Modeling the Elements and Effects of 
Global Viral Advertising Content: 
A Cross-cultural Framework

Abstract

With advancements in information and communication technology, a lot of changes have come in the way the products are being promoted by the marketers across the globe. Viral marketing incites the consumers to disseminate marketing content through 
various modes and one of which includes viral advertisements. The study analysed the content of global advertisements to explore the dominating factors in the ad content which makes them viral across the globe. Survey was conducted online among the respondents of Indian and American origin for measuring the effectiveness of the dominating elements on brand attitude and respondents’ intentions to purchase the advertised brand and to share the corresponding advertisements. Structural equation modeling (SEM), a multivariate technique, was used on two samples to measure effectiveness of advertising content across two countries. The content analysis results show that although a standardized advertising strategy is used across the global level, but as indicated by the distinctions revealed from the empirical analysis of choices of two cultures, it can be inferred that advertisement should be fairly similar across the different cultures. The study leaves an implication for the advertisers to customize their advertising content in compliance with the uniqueness of culture in different countries.