Examining the Third-Person Effect of Baseline Omission in Numerical Comparison: The Role of Consumer Persuasion Knowledge

Abstract

Marketers often use numerical comparisons in promotional claims to signal superior product offerings. A potentially misleading practice involves omitting the reference point deliberately in order to make the focal claim more appealing-a persuasion tactic referred to as "baseline omission" in the present research. In two experiments, this research demonstrates that consumers tend to perceive this tactic as more effective on others than on themselves. The self-others difference is more salient among consumers with more persuasion knowledge. Consumers' concerns about its effectiveness on themselves, rather than on others, better predict their supportiveness to regulate the use of baseline omission.

Effects of functional green advertising on self and others

“…As per Jones and Harris () and Jones and Nisbett (), when perceiving a message as negative or considering an undesirable influence from a message, individuals tend to believe that others are more susceptible to this influence, to enhance and maintain positive self‐feelings or avoid negative self‐feelings. On the other hand, when the effect is regarded as socially or personally positive, people tend to attribute more influence to themselves (Eisend, ; Xie & Johnson, ), such as by thinking, “I am smart enough to recognize the value of the message,” DeLorme et al., , p. 50). These self‐serving biases are frequently used to explain the third‐person effect research findings, especially in terms of socially undesirable messages (e.g., Eisend, ; ; Xie & Johnson, ).…”

“…On the other hand, when the effect is regarded as socially or personally positive, people tend to attribute more influence to themselves (Eisend, ; Xie & Johnson, ), such as by thinking, “I am smart enough to recognize the value of the message,” DeLorme et al., , p. 50). These self‐serving biases are frequently used to explain the third‐person effect research findings, especially in terms of socially undesirable messages (e.g., Eisend, ; ; Xie & Johnson, ).…”

“…The results of previous research regarding the motivational effects of perceived self‐susceptibility and others’ susceptibility toward persuasive messages remain mixed (e.g., Huh, Delorme, & Reid, ; Sun et al., ; Wei, Lo, & Lu, ; Youn et al., ). This hypothesis also argues that perceived self‐susceptibility, others’ susceptibility, or combined susceptibility toward persuasive messages might motivate behavioral intentions (Xie & Johnson, ). For instance, Youn et al.…”

“…Participants in the “self” condition rate the effectiveness of the ad claim for themselves right after they read the ad: “how would this ad claim affect your purchase decision about the advertised product (1 = would not affect your decision ; 7 = would be a primary factor )?” Those in the “others” condition rate the effectiveness of the functional features (green claim) for others in general: “how would this ad claim affect others’ purchase decisions about the advertised product (1 = would not affect others’ decisions ; 7 = would be a primary factor )?” The measurement is adopted from Richards () and Xie and Johnson (). After that, they complete a 7‐point EC scale (Matthes et al., ), including four items, such as “I am concerned about the environment” (1 = strongly disagree ; 7 = strongly agree ) (Cronbach's α = 0.87).…”

“…The literature displays three research gaps. First, previous research has examined consumers’ attitudinal responses and purchase intentions regarding a persuasion tactic (DeLorme, Huh, & Reid, ; Eisend, ; Xie & Johnson, ; Youn, Faber, & Shah, ), but little is known about the perceived effectiveness of functional green ads from the consumer's perspective. This issue is intriguing because functional green ads focus on product benefits and generally do not deliver individual benefits to buyers (Grimmer & Woolley, ), resulting in either no generally accepted definitions of expressions, which reduces consumers’ efforts to understand the information (Carlson et al., ), or unclear meanings of claims, which would deliver a vague or omitted message to customers (Paço & Reis, ).…”