Consumer information cues in television advertising: A cross country analysis

Abstract

This paper compares the number of consumer information cues found in television advertisements in three countries: Australia, Ecuador, and the United States. Earlier studies conducted by Resnick and Stern in the United States and Dowling in Australia were replicated in Ecuador. Content analysis of 108 Ecuadorian television advertisements evaluated the number and types of information cues in each commercial. Results indicate that a much greater proportion of Ecuadorian television commercials contain consumer information cues than those broadcast in the other two countries. The explanation suggested for this observation is that Ecuador, due to its level of economic development, has many more products in the introductory stages of the product life cycle. This situation, in turn, requires more extensive communication of consumer information to market the products effectively. This finding implies an additional dimension, information content level, which must be considered when adapting international campaigns to conditions in developing countries.