COVID-19 Uncertainty and Temporal Framing in Advertising for Online Experiential Consumption

Abstract

During the period of uncertainty and lack of control caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we investigated how consumers evaluate online experiences using messages framed in different temporal perspectives. In the midst of the coronavirus outbreak, companies have been offering their experiential services online either in single long sessions (i.e., proximal framed message) or multiple short sessions over time (i.e., distal framed message). We found significant two-way interactions between temporal frames and levels of uncertainty, such that consumers with high (vs. low) levels of uncertainty respond more favorably when a distal (vs. proximal) framed message is applied. The path from fluency to high-control coping explained the interaction effect between temporal framing and levels of uncertainty on behavioral outcomes toward experience goods.