Effect of advertisement focus on donation intention

This study examined whether different types of focus in donation advertisements affected potential donors' mental imagery fluency and donation intention. Construal level theory was employed in the research framework to explore how fundraising period and advertisement focus (process or outcome) affect consumers' mental imagery fluency and donation intention. Participants recruited from a marketing research company panel were asked to read process- or outcome-focused donation advertisements and answer questionnaires. The mental imagery of some participants was assessed in a product design scenario. This study revealed that consumers' construal level was likely to affect their mental imagery fluency in terms of imagining how raised funds are used; this in turn affected their donation intention. Furthermore, individuals' imagination visual mental imagery affected their donation intention. This study fills a gap in the literature related to advertisement focus and provides a valuable reference for those designing advertising campaigns for charitable organizations.