Shockvertising como un

método para promocionar

el contenido de los

servicios de transmisión

de video bajo demanda

“Shockvertising” as a

Method to Advertise

Content in Video

on Demand Streaming

Services

aDResearch ESIC

Nº 25 Vol 25 · Monográco especial, marzo 2021  págs. 12 a 25

Brito-Rhor, M.D, Velasco Vizcaíno, F. y Lopez, C. (2021)

“Shockvertising” as a Method to Advertise Content

in Video on Demand Streaming Services

Revista Internacional de Investigación en Comunicación

aDResearch ESIC. Nº 25 Vol 25

Monográco especial, marzo 2021 · Págs. 12 a 25

https://doi.org/10.7263/adresic-025-01

María Dolores Brito-Rhor, Ph.D.

Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ

mbrito@usfq.edu.ec

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0385-0620

Franklin Velasco Vizcaíno, Ph.D.

Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ

fvelasco@usfq.edu.ec

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6561-6741

Camila López, BA

Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ

cami.lopez.a@gmail.com

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1251-6509

Purpose: Most thumbnails promoting movies or series in video on demand (VOD) streaming

services contain some form of shock advertising. The intention of this type of appeal is to

bring immediate attention of viewers. However, little is known if shock advertising persuades

consumers to watch series or movies on VOD streaming services such as Netix or Amazon Prime

Video. This study examines more deeply consumer responses to two types of shock advertising

appeals: fetishism and sexual, and compares the results to an experimental condition in which

there is an absence of shock advertising.

Design / Methodology / Approach: This study empirically tests if shock advertising, in the form of

fetishism and sexual appeals, persuades consumers to watch series or movies. In the experimental

setting, we manipulated romantic feelings and compared how each shock advertising types of

appeals inuence consumers when deciding what to watch in VOD streaming services. Analysis

of variance was utilized to test the main eect of type of shock advertising appeal (fetishism vs.

sexual vs. control condition) and to test the moderating eect of romantic feelings.

Results: Our ndings suggest that consumers exposed to fetishism and sexual appeals revealed

lower levels of persuasion compared to a control condition. An important nding of the study

is the moderating eect of romanticism. When an individual has romantic feelings, conceived as

a transitory mood state, the fetishism appeal becomes more persuasive than the sexual or the

neutral appeals.

Limitations / Implications: These results are useful for improving the implementation of shock

advertising appeals in the form of fetishism or sexual thumbnails for VOD streaming services. The

study uses a single experiment to draw conclusions. Future research can test to generalize the

results of this study in dierent settings.

Originality / Contribution: The main contributions derived from this research can be classied

into two ndings: it improves our understanding of consumer’s reactions to shock advertising;

and, second advances our knowledge of the inuence of positive emotions (romantic feelings)

when consumers decide what to watch in video streaming services.

RESUMEN

ABSTRACT

Clasicación JEL:

M30, M31, M37

Palabras clave:

Apelación fetichista,

publicidad de

choque,

publicidad sexual,

romanticismo,

servicios de

transmisión de vídeo

bajo demanda

JEL Classication:

M30, M31, M37

Key words:

Fetishism,

romantic feelings,

sexual advertising,

shock advertising,

video on demand

streaming services

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Objetivo: La mayoría de anuncios publicitarios de películas o series en servicios de transmisión

de video bajo demanda (VOD) contienen algún tipo de contenido de publicidad de choque.

Pero muy poco se conoce sobre este tipo de contenidos publicitarios en las intenciones de la

audiencia al elegir una serie o película en los servicios VOD como por ejemplo Netix o Amazon

Prime Video. Este estudio examina las respuestas de los consumidores a dos tipos de publicidad

de choque: estímulos fetichistas y sexuales.

Diseño/Metodología/Enfoque: Este estudio examina si la publicidad de choque persuade a

los consumidores a ver series o películas. En el experimento se manipularon los sentimientos ro-

mánticos de los participantes y se comparó cómo cada tipo de publicidad de choque (fetichista

vs. sexual vs. condición de control) inuye en los consumidores a la hora de decidir qué ver en

los servicios VOD.

Resultados: Los hallazgos sugieren que los consumidores expuestos a los estímulos de publici-

dad de choque fetichistas y sexuales, expresan niveles inferiores de persuasión en comparación

con la condición de control en la que no se presenta publicidad de choque. Un hallazgo im-

portante es el rol romanticismo. Cuando un individuo experimenta sentimientos románticos, la

apelación publicitaria fetichista se vuelve más persuasiva.

Limitaciones/Implicaciones: Estos resultados son útiles para entender mejor el impacto de

la aplicación de estrategias de publicidad de choque en los servicios VOD. El estudio utiliza un

experimento para deducir las conclusiones. Futuras investigaciones podrían enfocarse en gene-

ralizar los resultados y replicar el estudio incluyendo otras condiciones experimentales.

Originalidad/Contribución: Las principales contribuciones derivadas de esta investigación

son mejorar la comprensión de las reacciones de los consumidores a la publicidad de choque;

y, avanzar en nuestro conocimiento de la inuencia de las emociones positivas (sentimientos

románticos) cuando los consumidores deciden qué ver en los servicios VOD.

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1. Introduction

Over the years there has been an increase in the

use of shock advertising appeals not only in the

advertising of consumer goods, but also within

new contexts (e.g., video streaming services) that

involve different consumer decision-making

processes (Reichert & Lambiase, 2006, p. 14).

Consumers have been bombarded by different

forms of messages with the purpose of attracting

their attention to specific content in video

streaming services. We nd that in popular video

streaming services, shock advertising is a common

form of marketing communication. In this context,

the use of sexual appeals has become increasingly

explicit and a widely used marketing technique

(Ruberg, 2020). A quick analysis made by the

authors reveals that 20 percent of thumbnails in

Netix or Amazon Prime Video use some form of

shock advertising appeals. In particular, sexual

appeals are predominant. Since the goal of shock

advertising is to draw viewer’s immediate attention,

the use of this type of advertising appeal seems

like a suitable strategy to promote entertainment

content. However, there is little evidence in

previous marketing communication literature on

how shock advertising persuades more (vs less)

viewers.

It has long been established that shock

advertising, in the form of sexual appeals, is

expected to achieve better rates in recognition,

recall, and purchase decisions (Alexander & Judd,

1978, p. 47; Álvarez Domínguez, 2020, p. 25).

Complementing these effects, we found that

many of the current forms of communication use

shock advertising, especially when promoting

entertainment products. For example, 59 percent

of music videos use sexual appeals (Zhang,

Dixon, & Conrad, 2010, p. 787), 43 percent of

women dress very provocative in magazine ads

(Carpenter & Reichert, 2004, p. 825), 41 percent

of women on television wear revealing clothing

(Downs & Smith, 2010, p. 729), 23.5 percent

of magazine thumbnails in social networks have

some level of nudity and 39.5 percent suggest

eroticism (Brito-Rhor, 2019, p. 128), 18 percent

of the clothing or behavior of prime time actors

in television commercials is provocative (Lin,

1998, p. 463), and sexual advertising appeal in

Spanish-language television network ads is

usually higher than in other languages (Fullerton

& Kendrick, 2001, p. 53). These statistics suggest

the belief that “sex sells” is not just a cliché, but

that it certainly remains as a valid marketing

communication format for various entertainment

products. This could be explained by how shock

advertising (i.e., sexual appeals) is capable to

attract viewers’ attention, evoke pleasure, and

stimulate purchase intentions (Reichert &

Lambiase, 2006, p. 42).

Although the widespread use of sexual appeals

in different media and around the world is evident,

there are not enough studies on different forms of

sexual appeals. The purpose of this study is to

objectively evaluate the response of consumers to

shock advertising of both fetishism and sexual

nature. Responses from subjects toward the sexual

stimulus will be evaluated in function of their

intentions to watch TV series. The experimental

design is intended to measure and compare

consumers’ reactions to three different shock

advertising appeals (fetishism, sexual and a control

condition). Furthermore, this effect will be

contrasted with romantic feelings induced by an

experimental manipulation. This study aims to

contribute, to both theory and practice, on the

effects of shock advertising appeals. Figure 1

present our conceptual framework.

Next, we present our literature review, then

discuss the methodology, followed by the results,

and conclusions of the study.

“Shockvertising” as a Method to Advertise Content in Video on Demand Streaming Services · págs. 12 a 25

2. Literature Review

Shock Advertising

Shock advertising is described as offensive content,

that violates norms, values, moral or social codes

(Dahl, Frankenberger, & Manchanda, 2003, p. 268;

Srivastava & Dorsch, 2020, p. 2). This type of

advertising is intended to surprise the audience

breaking through normal ads, catching consumers’

attention and resulting in an intention on the

audience to act in a particular way (Lee, Septianto,

Frethey-Bentham, & Gao, 2020 p. 2; Urwin &

Venter, 2014, p. 204). Norm violation refers to a

violation of expectations created during the social

development learning process (Dahl, Frankenberger,

& Manchanda, 2003, p. 269 - 270). The different

types of shock appeals are: disgusting images,

sexual references, profanity/obscenity, vulgarity,

impropriety, moral offensiveness and religious

taboos. Advertising as any other social object, is

judged with the rules that people have learned to

be acceptable, when the content is offensive it

commonly breaks norms of decency, good taste,

aesthetic propriety and moral standards (Dahl,

Frankenberger, & Manchanda, 2003, p. 269-270).

Shock advertising has been found to be easier to

comprehend and to retain in consumers´ minds.

Also, there is evidence that the shocking effect is

greater for the themes shown rather than for the

products or ideas advertised (Parry, Jones, Stern, &

Robinson, 2013, p. 112). Also, studies have shown

that this communication form can be effective when

promoting new products and brands (Skorupa,

2014, p. 69). Other studies implied that the effects

of shock advertising are greater when looking for

more immediate actions rather than for long- term

effects (Parry, Jones, Stern, & Robinson, 2013, p.

113). This last evidence suggests that it could be an

appropriate strategy for viewers of streaming video

services, since they decide what to watch in a matter

of seconds.

There are some factors that inuence the effects

and perception of shock advertising. These

Figure 1. Conceptual framework

Romantic feelings

Consumer behavior

Intention to watch

Shock Advertising

Fetishism

Sexual

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elements can be defined as ethics, culture,

language, history and religion (Engelbart, Jackson,

& Smith, 2017, p. 46; Urwin & Venter, 2014, p.

204; Yan & Chapa, 2020 p. 11). Above all, religion

and social factors are believed to have a stronger

relationship with the perception of individuals

because of the inuence on daily life, concern of

moral standards and the presence of more

conservative attitudes (Parry, Jones, Stern, &

Robinson, 2013, p. 114). For instance, the higher

the level of nudity used in an advertisement, the

more negative the ethical attitude towards it is

(Brito-Rhor, Rodríguez-Herráez, & Chachalo-

Carvajal, 2019, p. 45). Even though the perception

differences between genders have not been fully

described, there is some evidence of mixed results

if women feel more offended when the advertising

includes sexual images.

Sexual and Fetishism Appeals in

Advertising

The word sex has different meanings depending

on the area of research in which it is used. Sex

researchers, social psychologists, and marketers

dene sexual information as a sexual stimulus to

which sexual meaning is attributed (Reichert &

Lambiase, 2012, p. 27). Sex in advertising has

been dened as media messages containing sexual

information for the persuasive purpose of selling

branded goods and/or services (Reichert, Heckler,

& Jackson, 2001, p. 15). Courtney and Whipple

(1983) dened sex in advertising as sexuality in

the forms of: nudity, sexual images, innuendo, and

double meaning (p. 15). Furthermore, advertising

itself is an applied form of persuasion that attempts

to: inform, position, convince, reinforce and

differentiate; to achieve various objectives such as

selling products and/or services, improving the

image of the brand, educating the public, among

others (O’Guinn, Allen, & Semenik, 2012, p. 87;

Reichert & Lambiase, 2012, p. 19). In accordance

with the denition of sex and advertising, sexual

appeals are persuasive resources containing sexual

information that is integrated with the overall

message (Reichert, Heckler, & Jackson, 2001,

p. 14). Sexual content in advertising is diverse;

however, it could be dened as those stimuli

within the ad that people interpret as sexual

(Reichert & Ramirez, 2000). Commonly the

objective of using the sexual appeal in advertising

is to achieve the affective connection or association

with the consumer (O’Guinn, Allen, & Semenik,

2012, p. 61, 208-209).

Over the years it has become obvious that the

use of eroticism in advertising has increased in

tone and explicitness (Maison & Pawłowska,

2017, p. 310). As a mechanism to attract the

attention of consumers, it is very common to see

in the mainstream media, the use of sexual appeals

in advertising (Hyllegard, Yan, Ogle, & Attmann,

2010). Several investigations have pointed to an

increase in the use of sexual appeals with women

(American Psychological Association, 2007), and

there is evidence of the use of more female models

who appear with an intense degree of nudity and

couples in positions that suggest sexual relations

(Zimmerman & Dahlberg, 2008, p. 76).

Over time, the sexual appeal in advertising

seems to have evolved into a new form of sexual

appeal: fetishism. Although most advertisements

contain forms of fetishism, little is known about

this type of appeal that evokes a sense of power

and erotica in the individual (Holm, 2016, p. 128).

This is how fetishism emerges in advertising as an

important marketing tool that creates objects of

desire through visual techniques and symbols. The

fetish object, typically associated with sexuality,

symbolizes contrasting concepts such as liberation

and control, power and powerlessness, sexuality

and childishness. The fetish object discloses a

“Shockvertising” as a Method to Advertise Content in Video on Demand Streaming Services · págs. 12 a 25

exible mixture of “three underlying features of

categorization and representation characteristic of

all thought. These are concretization, animation

or anthropomorphization, conation of signier

with signied, and an ambiguous relationship of

control between person and object” (Ellen, 1988,

p. 1). Fetishism from a clinical perspective is a

dysfunctional response to sexuality since fetish

objects eventually substitute human contact for

sexual arousal and satisfaction. Sexual needs are

projected onto erotic objects. From a psychological

perspective, fetishism replaces human relations

with relations with objects and, in general, revolves

around certain garments. The three qualities of

fetish clothing are (1) liminality: a gap that falls

between nature and culture (leather, rubber, shoes,

boots, corsets, stockings, zones of passion, danger,

creativity, uncertainty), (2) color: Black skin or

bright red, and (3) de-contextualization and

isolation. For example, the shoe that by itself

excites, high heels, thigh leather, handcuffs.

The Moderating Role of Romantic Feelings

The term self-schema refers to the beliefs or ideas

that a person has about oneself (Mueller et al.,

2016). In general terms, the schemas vary

depending on some factors such as culture (Brito-

Rhor, Rodríguez-Herráez & Trueba, 2020, p. 89)

or other elements of the environment (Leite &

Kuiper, 2010). From the studies of Andersen and

Cyranowski (1994, p. 1085; 1999, p. 657) four

categories of sexual self-schema were dened

based on the combination of two independent

dimensions for women and one for men. One

dimension is related to emotions of romanticism

and the other to the negative aspect of shame or

conservatism. The sexual self-schema is formed

by four factors (1) Eroticism; the sensual

component of sexuality. This element is related to

the congruent cognitions of the capacity to

experiment and provoke sexual desire and

pleasure in the other being, (2) Romanticism; the

affective-emotional component of sexuality.

Cognitions concerning romanticism reflect

affection and sensitivity, (3) Sexual openness, the

behavioral component of sexuality. In a person’s

behavior, cognitions are linked to security,

openness, assertiveness, and condence in sexual

competence, and (4) Negative affectivity; the

affective-emotional and behavioral negative

component of sexuality. In this element, congruent

cognitions are related to feelings of tension, anxiety

and guilt stimulated by sexual aspects that could

cause sexual containment behaviors (Brito-Rhor

et al., 2020, p.88).

Comparatively, both men and women believe

that a sexual human being is one who is sexual by

evidencing romantic and loving qualities

(Andersen et al, 1999, p. 661). People with higher

sexual self-schemas possess characteristics such

as romanticism, as well as a more liberal sexual

attitude, and increased interest in sexual issues

(Cheung et al, 2013, p. 381). A romantic sexual

self-schema is a cognitive generalization about

romantic aspects of oneself from a sexual

perspective.

It has already been mentioned that several

studies have conrmed that the use of sexual

attractiveness in advertising is increasing.

However, very little is known about the inuence

of different personality sexual traits, such as

romanticism, on responses to sexual information.

Nevertheless, it is possible to afrm that romantic

feelings are evidently an individual level factor that

inuences attitudes and reactions to a stimulus

with sexual content (Hateld & Rapson, 1993, p.

90). These elements became central in this study

to examine the moderating effects of romantic

feelings and preferences for shock advertising

appeals.

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Romanticism has its roots in attachment theory

(Bowlby, 1969; Holmes, 2014). Attachment

motivations, reecting individual characteristics,

have implications in individuals’ social behaviors

toward others (Simpson & Rholes, 2012, p. 286).

Attachment theory further describes these

motivations as having two central dimensions:

anxiety and avoidance. According to Simpson et

al., (2012), both dimensions play a signicant role

in how individuals obtain social power in a

relationship, as individuals become more (versus

less) susceptible to each person’s preferences.

Thus, depending on how the level of romanticism

produces high (versus low) levels of anxiety or

avoidance type of orientations, the level of social

power and control in the relationship switch. This

argument can explain how romanticism can lead

to a person, having more social power over his/

her partner, employ a greater inuence in decisions

and preferences toward sexuality. Using this as a

basis, we expect a positive link between

romanticism and preference for fetishism sexual

appeals.

To sustain our hypothesis that romantic feelings

increase the preference toward fetishism appeals

we found evidence in literature about variety-

seeking behaviors. Huang and Dong (2018)

suggest that even short episodes of romanticism,

romantic crushes, lead to variety-seeking type of

behaviors (p. 232). As the authors further describe,

a romantic schema is likely to lower people’s sense

of control and increase a desire for sensory

stimulation. In addition to this finding,

experiments that induced a romantic feeling in

male participants show they feel greater attraction

to dissimilar female partners that evoke a sense of

limerence and obsession for fantasies (Gold et al.,

1984). Advertising literature has similarly studied

romantic schemas. Huang (2014) found that ads

showing romantic appeals induce greater attitudes

toward the ads; this effect is strengthened by

higher levels of arousal and pleasure (p. 69). Since

fetishism delivers both types of outcomes, we

expect that romantic feelings increase the

persuasion from fetishism types of appeal in

advertising.

3. Method

Pre-Test

A pre-test was necessary to conrm if certain types

of advertising cues (e.g., a whip, handcuffs, red

panties, red brassiere, a pole, and so forth) when

embedded in an ad generate perceptions of either

a fetishism appeal or a sexual appeal. Sixty-four

participants (43.2 % female; Mage = 36.08, SD =

12.64) from a consumer panel accepted the

invitation to participate in an advertisement

evaluation task. Participants were instructed to

associate different types of objects that are

representative of either fetishism or sexual

advertising appeals. Table 1 shows a list of eight

objects presented to participants and their

corresponding responses when associating each

cue to a type of shock advertising appeal.

Main Study

Purpose. The objective of this study is to nd

evidence of the level of persuasion that different

types of shock advertising appeals produce inside

the mind of consumers. In this study we

manipulated romantic feelings and compare how

each shock advertising appeals (sexual versus

fetishism) inuence more (vs. less) consumers

when deciding what to watch in paid video

streaming services. A control condition was

included to compare the effects that these shock

advertising appeals provoke.

Design and shock advertisement manipulations.

A two factor 3 (shock advertising sexual appeals:

fetishism, sexy, and a control condition) x 2 (state

“Shockvertising” as a Method to Advertise Content in Video on Demand Streaming Services · págs. 12 a 25

of mind: positive romantic affect vs. neutral

condition) between-subjects experimental design

was utilized to investigate how consumers react

to video streaming programming that is advertised

with shock advertising appeals.

First, participants were randomly instructed to

either write a few lines describing one of the most

romantic episodes of their lives or write a

description of what is their daily routine. This rst

step was intended to rise feelings of positive

romantic affect. These romantic feelings

manipulation was adopted from Donato et al.

(2018) study (p. 220-229). Second, we

manipulated shock advertising appeals promoting

a new TV series available in a video stream service.

Three versions of the ad were created to exhibit

each shock advertising appeal. The fetishism

appeal was manipulated by embedding imagery

artifacts related to the practice of fetishism in the

TV series ad. Following the results of the pre-test,

we utilized a black leather pair of handcuffs to be

displayed in the ad. The sexual appeal utilized

imagery artifacts, such as women’s red panties and

brassiere. Last, the control advertisement did not

include any articial that can be related to shock

advertising appeal. A ctitious name of the TV

series (Pearls), a short description of the story,

customer ratings, and a young lady laying on the

oor served as stimuli included in each of the three

versions of the ad. All advertisements were

used the same look and feel that a popular paid

video stream service uses to promote their

programming. Appendix 1 illustrates the three

thumbnails related to the experimental conditions

of this study.

Sample and Procedure. Consumers from a

research panel were invited to participate in a task

evaluating advertisements for a consumer good.

A sample of 203 adults participated in the study

(46.3 % female; Mage = 24.25, SD = 6.31). At the

beginning of the study, participants were randomly

assigned to our experimental conditions. Then,

participants provided answers to a questionnaire

that included our main dependent intention

variable to watch the TV series. Intentions to

Table 1. Objects associated with a fetishism or a sexual appeal

Objects Fetishism appeal % Sexual Appeal % Z-value

Whip 83 17 14.11***

Leather underwear 76 24 11.12***

Handcus 81 18 13.30***

Venetian mask 70 30 8.55***

Red brassiere 24 76 -11.11***

Red panties 25 75 -10.698.55

High heel shoes 42 58 -3.42**

Pole 54 46 1.71

Note: *** p < 0.001; ** p < 0.5; ns not statistically signicant dierence.

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watch the TV series included two items: (1) “How

likely is it that you would watch this TV series? 1

Very unlikely – 7 Very likely; (2) “How interested

are you in watching this TV series? 1 Not interested

at all – 7 Very interested (r = 0.87). Then,

participants answered the manipulation check

questions, a current mood questionnaire, and

shared their demographic information.

4. Results

Manipulation check. To check for the effectiveness

of the romantic feelings manipulation we

conducted an ANOVA using as dependent variable

the score of a seven-point scale question that asked

participants their current feelings (7=romantic; 1=

unromantic). As expected, participants in the

romantic feelings condition (M = 4.56, SD = 1.50)

felt more romantic than those in the control

condition (M = 4.07, SD = 1.82; F (1, 202) = 4.37,

p < .05). The result suggests our manipulation on

the romantic feelings operated as intended.

Hypotheses testing. To test the hypotheses a 2

(romantic feelings) × 3 (shock advertising appeals)

ANCOVA, with intentions to watch the TV series

as the dependent variable was conducted and

mood as a covariate. Participants in the romantic

feelings condition showed higher intentions to

watch the TV series (M = 4.12, SD = 1.53) than

participants in the neutral mental state (M = 3.45,

SD = 1.37); thus, the main effect of romantic

feelings reached statistical signicance (F (1, 195)

= 7.26, p < .001). We also found a main effect for

shock advertising appeals (F (2, 195) = 4.73, p <

.01) that participants in the fetishism appeal

condition (M = 4.33, SD = 1.48) showed higher

intentions to watch the TV series than those in

the control condition (M = 3.65, SD = 1.38), and

than those in the sexual appeal condition (M =

3.39, SD = 1.47). Most importantly, the analyses

revealed a signicant romantic feeling × shock

advertising 2-way interaction (F (2, 195) = 4.34,

p < .01). For participants induced with

romanticism, there is a signicance difference in

intentions to watch the TV series across the

fetishism appeal (M = 4.93, SD = 1.38) compared

to the sexual appeal (M = 3.40, SD = 1.33) and

control conditions (M = 3.75, SD = 1.46).

However, for participants in the non-romantic

feelings condition, intentions to watch the TV

series were almost the same for all three shock

advertising conditions: fetishism appeal (M =

3.44, SD = 1.17), sexual appeal (M = 3.38, SD =

1.57), and control condition (M = 3.55, SD =

1.30). Post-hoc tests for mean differences, Tuckey

HSD, confirmed that there was a significant

difference between the fetishism appeal mean and

the other conditions. Table 2 presents the mean

scores for each condition. Figure 1 shows the

interaction effect of romantic feelings and shock

advertising.

Table 2. Main Study – mean scores and standard deviations

Shock advertising condition Romantic feelings Control

Mean Std. Dev Mean Std. Dev

Fetishism 4.93 1.38 3.44 1.17

Sexy 3.40 1.33 3.38 1.57

Control 3.75 1.46 3.55 1.30

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5. Discussion and Conclusions

Advertising is a basic element of marketing and

as such, it is important to understand how shock

advertising inuences viewers’ decision-making

processes and choices. Our experimental study

reveals that consumers are more persuaded by

fetishism when romantic feelings are activated.

Results indicate that consumers show higher

intentions to watch video streaming content when

shock advertising, in the form of fetishism

appeals, are used in the movie thumbnail.

Findings also suggest that the level of romanticism,

operationalized as a transitory romantic feeling,

changes the perceptions toward fetishism appeals.

The more romantic a viewer feels, the stronger

the level of persuasion expelled by fetishism

appeals is.

The main contributions derived from this

research can be classied into two areas: improving

the understanding of consumer’s reactions to

shock advertising; and, advancing our knowledge

of the inuence of a romantic mood on new forms

of advertising in a video streaming context.

Individual personality traits are important

variables that inuence sex-related attitudes and

reactions to sexual information. The ndings

suggest that understanding people’s predispositions

and tendencies to approach/avoid sexual

information is important for understanding how

those tendencies inuence responses to advertising

messages. Our results support Huang’s (2014)

research that evidenced that ads displaying

romantic appeals induce better attitudes toward

the ads; this effect is reinforced by higher levels of

arousal and pleasure (p. 69). Given that fetishism

offers both types of outcomes, romantic feelings

increased the persuasiveness of fetishism appeals

in ads. Likewise, Reichert and Lambiase (2006),

Figure 2. Interaction eect of romantic feelings and shock advertising

Intentions to watch TV series

(Main score)

Romantic feelings Control

Fetishism Sexy Fetishism

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evidenced that shock advertising, whether in the

form of fetishistic or sexual appeals, is able to

attract viewers’ attention, evoke pleasure, and

stimulate purchase intentions (p. 42). Therefore,

the use of fetishism appeals could be an appropriate

strategy for viewers of streaming video services,

who choose what to watch based on the artwork.

According to research by Parry, Jones, Stern, and

Robinson (2013), it was established that the effects

of shock advertising are greater when more

immediate actions are sought than long-term

effects, such as choosing to watch a movie on

streaming services (p. 113).

Given that customers receive an excessive

amount of commercial stimuli, it is paramount to

keep looking for new ways to achieve strategic

differentiation and fulll the rst basic step of

advertising, which is to attract the public’s

attention. Precisely, emotional ads that appeal to

shock not only seek to break with conventional

norms, but also aim to make a concrete call to

action in micro-moments. In the case of streaming

services, the call to action is to get people to click

on the thumbnail of the movie they are most

interested in watching. In conclusion, If a movie

thumbnail combines a fetishism type of appeal

and uses elements to activate romanticism, the

film being advertised will receive favorable

consumer responses.

6. Limitations

This research is not without limitations. To support

generalizability, more studies should be carried

out to test the relationship concerning shock

advertising, romantic sexual self-schema, and

behavioral intentions for different product

categories, market segments, and sexual content

in advertisements. For example, future research

might examine the role of culture and how it

facilitates romantic feelings and influences

perceptions toward sexual content in

advertisements. Another research question for

future studies to address is how other forms of

shock advertising, especially threat and drama,

inuences consumer choices in video streaming

services. Last, we suggest that future studies focus

on the romantic sexual schema conceptualized as

a more stable personality trait. Furthermore,

replication research is suggested which leads to

the advancement of science.

“Shockvertising” as a Method to Advertise Content in Video on Demand Streaming Services · págs. 12 a 25

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Appendix 1 Experimental

Conditions

Movie Thumbnail

Title: Pearls/Rating: 4.5 stars/2018

Description: College graduate Pearl Courtney begins a rela-

tionship with John McClane.

Appeals: Fetishism, sexual, control

Fetishism appeal Control condition

Sexual appeal