Beliefs and Attitudes in Online Advertising - Essay Example

A Critique of the Article “Examining the Role of Beliefs and Attitudes in Online Advertising” by Ying Wang and Shaojing Sun Instructor Date The research article Examining the Role of Beliefs and Attitudes in Online Advertising by Ying Wang and Shaojing Sun attempts to find out the influence of attitudes and beliefs towards online advertising across people of different cultures. It is geared towards helping marketers understand the dynamics of online advertising in relation to the way individuals in different places perceive it. The purpose of the study is set clear in the introduction of the article. The introduction draws attention to various sources that have supported the view that beliefs and attitudes towards online advertising are important in evaluating the usability of online advertising. The research proposes five testable hypotheses that are directly related to the research question. The first hypothesis tested whether information belief, entertainment belief, economy belief, credibility belief, or value corruption belief affects attitudes towards online advertising (ATOA) positively or negatively. Two more hypotheses features the influence of ATOA on the responses given by consumers while the fourth and fifth compares the effect of online advertising between the two areas covered in the study, USA and Romania. The examination of the research problem was to gauge the effectiveness of online advertising across people of different cultural backgrounds. The objective of the authors in examining the influence of various parameters towards online advertising has recurred in the introduction. However, the authors fail to be specific on the quoted literature when quoting the literature in use. They just mention that a host of studies supports the research objective without being specific on what the likes of ‘Ducoffe, 1996’ and ‘Russell et al., 1994’ say about the research topic. The results of these sources are analyzed in a global view. The research analyzed some variables, the beliefs and ATOA against the effectiveness of advertising in various areas. The research’s methodology was effectively chosen and implemented. The objective was categorical and was clearly captured in the hypotheses; belief factors about online advertising have an effect on ATOA and vary across cultures. The most prevalent belief factors were analyzed, which includes that of information, entertainment, economy, credibility, and value corruption. The objective of the research facilitated the use of surveys in achieving the desirable results. The survey involved 577 participants who have been internet users in both USA and Romania. The choice of the participants as well as the use of surveys was very appropriate in the study. This is because the research was focused on getting evidence that was based on consumer’s experience in advertising. The balance in gender for the participants was well done but the research was imbalanced on the sample chosen per country, with that of Romania was 381 compared to 196 from the USA. This imbalance is inappropriate despite the sampling method being used because USA has a bigger population and in this case had the least participation. Therefore, the sample was not very appropriate for the study. Despite this, the internet use experience for the participants was satisfactory. The involvement of the chosen individuals was satisfactory, out of the 577 participants chosen, all of them took part in the survey and their results were analyzed. A scale was implemented that was effective in measuring the beliefs about online advertising; it was a 33-item scale. The Likert scale was effective in measuring the participants’ responses. In addition, the researchers never left anything to chance, they conducted an analysis to confirm the findings using AMOS version 5.0. Questionnaires were administered to the participants, which they filled and returned. The questionnaire was developed in English but was later translated to Romanian. The target group involved university students in both countries, this could present some biasness because the effect of advertising is influenced by age group as well as profession. The history of internet use could have affected the results. That of American comprised of individuals that had used the internet almost double that of the Romanians. The interest in internet use could have declined or increase with time. The use of structural equation modelling was very effective in analyzing the participants’ responses. From the model, it was clear that there existed response from various variables. Every factor demonstrated its findings that demonstrated consistency with other factors. There are no extraneous values that are inconsistent or lie some distance from the curve. The authors have tabulated the analyzed findings hence presenting them in a readable fashion. The measurement model also shows that it fitted very well the belief factors that were being tested. Comparing the two cultures, there was a significant difference between the ultimate findings between the two cultures analyzed. Ad clicking was found to be the indicator of consumer response in the first model I while for model II was the frequency of online buying. Using these two models, the regression coefficients were consistent for all the factors under test. This has been well illustrated in the research paper hence making the presentation of the results quite efficient. Hypotheses H1a-H1e were supported by the findings while ATOA was found to have a significant influence on ad clicking and the rate of online shopping, therefore, the findings supported both H2 and H3. The analysis also found that there was a cultural influence over online advertising hence the both hypotheses H4 and H5 were supported. The results are very influential in stamping the position that online advertising has a great influence while also demonstrating that its efficiency varies across regions. Therefore, marketers are able to approximate the input of online advertising so that they can be complemented by other strategies. The results will also be able to manage advertising by demonstrating the factors that are more influential in targeting individuals. The presentation of the results has been done in a very effective way; however, it could have been even better if each component being tested was presented on its own. For example, the results on the influence of economy on ATOA be on its own then the rest follows. The authors draw very precise conclusions. They show that value corruption, economy, credibility, information seeking, and entertainment do predict ATOA. Among these factors, the most outstanding was the economy factor that demonstrated a more positive influence over ATOA. The second predictor was information seeking which is very consistent with the need for advertising. Another objective of the study that was confirmed is the influence of culture over beliefs and ATOA of individuals. This is after the results established that there was a significant difference between Romanians and Americans in response to online advertising. The authors provide more information on previous research as they support their results and draw conclusions. This makes the conclusion of the research paper comprehensive and informative. This study is very important in the business world especially because of the rapid shift that is shifting to technologically based operations. Online marketing is one of the most promising mode of communicating products and services because of its technology biasness. Future research is necessary in this area to elucidate other diverse aspects of online advertising such as the return on investment. The journal made a very informed decision to publish this article because it not only builds the body of research but also it is practicable hence, organizations can utilize the findings to improve their organizations. One of the things that could have been focused on is the individual differences within a culture, for example apart from considering only students participants, businesspeople, professionals as well as senior personalities could have been incorporated. In conclusion, I would use this research work in my proposal for three main reasons. Firstly, it adheres to the basics of a scientific research such as hypotheses testing, drawing the research question, use of research instruments among others. Secondly, it is comprehensive as characterized by the analysis of the findings and conclusions well drawn, also I has reffered to several literary works. Finally, the results are consistent with other findings and are based on a concrete argument. Read More