Are emojis an effective inclusive marketing strategy?

Abstract

In the current marketing environment, social inclusion has gained increasing relevance. Therefore, companies must become more socially responsible and address inclusion transparently in their branding strategies. Social Networking Sites, in particular Twitter, are very important means for sharing topics related with social inclusion. Furthermore, brands are increasingly using emojis as a strategy to get closer to consumers and stimulate the co-creation process. Thus, the objective of the present investigation is to understand to what extent inclusive emojis affect consumers' behaviour towards brands on Twitter, testing whether this effect is maximised when consumers have positive perceptions of the brand warmth and a favourable brand attitude. Additionally, we analyse whether the congruence between the tweet text and the emojis enhance the perception of brand warmth. In the Serial Mediation Analysis with Moderation that we proposed, we concluded that, when the effects of brand warmth and brand attitude are isolated, the effect of inclusive emojis on tweets is not statistically significant to support the initial hypothesis. However, when we consider all effects, we can verify that consumer responses are more positive when brands include inclusive emojis on tweets. This study puts forward a relevant contribution to the social inclusion of brands in social media literature, helping to identify which paths brands should follow to strengthen their relationship with targeted consumers. Nevertheless, this dissertation opens doors for future studies on social marketing, emphasising the importance of studying social inclusion.

Date of Award	27 Oct 2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Joana Machado (Supervisor) & Carla Martins (Co-Supervisor)