Analysis exhibits that name-dropping AI in advertising and marketing copy may backfire, reducing shopper belief and buy intent.
A WSU-led study printed within the Journal of Hospitality Advertising and marketing & Administration discovered that explicitly mentioning AI in product descriptions may flip off potential patrons regardless of AI’s rising presence in shopper items.
Key Findings
The research, polling 1,000+ U.S. adults, discovered AI-labeled merchandise persistently underperformed.
Lead writer Mesut Cicek of WSU famous: “AI mentions lower emotional belief, hurting buy intent.”
The assessments spanned numerous classes—good TVs, high-end electronics, medical units, and fintech. Members noticed an identical product descriptions, differing solely within the presence or absence of “synthetic intelligence.”
Affect on Excessive-Threat Merchandise
AI aversion spiked for “high-risk” choices, that are merchandise with steep monetary or security stakes in the event that they fail. This stuff naturally set off extra shopper anxiousness and uncertainty.
Cicek acknowledged:
“We examined the impact throughout eight completely different product and repair classes, and the outcomes have been all the identical: it’s a drawback to incorporate these sorts of phrases within the product descriptions.”
Implications For Entrepreneurs
The important thing takeaway for entrepreneurs is to rethink AI messaging. Cicek advises weighing AI mentions fastidiously or growing ways to spice up emotional belief.
Highlight product options and advantages, not AI tech. “Skip the AI buzzwords,” Cicek warns, particularly for high-risk choices.
The analysis underscores emotional belief as a key driver in AI product notion.
This creates a twin problem for AI-focused companies: innovate merchandise whereas concurrently constructing shopper confidence within the tech.
Trying Forward
AI’s rising presence in on a regular basis life highlights the necessity for cautious messaging about its capabilities in consumer-facing content material.
Entrepreneurs and product groups ought to reassess how they current AI options, balancing transparency and person consolation.
The research, co-authored by WSU professor Dogan Gursoy and Temple College affiliate professor Lu Lu lays the groundwork for additional analysis on shopper AI perceptions throughout completely different contexts.
As AI advances, companies should observe altering shopper sentiments and regulate advertising and marketing accordingly. This work exhibits that whereas AI can enhance product options, mentioning it in advertising and marketing could unexpectedly impression shopper conduct.
Featured Picture: Wachiwit/Shutterstock
