ABSTRACT
This study examined whether different types of focus in donation advertisements affected potential donors’ mental imagery fluency and donation intention. Construal level theory was employed in the research framework to explore how fundraising period and advertisement focus (process or outcome) affect consumers’ mental imagery fluency and donation intention. Participants recruited from a marketing research company panel were asked to read process- or outcome-focused donation advertisements and answer questionnaires. The mental imagery of some participants was assessed in a product design scenario. This study revealed that consumers’ construal level was likely to affect their mental imagery fluency in terms of imagining how raised funds are used; this in turn affected their donation intention. Furthermore, individuals’ imagination visual mental imagery affected their donation intention. This study fills a gap in the literature related to advertisement focus and provides a valuable reference for those designing advertising campaigns for charitable organizations.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Data availability statement
Data available on request from the authors.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Li-Keng Cheng
Li-Keng Cheng is an associate professor at National Taipei University of Education. He completed his PhD at National Chengchi University, and his primary research areas include marketing, consumer research, and human-computer interaction. His research has been published in a range of international journals, and he has published in Psychology & Marketing, Journal of Consumer behaviour, Journal of Social Marketing, Marketing Intelligence & Planning.