Empowered Women - Empowered Sales? The Effect of Femvertising on Consumers’ Attitudes towards the Ad, Brand Gender Perception, and Purchase Intention

Abstract: The purpose of this study is (1) to investigate the direct influence of femvertising on female consumers’ attitudes towards the ad, brand gender perception as well as purchase intention and (2) to test the indirect effect of femvertising through attitudes towards the ad and brand gender perception on purchase intention. This study used a random independent group design, assigning the survey respondents into two groups, which were either exposed to a femvertising ad or to a traditional advertising. An experimental in-between subjects approach was chosen to test the four research hypotheses by conducting independent sample t-tests and a two-way ANOVA. The findings confirmed that femvertising has a direct positive effect on consumers’ attitude towards the ad and purchase intention compared to traditional advertising. In addition, it was found that femvertising can be used to alter a masculine brand perception towards a more neutral to feminine perception. Furthermore, this study provided evidence that a favourable attitude towards the ad positively affects purchase intention, whereas such an effect was not found for brand gender, nor an interaction effect was identified between these two concepts. The findings of this study add to a growing body of literature on femvertising and also on brand gender, which is currently affected by societal changes aiming for gender equality. More specifically, this study highlights several positive effects of femvertising and adds a critical perspective on the concept of brand gender. The study proves that femvertising is a powerful communication strategy to attract female customers. Furthermore, the study provides evidence that gender stereotypes portrayed in advertisements are outdated and a trend towards a neutral brand gender perception emerges. Therefore, marketers need to carefully evaluate if and to what extent a specific brand gender should be communicated.