Does Anthropomorphism Help or Hurt Brands Entering Foreign Markets?

Does Anthropomorphism Help or Hurt Brands Entering Foreign Markets?

  • JOURNAL OF ADVERTISING RESEARCH
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Summary

Talking M&Ms, Mr. Peanut, the Michelin Man and the Pillsbury Doughboy are among the most popular anthropomorphic product characters, many of which we remember since childhood. A new study asks: How can a brand that uses this popular communication strategy avoid the negative impact of consumer ethnocentrism—the belief that buying foreign products is wrong—when entering foreign markets?

Authors’ bios:

Lefa Teng (lefateng@jiangnan.edu.cn) is a professor at the School of Business, Jiangnan University, Jiangsu, China. His work has appeared in the Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Business Ethics and Journal of International Marketing, among other journals.

Mengmeng Zhang (mengmengzhang@stu.jiangnan.edu.cn) is a doctoral student at the College of Textile Science and Engineering, Jiangnan University, Jiangsu, China.

Lianne Foti (foti@uoguelph.ca) is an associate professor at the Gordon S. Lang School of Business, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada. Her work can be found in the Journal of Business Research, International Journal of Advertising, and Business Strategy and the Environment, among other journals.

Xinran Wang (xinranwang@stu.jiangnan.edu.cn) is a graduate student in marketing at the School of Business, Jiangnan University, Jiangsu, China.

Xinyan Yang (yangxyoo@163.com) is a graduate student in marketing at the School of Business, Jiangnan University, Jiangsu, China.