Personalizing persuasion strategies to individuals’ personality traits in online advertising

To persuade consumers into buying products or services, advertisers make smart use of persuasion strategies, of which Cialdini’s Six principles of persuasion are most common. Although the general effects of these persuasion principles are widely investigated, limited research is done on individual differences in the effects of these tactics. With the increasing importance of online advertising and the possibilities big data offers, advertisers can enhance persuasion by further personalizing advertisements, using individual characteristics like personality traits. Prior studies showed first evidence for differences in susceptibility towards these persuasion strategies based on individuals’ personality traits. This study builds forward on these findings by assessing whether personality traits can potentially strengthen (or alter) the effect of persuasion strategies on online advertising effectiveness. Therefore, this study examined the moderating effect of 3 of the Big Five personality traits (Agreeableness, Openness, and Conscientiousness) on 2 of Cialdini’s Six principles of persuasion (Authority and Liking) and Online advertising effectiveness (Ad appeal, Brand attitude and Purchase intention). The study conducted an online survey-experiment with a 2 (Authority: high vs. low) by 2 (Liking: high vs. low) full factorial design, with a between-subject design. The sample consisted of 278 participants (N = 278). After performing moderated multiple regression analyses, it can be concluded that in this study Persuasion strategies did not influence Online advertising effectiveness and Personality traits therefore did not moderate this effect. Nonetheless, some promising interaction effects between Persuasion strategies and Personality traits and Personality traits and Online advertising effectiveness were found. These findings suggest that advertisements can be more effective when they are personalized to an individual's personality traits. Hence, future research should further examine this topic by improving the manipulations of Authority and Liking, and investigating interaction effects, rather than moderating effects. Until then, the use of persuasion principles and personality traits should be approached with some prudence. Moreover, marketers should test persuasion strategies extensively before incorporating them into advertising. Lastly, besides personality traits, it is recommended to assess other characteristics that could impact the effectiveness of persuasion principles, including age, culture and gender.