Contraintuitive communication in social marketing

experiments with neuroscientific techniques

Abstract

Purpose: Analyze the effectiveness of counterintuitive communication in social marketing in terms of consumer reception, evaluation and response.

Method: Hypothetical-deductive approach, with an experimental method, carried out in three subsequent stages: the first two exploratory, with the collection of implicit data from eye-tracking (n=22) and skin conductance (n=17), followed by the explanatory (n=72), with self-declared data collection. Two donation collection campaigns linked to the same social cause (homeless people in a context of social exclusion) were compared, differing, however, the protagonism: intuitive, characterized by the white cisgender woman, versus counterintuitive, characterized by the black transsexual woman.

Originality/Relevance: Originality of the effort to intersect the themes of marketing communication in the social sphere and counterintuitive communication, which is presented as even more important due to the scope of investigation: in relation to the main interested party, the target audience. Also, the hypothetical-deductive approach is highlighted, complemented by the adoption of neuroscientific techniques, such as eye-tracking and skin conductance, which contributed to the aggregation of important empirical evidence, in a more comprehensive way.

 Results: Confirm the greater effectiveness of the counterintuitive social campaign in the communicational sense, attesting this influence in broad terms, with better attributions in skin conductance and all four self-declarations, managing to validate five of the six hypotheses raised.

Theoretical/methodological contributions: The study contributes to endorse the importance of counterintuitive communication, extending its application potential, such as in the social sphere.