Role of Message Appeal and Regulatory Focus in the Effects of Visual Perspective on Reactions toward Advertisements

Objectives: This research is designed to extend our understanding of the effects of visual perspective on advertising by incorporating verbal element in an ad and consumer characteristic. Methods/Statistical Analysis: Visual perspective, message appeal, and regulatory focus were employed as independent variables. As an experimental material four black and white print ads which were differed in visual perspective of images in an ad (first-person, third-person) x message appeal (private use, public use) were created. Regulatory focus was manipulated by making participants complete life survey. Findings: Extant research has suggested that visual perspective plays a prominent role in consumer persuasion. However, not much research efforts have been given to the role of the perspective of visual image in an advertising context. Firstly, this research demonstrates that perspective of visual image interacts with message appeal. Results showed that when visual image in ad was shown from the third-person (vs. first-person) perspective, the verbal message appeal of public use (vs. private use) revealed more favorable attitudes toward ad and product evaluations. Further, it was found that the participants’ regulatory orientation significantly moderated the interaction effects of visual perspective and message appeal. Hence, the interaction effects of third-person (vs. first-person) perspective and message appeal of public use (vs. private use) were eliminated when the participants’ regulatory focus was promotion-focus (vs. prevention-focus). Improvements/Applications: Practitioners should be cautious when determining the camera angles of ad images and consider the type of message appeal of an ad and the target audiences’ regulatory focus.