How brand teasing works across different cultures

Consumer perceptions of provocative advertising in Germany, Japan and the UAE.
1. Auflage 2025
ISBN: 978-3-8192-7392-6
Verlag: BoD - Books on Demand

Buch, Englisch, Band 1, 36 Seiten, Paperback, Format (B × H): 210 mm x 297 mm, Gewicht: 136 g

Reihe: Brand University Working Paper Series

Background
While globalization fosters connectivity between people, consumers, and brands, cultural differences continue to shape how messages are perceived. Humor is widely recognized as an effective advertising strategy that can enhance engagement and brand recall. However, its effectiveness depends on cultural context, as different audiences interpret humor in varying ways. This makes studying the cross-cultural impact of humor in advertising important for both researchers and marketers.

Aim
This study investigates how brand teasing (self-ironic advertising) is perceived across different cultural contexts. It aims to examine the moderating effects of cultural values and age on brand perception and determine whether humor mechanisms elicit different consumer responses in Western, Arab, and Asian markets.

Methodology
An online experiment was conducted across Germany, Japan, and the UAE, using a single advertising stimulus manipulated into three levels of provocation: just funny (not teasing), pro-social teasing (playful, positive) and anti-social teasing (provocative, offensive). The study measured brand perception, brand trust, perceived provocation and funniness, with Hofstede's cultural dimensions (power distance, individualism, and uncertainty avoidance) as key independent variables.

Contributions
By analyzing how cultural dimensions shape consumer responses to brand teasing, this thesis contributes to cross-cultural advertising research and provides insights into the effectiveness and risks of provocative brand communication. Findings are expected to bridge gaps in humor perception re-search and inform global marketing strategies by highlighting cultural sensitivities in brand messaging.

Keywords
Cross-cultural advertising, cross-cultural humor, cultural dimensions, Hofstede, brand teasing, teasing communication, provocative brand messages, brand perception, brand anthropomorphism, consumer psychology.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Daniel, Robert

Limon-Calisan, Prof. Dr. Yonca

Limon-Calisan, Yonca

Über Autor(innen)

Daniel, Robert
Robert Daniel is a strategy consultant and marketing professional with a strong academic and practical background in consumer behavior. He studied Commerce at the Vienna University of Economics and Business and completed an MBA in 2025, specializing in Consumer Psychology. His research focuses on purchase behavior and quantitative methods for decoding and measuring customer journeys.

Limon-Calisan, Prof. Dr. Yonca
Prof. Dr. Yonca Limon-Calisan is Professor and Vice President for Research at Brand University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg. She earned her PhD from Christian-Albrechts-University in Kiel, Germany. She has been a visiting scholar at the University of Southern California's Brain and Creativity Institute and at the University of Michigan's Department of Social Psychology.Her research broadly focuses on consumer psychology and brand management, with specific interests in brand equity, priming, store atmospherics, brand purpose, and the neural mechanisms underlying personality transfer from testimonials to brands.

Prof. Dr. Yonca Limon-Calisan:
Prof. Dr. Yonca Limon-Calisan is Professor and Vice President for Research at Brand University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg. She earned her PhD from Christian-Albrechts-University in Kiel, Germany. She has been a visiting scholar at the University of Southern California's Brain and Creativity Institute and at the University of Michigan's Department of Social Psychology.Her research broadly focuses on consumer psychology and brand management, with specific interests in brand equity, priming, store atmospherics, brand purpose, and the neural mechanisms underlying personality transfer from testimonials to brands.

Robert Daniel:
Robert Daniel is a strategy consultant and marketing professional with a strong academic and practical background in consumer behavior. He studied Commerce at the Vienna University of Economics and Business and completed an MBA in 2025, specializing in Consumer Psychology. His research focuses on purchase behavior and quantitative methods for decoding and measuring customer journeys.