Emotional Marketing: Using Social Taboos, Embarrassment and Fear

by: Aradhna Krishna

Publication Date: July 12, 2024
Length: 14 pages
Product ID#: 7-828-189

Core Disciplines: Marketing/Sales

Partner Collection:

Available Documents

Click on any button below to view the available document.

Don't see the document you need? Don't See the Document You Need?
Make sure you are registered and/or logged in to our site to view product documents. Once registered & approved, faculty, staff, & course aggregators will have access to full inspection copies and teaching notes for any of our materials.

$3.95

Need to make copies?

If you need to make copies, you MUST purchase the corresponding number of permissions, and you must own a single copy of the product.

Electronic Downloads are available immediately after purchase. "Quantity" reflects the number of copies you intend to use. Unauthorized distribution of these files is prohibited pursuant to term of use of this website.

Teaching Note

This product has a teaching note available. Available only to Registered Educators. Please login to view it.

Description

The use of intense emotions in marketing campaigns is not unusual. This case illustrates the use of negative emotions in advertising in order to decrease competition and enable prices to increase. It examines examples in two common emotional contexts—embarrassment and fear—reviewing ads promoting funerals, public service campaigns, mouthwash, diapers, and infant formula. Substantial issues about emotional marketing concern whether it is moral and whether it is deceptive.

The case includes discussion of social taboos and, as such, may upset the sensibilities of some students, although this is not the author’s intention. Please note that the phenomenon of social taboos creating such sensibility is precisely the basis of higher prices and the learning value of this case.

Teaching Objectives

After reading and discussing the material, students should:

  • Deeply consider the emotionality of marketing campaigns.
  • Understand how embarrassment, fear and guilt have been used in marketing campaigns.
  • Understand and appreciate the psychological theory of emotions.
  • Recognize that evoking negative emotions in consumers to reduce competition and increase prices and sales may have issues of morality.