Evaluating Empirical Research into Music in Advertising: A Congruity Perspective

ABSTRACT This research provides a review and analysis of empirical studies focusing upon cognitive and affective response to music in advertising. It draws together an apparently disparate literature to reach conclusions that will be valuable to advertising practitioners and academics. Findings are categorized by introducing 10 original definitions of music/advertising congruity (score, mood, repetition, association, valence, semantic, genre, image, tempo, and timbre). This highlights the emergence of a coherent pattern in which increased music/advertising congruity contributes synergistically to communications effectiveness by enhancing purchase intent, brand attitude, recall facilitation, and affective response. However, additional evidence indicates that future research should assess the benefits of using more artfully incongruous musical stimuli.