Femvertising and its effects on brand image: A study of men’s attitude towards brands pursuing brand activism in their advertising

Abstract: Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate how brand activism in advertisements (specifically femvertising in this case) affects male consumers’ attitudes towards the brand behind the advertisement Methodology: The study is of qualitative nature, using primary and secondary data. Secondary data were gathered from academic journals forming the foundation for the theoretical framework. Primary data was collected through eighteen semi-structured interviews with men, helping us gain in-depth insights into the effects of femvertising on the attitudes of men towards such advertisements and brands pursuing such communications Findings: The results of this paper indicate that men’s attitude towards brand image can be either enhanced or abated, depending on the communication, authenticity and the inclusion of other both genders Research limitations/implications: The limitations of this study compromise of the sampling (homogeneity and age) and the limited amount of advertisements explored. Future research should try to validate the findings of this paper by using a larger sample group as well as examining more advertisements Practical implications: The presented study will give marketing practitioners an insight into the effects of pursuing social activism and aspects to be cautious about Originality/value: This paper is the first of its kind to investigate the males’ perception toward femvertising and female empowerment in advertisements Keywords: Brand image, brand activism, femvertising, attitudes toward advertisements (Aad), attitudes toward brands (Ab) Paper Type: Research Paper