Anthropomorphic Brand Voice in Brand-Consumer Interactions

Abstract

In this dissertation, I explore the relational consequences of anthropomorphic brand voice in brand-consumer interactions. In the first essay, I demonstrate that brand teasing affects consumers perceptions of and relationships with a teasing brand. Specifically, I show that teasing, over and above mere humor, anthropomorphizes a teasing brand and, when that teasing is prosocial, leads to heightened self-brand connection. I explore these effects in eleven studies using data scraped from Twitter and TikTok, lab experiments, and data generated by large language models. In the second essay, I explore “bids for engagement” as another uniquely anthropomorphic form of brand communication. Specifically, I find that when brands ask consumers to engage (i.e., make a bid for consumer engagement), consumers associate these requests with interpersonal bids for connection and, as a result, anthropomorphize the bidding brand. This results in brands being held to a higher standard of connection, leading to heightened (decreased) brand attitudes when a consumer’s engagement is subsequently recognized (unrecognized). I demonstrate these effects in 9 studies, two of which make use of scraped data from twitter and Instagram.