Emoji through the Lens of Perceived Gender
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Date
2020-05
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Publisher
The Ohio State University
Abstract
Past social media advertising campaigns highlight that when emojis "fit" the products, emojis can help create buzz through social media marketing. Many studies suggest that products possess gender traits that impact consumer behavior. However, no study demonstrates if emojis possess such gender traits and whether emojis' gender traits affect consumer behavior in the same way as perceived product gender. These gaps form the basis for the three studies in this research. In study 1, participants (N = 172, Female = 98, Male = 74) provided open-ended word descriptions of emojis as well as the rating of an emojis' gender traits. Overall, participants think emojis have masculine or feminine traits. Specifically, heart-related emojis, smiling face emojis, and sad emojis were generally considered more feminine, while emojis of body parts were generally rated as more masculine. Besides, feminine emojis were generally associated with stronger and more positive sentiment and masculine emojis were associated with weaker and less positive sentiment. In study 2, participants (N = 219, Female = 100, Male = 119) were shown different versions of product promotion tweets, with or without emojis. They were asked to answer questions on current feelings, perceptions of the gender of the tweet sender and the target audience, attitude toward the product, and purchase intention. The results demonstrate that emoji gender to product gender congruence or incongruence was not a deciding factor of consumers' attitudes toward the product and purchase intentions. In some cases, however, emoji gender to product gender congruence or incongruence would affect purchase intention and alter participants' perceptions of the tweet sender and the target audience's gender. Such influence was very situational. experience. In study 3, participants (N = 209, Female = 105, Male = 102, Prefer not to answer = 2) were shown various versions of promotional email subject, with or without emojis. They were asked to indicate the actions they would take after seeing the email, emotions conveyed in the email, perceptions of the gender of the tweet sender and the target audience, as well as thoughts on brand familiarity, brand favorability, product quality and product value. The results show that emoji gender to product gender congruence or incongruence was not a deciding factor on the action consumers would take after seeing the email or the perceived emotions of emails. In certain cases, however, emoji gender to product gender congruence or incongruence would influence the perceived emotions of emails. Participants' gender is not a significant factor in any of the results. Results of study 2 and study 3 have both shown some situational findings. In this regard, being mindful of emojis' gender traits can still assist the business in creating a smooth customer experience.
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Keywords
Digital Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Email Marketing, Emojis, Gender, Perceived Gender