The influence of deviant advertisements on customer responses: The role of cultural tightness in emerging and developed economies

Abstract Capturing and gaining customers' attention is key to the success of any business. Deviant advertising, including atypical marketing activities that diverge from a social norm, can either be acknowledged due to its attention‐generating character, or is—more often—deemed inappropriate and results in unfavorable consumer responses. This paper reinforces that, in general, ads with deviant content (e.g., the depiction of violence) are evaluated worse as compared to ads portraying nondeviant content. In particular, the role of cultural tightness (i.e., strictness of obeying social norms within society) is empirically examined in analyzing deviant advertisements and its effects on ad attitude and customer responses in an emerging and developed economy. Economic development predominantly affects customer responses of nondeviant ad content (but not deviant ad content). By employing qualitative and quantitative studies, including communicational and observational data collection, this research shows that deviant depictions (vs. nondeviant ads) promote negative attitudes toward ads, and consumers are culturally sensitive, which provides important managerial implications for international marketers.