Tuesday, November 17, 2015 | 2:00pm-3:30pm | Room 329, HSBC Business School Building

Abstract

Video advertising is becoming increasingly popular in online product marketing. However, its effectiveness has been found limited because viewers tend to avoid watching ads despite video being an engaging medium. This study proposes a new way of displaying video advertising by allowing viewers to choose an ad to watch among a set of options. In particular, we assess the effects of the provision of ad choice on viewers’ attention using the eye-tracking technique. Our findings suggest that compared to forced exposure, choice can significantly increase viewers’ attention to video advertising. We then examine the roles of choice control and information gap in choice-based video advertising. Results show that when viewers have choice control, the reduction of information gap helps grab more attention from viewers. In contrast, when control is absent, viewers exposed to a larger information gap pay more attention to video ads. Furthermore, users' attention to video advertising positively affects their attitudes, memory, and intention to purchase.