A study by WSU Marketing Professors David Sprott (l) and Darrel Muehling (r)
shows the use of nostalgia in advertising is an effective way to reach consumers.
The researchers expect nostalgia may play an even greater role in marketing
nationally as America’s 78 million baby-boomers begin to hit 60 years of age.
PULLMAN, Wash. – Whether by positioning their message over the familiar tracks
of 20-year-old pop tunes or invoking by-gone eras in images that mimic old black
and white films, advertisers are increasingly urging America’s consumers to "remember
how good things used to be."
It’s a wistful trend in advertising that seems to be most evident during the
holiday season. It employs a wide range of nostalgia-based messages and creative
techniques to evoke an emotional response from consumers. And while scant data
exists to explain what makes such ads effective, the very fact that the trend
continues suggests it’s a useful weapon in the battle for market share.
"If nostalgic cues in advertising weren’t working, we simply wouldn’t be seeing
them," said Darrel Muehling, professor and chair of the Marketing Department at
the Washington State University College of Business and Economics. "Advertising
that doesn’t produce results simply doesn’t last. But there is surprisingly
little research on the subject of nostalgic advertising in the academic
literature."
To Muehling and his colleague, WSU Marketing Professor David Sprott, the
apparent success of nostalgic themes in advertising raises a number of
intriguing questions about how and why it may influence consumer behavior.
In a recent study, the pair attempted to explore a number of assumptions about
the trend, including whether advertisements are truly effective in prompting "nostalgic
reflections" among consumers; whether such reflective thoughts are generally
positive; and whether they prompt more favorable opinions of brands than ads
lacking in nostalgic references.
The research, which gauged the reactions of 159 individuals to two nearly
identical-appearing print advertisements, suggests that personal thought
patterns are, indeed, inspired among those presented with an ad containing
nostalgic cues. Further, the researchers found that those who experienced
nostalgic thoughts tended to exhibit more favorable attitudes toward the
advertised brand than those who did not.
But Muehling and Sprott said the research also raised issues that suggest
consumers’ nostalgic reactions can be more varied and complex than advertisers
might expect.
"We used cues that tended to prompt a more personal, rather than historic,
nostalgic reaction – a more ‘warm and fuzzy’ approach intended to elicit
self-referenced responses," said Sprott. "Our results indicate that thoughts
evoked by such nostalgic advertisements are not always positive. In particular,
we found the use of nostalgic cues to generate significantly more personal
thoughts – both positive and negative in nature – than did the non-nostalgic
ad."
The finding corresponds with other research suggesting nostalgia is an
inherently bittersweet emotion, he said.
"Consumers may strongly desire to return to their pasts, but be confronted with
the realization that they can’t," Sprott said. "While this negative aspect of
consumer reaction to nostalgia doesn’t appear to have a damaging effect on
attitudinal responses to ads, it’s clearly something that should be kept in mind
by those designing promotional materials."
Perhaps a more encouraging aspect of the study from the standpoint of
advertisers stems from the fact that the nostalgic ad used by the WSU
researchers proved effective, even though the study was conducted among college
undergraduates whose average age was only slightly over 21.
"This is significant, in that there are stages in life in which nostalgia
becomes more important," said Muehling. "There’s a generational effect. You
simply have more life experience at 70 than you do at 20, so you logically
assume that you will see an even more pronounced effect with nostalgia-based
advertising when dealing with an older population."
Given that the first wave of the nation’s 78 million baby boomers – possessing a
spending power some have estimated as high as $2.5 trillion and growing – will
soon beginning hitting 60 years of age, Sprott and Muehling believe nostalgia is
likely to play an increasingly significant role in marketing in the future.
"Right now, the major television networks tell you that those between 18 and 49
years of age are the only ones who count," Muehling said. "But that’s an
assumption that needs to be revisited. Those in the 50-year-old-plus demographic
are likely to be held in higher esteem in the future than they have been in the
past."
As is often the case, Muehling and Sprott said their research raised a number of
questions about the nature of the use of nostalgia in advertising that need to
be pursued.
One issue they are planning to explore in the near future is whether ads that
use nostalgic cues to prompt self-referenced memories tend to make
product-related thoughts less accessible than ads that do not.
While there were indications in their study that respondents link nostalgic
thoughts to brand name, Sprott said there were very few instances in which a
direct link was actually established between personalized nostalgic thoughts and
the specific product promoted in the advertisement.
"It may be that thoughts that are too personally involving become a distraction
and tend to interfere with product-related thoughts," he said. "We didn’t really
find that in our study, but there were indications it’s an issue that needs to
be researched further."
There also are questions the researchers hope to address that relate to
individual differences in responses to nostalgic cues.
"Some people appear to be more nostalgic than others," said Muehling. "It’s a
good assumption that there are important individual differences in how people
respond to nostalgic cues. Understanding those differences and the factors that
influence them may provide important insights into the effective use of
nostalgia in advertising."by Sue Everard, JRF Press Office: 01904 615958 | sue.everard@jrf.org.uk
All of the above text is a press release provided by the quoted organization.
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