Middle-East Journal of Scientific Research 21 (1): 244-248, 2014

ISSN 1990-9233
IDOSI Publications, 2014
DOI: 10.5829/idosi.mejsr.2014.21.01.21180

Impact of Deceptive Advertising on Customer Behavior and Attitude:

Literature Viewpoint
1
Asad Ibrahim Khan and 2Amer Rajput

1
COMSATS Institute of Information Technology Wah Campus, Pakistan
2
Marketing at Department of Management Science

Abstract: This review article discusses relationship about perceived usefulness, appeal, entertainment,
deceptive advertising and customer behavior. Taylor & Francis, Springer Link, Wiley Online Library, Science
Direct, ABI/INFORM Global, EBSCO Host and Emerald scholarly databases are inspected for this research
endeavor. Advertising plays a vital role to increase sales, to enhance customer loyalty, to improve product and
service awareness, as well as to keep a long term relationship with customers. Therefore, advertising key is a
key to success for the product and service providing companies. Advertising plays much more important role
in todays marketing strategy. Literature review about advertising perceived usefulness, appeal, entertainment
shows positive association with customer behavior and attitude; however, there will be a negative impact of
deceptive advertising on customer behavior and attitude. This article discusses advertising literature; the
impact of advertising on customer behavior and attitude; as well as the impact of deceptive advertising on
customer behavior and attitude.

Key words: Advertising Customer behavior Customer attitude Deceptive advertising

INTRODUCTION countless extra examples. Even though firms could relish

Today firms own an unprecedented and quickly
enhancing skill to notice features concerning people and
grasp them alongside advertising established on this
information. For instance, an individuals web browsing
could be pursued via data stored in his browser.
Even newer knowledge permits Internet ability providers
to target ads by undeviatingly pursuing that websites
customers visit. Similarly, advances permit cable
television operators to hold exceedingly customized ads
to viewers. Social networking locations such as Facebook
and MySpace and email services such as those of Yahoo
and Google, permit ads to be assisted established on
consumer-generated data (such as the contents of email).
Dunkin Donuts is assessing new knowledge that will
change the ad displayed at the counter established on
the emergence of the customer. Supermarkets and
supplementary retail outlets are commencing to proposal
coupons to customers at checkout established on their
beforehand recorded shopping habits. There are
supplementary data concerning customers, little
customers ponder publicizing exasperating on
average.
This research endeavor discusses advertising
behaviors and instruments utilized in advancing precise
products and their features by employing disparate
advertising channels encompassing print, broadcast and
covert. Casual empiricism suggests that deceptive
advertising concerning product and product quality is
prevalent and countless classes of theories discover its
reasons and consequences. Yet there is a slight sharp
empirical fact that articulates to such theories. This gap is
due in portion to formidable measurement challenges; in
most settings, computing deceptive advertising needs
methodical, high-frequency data (on ads, product quality
and inventories) that is tough to observe. Here in this
paper we are trying to find out this aspect by
acknowledging disparate instruments use to develop ads.
By reading this paper, reader will easily learn about
perceived usefulness, appeal and entertainment used in

Corresponding Author: Asad Ibrahim Khan, COMSATS Institute of Information Technology Wah Campus, Pakistan .

244
 Middle-East J. Sci. Res., 21 (1): 244-248, 2014
ads which affects the behavior of customer positively or
negatively with the influence of deception prevailing in
the ad.
Literature Review: This section discusses advertising
perceived usefulness, advertising appeals, deceptive
advertising, customer behavior and attitude.
Advertising Perceived Usefulness: The method of
reasoning for the effect of observed usefulness on
disturbance might be endowed by reactance theory [1].
After an individual's freedom is debilitated, the individual
will attempt to reestablish their freedom by displaying
dislike attitude or challenging pressures to acclimate [1].
Irritation is similar to reactance, as customers rate to
plunge advertising provided that they recognize that
promoting is nosy. Influence attempts are not dependably
watched as interfering. The comprehension of
intrusiveness could be diminished if the message is
significant for the target market and provided that it gives
worth to the beneficiary [2, 3]. Along these lines,
advertising can outfit pertinent information and this
arranges a mental power that restricts reactance. Given the
participation of reactance, the degree to that customers
perceive profits from advertising should counter the
comprehension of intrusiveness and, subsequently,
irritation.
This association has been maintained in preceding
research. [2] place observed intrusiveness could be
reduced for ads that are deemed of high quality. [3]
moreover identified that customers responded with
irritation and detachment towards advertising unless the
information held to hold utility worth for them. Customers
can get bothered by advertising adding their
correspondence and information points unless it has a bit
observed worth, by introducing discounts or dissimilar
recommendations crosswise over coupons, for instance.
Customers are also delicate to the observed usefulness of
advertising, i.e. accessing content that they couldn't have
had the ability to admission or else like show allowing
permits to be purchased in an hour [4].
Advertising Appeals: Rational and balanced appeals are
ordinarily created on accurate information which
concentrates on product qualities. Passionate and
emotional appeals, instead, ordinarily focus to present
hopeful feelings and build a brand personality. Passionate
and emotional appeals is being identified the most capable
245
after brand feedback and reply involvement and
advertising reminder or remembrance involvement are low,
while rational and balanced appeals are revealed to be
modestly additional able after customers are exceedingly
included with the advertisement and the brand [5].
Advertising with value-expressive appeals are
persuading after the product is worth expressive, while
utilitarian appeals are persuading after the product is
utilitarian [6]. The succession of studies explained
confirmation regarding behavior/ attitude purposes
associated with distinct products and presented that
behavior/ attitude to prepare which support unique
purposes response to dissimilar sorts of advertising
appeals [7]. In this scrutiny, advertisements' utilization of
appeals a "feel" result of sensible involvement is
assessed. Appeals and benefits are around the most
fundamental variables changing positively finishing
concerning users observe worth of advertising.
Advertisement benefits and appeals are divided in three
subgroups: early, informative content (i.e. balanced and
rational appeals) concentrating on truthful information, for
example, product benefits and features, change positively
concerning customers' state of mind [8, 9]. However, there
is just an immaterial association around usefulness and
attitude toward advertising.
Second, amusement, for example, humorous contents
and interactive games, can raise not just shoppers'
involvement and feeling of enjoyment yet furthermore
observed advertising worth [8, 10-13]. Interactive appeals
typically further divided into reasonable and passionate
and emotional appeals [6]. The significance of various
elements associated with effectiveness of advertising was
investigated as well over an exploratory study [9]. The
discoveries demonstrate that motivating force,
intelligence, advertising appeal, product involvement and
disposition in the direction of advertising is completed
undeviatingly affect attitude or behavior toward the brand
and toward the advertisement and in addition buying
intentions. The repercussions of the run discovered
insight that has a stronger concentration on these
components is fundamental to increase the adequacy of
advertising campaigns.
Characteristic of information (information concerning
the product, information concerning the closest purpose
of sale and newsletter/ magazines), entertainment (
downloadable games, films, music and recreations), offer
(cash and goods prizes that are accomplished by going to
challenges, tests and voting) and coupon ( examination
 Middle-East J. Sci. Res., 21 (1): 244-248, 2014
packages and discounts), which can increase worth of the
finalized campaign and in loop can change the purchasers'
participation to m-advertising campaigns [14]. Advertising
is skilled just after it makes a win-win circumstance for
both parties' shopper and advertiser. A distinguished
study included worth crosswise over excitement and
information as the most fundamental drivers of
advertising acceptance [15]. Entertainment services can
raise customer loyalty and add worth for the customer. As
most people have a usual playfulness, bestowing games
and prizes yields elevated participation, noted a marketing
expert. Sending games and prizes to the customers is a
fun method to appeal and retain customers; entertainment
is a critical factor for advertising. Entertainment is the skill
to arouse aesthetic pleasure [16]. It is vital that the
message is concise and humorous and therefore instantly
gets consumers attention.
A customer feeling of pleasure associated with
advertisements is extremely vital and their finished
attitude associated in the direction of them. These
features can be utilized to make customers extra
acquainted with the service or product. These
characteristics could be used to include customers
additional seriously and make them additional familiar with
the promoted product or service. Japanese mobile
communication service providers have to a great degree
advertised mobile Internet as a method for entertainment
right from the beginning. The additional interesting things
make customers to remind the advertising entertainment
services. Cases for such services ought to be with firm
logos (confounds), ringtones of the firm signature
melody, jokes, soothsaying, rivalries and so on.
Deceptive Advertising: A stable misrepresenting to the
buyer the qualities of the promoted product and
consequently the anticipated utility from retaining the
product [17]. Examples contain deceptive advertising,
high-pressure vending, unsafe produce, irresponsible
subject of trust cards, inducements, unsafe working
conditions, as well as countless others [18]. Consumers
who have been closely associated alongside the goods or
who fully target to buy the goods are exceedingly
probable to comprehend each (alleged) deceptive
advertising, countless competition authorities,
encompassing the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC),
the European Commission, the Australian Competition
and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and the Japanese Fair
Trade Commission (JFTC), impose laws considering
246
misleading representation. For instance, the US FTC Act
states that Unfair methods of competition in or altering
transactions and unfair or deceptive acts or practices
in or altering transactions, are hereby uttered unlawful
[19].
If marketing is deceptive, if people are being
manipulated, people are being misled and whereas this is
consented, it does not enthuse belief or whatever good in
the upcoming [20]. Assuming that no one trusts a case in
ad, then it is not misleading regardless of the fact that it is
untruthful and exaggerated [21]. The minimum beguiling
ads present chose truths that are pivotal however don't
show the entire picture, sought after by ads that present
unimportant certainties. The trickiest ads are those that
present encompassing puffery, non-certainties that are
closest to deception [22]. Deceptive habits of retailers are
probable to have the biggest negative results on customer
satisfaction and loyalty intentions; the extent to that
deceptive habits contain fraud is a convoluted issue.
Main work in advertising deception by now counseled
concerning the difficulties of delineating, regulating and
establishing the connection among deception and fraud
[23].
Behavior and Attitude: Various researches have
concentrated on behavior/ attitudes regarding advertising
in completed. The vast majority of these researches
uncover negative behavior and attitudes around the
people of US. They too affirm the aftereffect of
demographic elements, for example, period, gender, salary,
challenge and education on commercial conduct and state
of mind. Generally, the energetic, individuals of less pay
and education, elucidate additional confirmed behavior
and attitudes toward promoting in finalized these
groups are refers to the individuals who are uncovered
less wary of advertising [24].
A study has examined behavior and attitudes toward
promoting in universal markets. Quite, customers in
developing states that are checked by low for per capita
expenditure and less introduction to advertising are
discover to have uncertainties concerning strategies and
advertising entitlements [25]; that accelerated a lifted level
of distrust and mighty prop for bigger power laws [26].
Then, conflicting with discoveries of researches on US
customers, those with high level of awareness and
education are uncovered to have additional agreed
attitudes and behaviors towards advertising [27].
Few studies have discovered behavior and attitudes in
 Middle-East J. Sci. Res., 21 (1): 244-248, 2014
connection to deceptive advertising; as well as to
scientifically discover the consumers behavior and
attitudes in the direction of advertising deception [25].
CONCLUSION
Deceptive advertising is a controversial matter. May
be the advertisers avoid agreeing on whether a particular
advertisement is deceptive. However, the findings from
the literature suggest and confirm that more or less every
product producer and service provider is somehow
engaged in lifting false claims and exaggerations which is
deceptions; while, promoting and campaigning for the
products and services. Moreover, it is apparent that the
advertisers, who do not mislead to their customers,
always enjoy market shares more than those who
exaggerate. Thus, this study suggests that advertising
companies should not focus on making false claims with
deceptive advertising. Advertising should be focused on
the level of competitive services to generate positive
customer attitude and behavior towards the advertised
product or service.
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