and shareaids positively influenced consumers’ perception of the social utility value of access-based consumption.,The generalizability of this study is limited by its use of a student sample. Also, the study suffers from inherent limitations linked to self-reported survey research.,Sharing services that have a strong social component could use shareaids to gain a competitive advantage. Examples of shareaid application include split bills for multiple payments to split fares among friends and social media transaction tools. Shareaid applications can enhance consumers’ perception of social value and the overall shareability value of the sharing service.,This is the first known study to test the effects of emerging adulthood as a life-stage on perceived value of social applications that facilitate and promote transaction utility, called shareaids.

Effect of intergroup-based emotions on attitude towards cross-ethnic products

Purpose While researchers have argued that multicultural marketplaces are conceptually different from other types of marketplaces, the marketing literature has only recently begun to develop multicultural perspective studies, and very little research has been done to examine intergroup complexities in consumption contexts (Demangeot et al., 2015). The purpose of this study is to fill this research gap by developing and empirically testing a research model to examine the effects of socio-political constructs and intergroup-based emotional variables on consumer decisions to consume cross-ethnic products. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire designed to assess the effects of socio-political constructs and intergroup-based emotional variables on consumer decisions to consume cross-ethnic products was developed and administered to 294 students at a Midwestern US university. The data were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) techniques. Findings Results indicate that all path coefficients are significant. Social dominance, intergroup anxiety and intergroup experience were found to be important predictors of intergroup tolerance and, importantly, intergroup tolerance was found to significantly affect consumer attitude toward cross-ethnic products. Research limitations/implications In terms of limitations and future research implications, this research suffers from inherent limitations associated with self-reported survey research in a limited geographic region. Accordingly, study respondents may not be representative of consumers across the nation or the world, the respondents may not have understood the questions in the intended manner, and reported intentions may not reflect actual behaviour. This study was conducted among college students, but other target segments may have different intergroup experiences and perceptions of ethnic products. Practical implications Findings from this research suggest that firms offering ethnic products can increase crossover consumption appeal by implementing marketing communication programmes that integrate cultural forums and event tactics to promote positive intergroup experiences and tolerance among their multicultural customers. Social implications Regarding policy implications, public policymakers and social thinkers may use the findings of this study as a prism to better explicate intercultural dealings among multicultural consumers. The contention of this study about public policy implications is supported by Neal et al.’s (2013) perspectives on how consumption situations can serve as a lens for explicating intergroup emotions in multicultural marketplaces. Originality/value This is one of only a few studies in marketing to assess the effects of socio-political constructs in a consumption context. This is the first known study to underscore the importance of intranational ethnic differences and assess the effects of socio-political and intergroup-based emotional variables on attitude to consume ethnic products, specifically.

Consumer Culture and Political Ideology Plots in Social Media Campaigns

ABSTRACT A number of studies are devoted to explicating global consumer culture and political ideology plots in traditional advertising. Nevertheless, studies of these plots in social media campaigns are scarce. In order to fill this gap, our study examines consumer culture and political ideology plots utilized by global brands in social media advertisements targeted to US Millennials. Employing semiotic analysis, a series of advertisements from automotive, food and beverage, electronics, personal care products, fast food, athletics and financial sectors were evaluated and interpreted. Our findings uncovered one unique main plot labeled “identity-of-self” and three subplots: 1) successful and young living, 2) Peter Pan syndrome, and 3) purposeful connectedness. Implications for practice and directions for future work are suggested.

Institutional interactions and foreign firms’ strategies under tribal rule complexities in emerging markets

Purpose International marketing (IM) researchers have underscored the need for scholars to develop more studies to investigate institutional interactions (II) and sources of complexities in emerging markets (EMs). In response to these calls, the purpose of this paper is to propose a framework that classifies the dominant conditions firms are likely to confront as they enter EMs. Further, using exploratory data, the study evaluates potential strategies that foreign firms can follow when they encounter one of the most challenging condition (tribal rule (TR)) identified in the framework. The primary research question explored is: what strategies do foreign firms adopt to succeed under conditions of TR in EMs? Design/methodology/approach The methodology is exploratory qualitative research. The authors conducted extended interviews to produce rich case study data from CEOs and executives who have experience doing business in countries with strong TR conditions, such as Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. The interview data/transcripts were evaluated using open, axial, and selective coding (Strauss and Corbin, 1998) to discover macro-narratives that guide entry strategies in EMs. Findings Overall, foreign firms successful strategies under TR conditions revolve around knowledge of tribal networks, understanding of their common interests, co-creation of commonality of interests and goals and internal assimilation of tribal leaders. Based on the findings, the authors argue strategies emphasizing co-creation of commonality of interest and goals and absorption of political risk environment perspective will outperform traditional standardization and relational trust approaches. Practical implications The findings from the study provided preliminary insights about relevant managerial strategic choices under conditions of tribal complexities. Originality/value This study is the first known study to expand the recent IM debate on II and sources of complexities to TR context. The recognition of a co-creation of commonality of interest dimension is an important contribution. The strategy of co-creation of commonality of interests is unique to this study.

Investigating the Malinchism-Nationalism Paradox in Hispanic TV Advertising: An Abstract

We explore the coexistence of the malinchism-nationalism paradox within the TV advertising context. Generally, the malinchista concept refers to those who engage in anti-nationalist acts. The stereotype originates from La Malinche, a Mexican-Indian interpreter, to the Spaniard conqueror Hernan Cortes, whose preference for and support given to the conquerors in significant events during the conquest of Mexico (circa 1500) secured them the victory. Within the marketing arena, a malinchista is defined as a consumer exhibiting preference for imported products. We propose the use of malinchism instead of cosmopolitanism, considering that malinchism is embedded in a historical perspective, in a similar fashion than the nationalism construct.