Print advertising: vivid content

The present research examines the effects of vivid ad content in two types of appeal in print ads as a function of individual differences in chronically experienced vividness of visual imagery. For informational ads for a functional product, vivid ad content strongly affected individuals high in reported vividness of visual imagery, in that the vivid ad produced a significantly more favorable brand attitude than did the pallid ad. In contrast, vivid content did not affect individuals low in VVI. However, for transformational ads for an experiential product, vivid content increased brand attitude regardless of individual differences in vividness of visual imagery, probably because vivid transformational ads tend to elicit strong visual images for everyone. The findings from the two experiments indicate that advertisers should use vivid, concrete worded copy in informational print ads and a vivid, experiential illustration in transformational print ads.