Date of Award
Spring 2018
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science (BS)
Advisor(s)
Luke Kachersky
Abstract
This research studies how topic knowledge (TK), which is described in the Persuasion Knowledge Model, can explain consumer acceptance of a company’s post-crisis messaging. This paper begins with an introduction to brand crises’ effect on consumer trust. After that, a review of current literature regarding the topic is conducted to discuss consumer openness to ad messaging and how topic knowledge helps explain that. In order to examine the effects of TK, we simulated a brand crisis scenario during which a brand takes one of two response methods: apology or denial. The expected result was that consumers would be more receptive to ad messaging the more topic knowledge about the incident that they possess because they would be coming from a more informed perspective and would be more interested in the message. We also expected apology to be more effective than denial. While apology did perform better than denial, our results were inconclusive with regards to topic knowledge. Although the conclusions of this research were not statistically significant, we hope that future research can use our findings as a starting base for new studies and that we can spark a discussion on how brands can improve their messaging to appeal to consumers with varying levels of topic knowledge.
Recommended Citation
Deitrick, Michaela, "The Influence of Persuasion Knowledge on Consumer Perception of Messaging Following a Brand Crisis" (2018). Gabelli School of Business Honors Thesis Collection. 117.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/gabelli_thesis/117
