Current Issue Summary
June 2024 (Vol. 64, Issue 2)

Why a Single Pro-Environmental Appeal Works to Promote Behavioral Change: On Social Media, One Tip versus Many Is More Effective for Nongreen Consumers
In social media advertising, how effective is presenting a single green tip versus multiple green tips to foster pro-environmental behaviors? Researchers Matthew Pittman (University of Tennessee), Kibum Youn (University of Tennessee) and Tyler Milfeld (Villanova University) grounded their research in a series of online and field experiments. The results demonstrate that for consumers with low environmental concern, a single tip significantly improves brand attitudes compared to multiple tips. Interestingly, this effect is mediated by perceived brand authenticity, suggesting that fewer tips enhance the genuineness of the message for these consumers. For highly environmentally concerned individuals, the number of tips did not notably impact their perceptions or behaviors. These insights suggest that when crafting green marketing strategies, the number of communicated tips should be tailored to the audience’s environmental sensitivity to maximize engagement and perceived authenticity.

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