Moral Self-Signaling Benefits of Effortful Cause Marketing Campaigns

Argiro Kliamenakis () and H. Onur Bodur ()
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Argiro Kliamenakis: University of Ottawa
H. Onur Bodur: John Molson School of Business

Journal of Business Ethics, 2024, vol. 190, issue 2, No 6, 398 pages

Abstract: Abstract A popular form of cause marketing (CM) that has recently emerged is one requiring the consumer to perform a prescribed behavior—such as providing a product review or uploading a picture on social media alongside a hashtag—to trigger a donation from the firm to the charitable cause. While this approach may be engaging, its effectiveness in eliciting positive consumer responses toward the brand remains uncertain when compared to conventional forms of CM. The current research uses a moral self-signaling framework to examine the role of effort in CM on consumer attitudes toward the brand, consumer choice, and purchase and participation intentions. Five studies reveal that consumers who are concerned about their moral self-image prefer effort-based CM over no-effort CM. This effect emerges because consumers anticipate greater moral self-signaling utility from effort-based CM than from no-effort CM. However, this effect only occurs for CM campaigns where the consumer’s effort is private. Despite the prevalence of CM campaigns requiring public performance of effort (e.g., selfie campaigns), consumers seeking to reinforce their moral self-image view such campaigns unfavorably. Important implications of effort-based CM for firms, non-profits, and consumers are discussed.

Keywords: Cause marketing; Corporate social responsibility; Consumer effort; Morality; Moral self-concept; Identity; Self-signaling (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1007/s10551-023-05443-8

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