The priming effect of competitor product information on advertising creativity

Abstract

This article examines the manner in which advertising creativity may be influenced by “near” primes in the form of competitor product information that is presented at the briefing stage of engagement with a client. Drawing on the associative theory of creativity and spreading activation theory, this study explores the impact of near primes on both the originality and appropriateness of advertising output and highlights the process mechanism by which it affects overall creativity. Results of a between-subjects experiment indicate that exposing individuals to near primes results in a fixation effect that negatively influences originality but positively influences appropriateness. Associative cognitive flexibility, as measured by the number of “far” analogies accessed during ideation, is shown to be a strong mediator of the relationship between near prime exposure on creativity. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.