Visual Rhetorical Figures in Cross-Cultural Consumer Behavior: The Impact of Moderating Factors in a Spanish Language Context

ABSTRACT

This article is set within today's globalized market, where monocultural studies are no longer informative enough. It is built upon, among others, Phillips and McQuarrie's exhaustive taxonomy of the visual, which tangentially refers to the existence of moderating factors with an impact on (mis)comprehension. The article focuses precisely on the role of these factors when they affect a population of cross-cultural subjects, who are prone to be exposed to “globally received” advertising. The data discussed here point to the fact that in cross-cultural advertising, (mis)comprehension is affected not only by the complexity or richness of figuration, but also (and mainly) by the schema component. Results also shows that verbal anchoring plays an essential role in the interpretation of visual figures.

Acknowledgments

We thank Bang & Olufsen, Casio, Ikea, Sherwin Williams, Dallas Farmers Market, British Cancer Patients Association, The British Skin Foundation, and Clorets for their permission to publish these advertisements. We also thank the students at Jaume I University (Spain) for their participation in this study.

Notes

1 https://www.census.gov/newsroom/pdf/cspan_fb_slides.pdf

2 http://www.migrationobservatory.ox.ac.uk/sites/files/migobs/Migrants%20in%20the%20UK-Overview.pdf

3 http://www.iabuk.net/about/press/archive/eu-online-advertising-reaches-landmark-307bn

4 http://marketingland.com/digital-ad-spend-2014-iab-126020

5 We thank Bang & Olufsen, Casio, Ikea, Sherwin Williams, Dallas Farmers Market, the British Cancer (Patients) Association, the British Skin Foundation, and Clorets for their permission to publish these advertisements.

6 Advertisements may be accessed at https://adsoftheworld.com.

7 We thank the students for their participation.

8 http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/5908da36-db09-11e3-8273-00144feabdc0.html#slide0

9 http://www.elperiodico.com/es/noticias/sociedad/traductores-arquitectos-ingenieros-licenciados-que-mas-emigran-4772577

10 http://www.elmundo.es/economia/2015/12/11/566866ee46163f0e4d8b4618.html

11 http://www.fundaciontelefonica.com/2015/01/21/sie14-informe-sociedad-informacion-espana-pais-conectado-europa

12 For a more detailed description of this advertisement, please see the explanation at http://spectrum.ieee.org/consumer-electronics/audiovideo/bang-olufsens-geoff-martin-pursues-the-perfect-sound (accessed April 14, 2015).

13 http://www.bang-olufsen.com/en/picture (accessed April 14, 2015).

14 http://www.bang-olufsen.com/en/picture (accessed April 14, 2015).

15 To see an explanation of the ad, see http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/cigarettes-smoke-people-say-canadian-ads-14475 (accessed April 14, 2015).

16 http://www.casio-intl.com/asia-mea/en/dc (accessed April 14, 2015).

17 https://adstrategy.wordpress.com/page/42 (accessed April 14, 2015).

18 https://adstrategy.wordpress.com/page/42 (accessed April 14, 2015).

19 https://www.sherwin-williams.com/homeowners/color/find-and-explore-colors/paint-colors-by-family/SW6944-pool-blue#/6944/?s=products&p=PS0 (accessed April 14, 2015).

20 To see an explanation of this ad, see http://www.campaignlive.co.uk/news/1091851 (accessed April 14, 2015).

21 http://adsoftheworld.com/media/ambient/ikea_balcony (accessed April 14, 2015).

22 http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/2009/ikea-bigger-storage-ideas-on-frankfurt-balcony (accessed April 14, 2015).

23 To read an explanation of the campaign, see http://ryanthesmith.com/Dallas-Farmers-Market (accessed April 14, 2015).

24 To read a description of the ad, see a detailed explanation on the Pinterest board of the Advertising and Public Relations Course at Showa Boston (https://www.pinterest.com/afarabaugh1678/persuasive-advertisement-homework, accessed April 14, 2015).