Fear advertisements: influencing consumers to make better health decisions

From a goal-theoretic framework, this paper proposes that fear-based framing of health messages can lead to positive decision intentions, thus helping consumers make better future health-related choices. Across two experiments, findings demonstrate that the type of advertisement (fear versus hope) and food prime (indulgent versus non-indulgent) interact to determine goal-related choice focus – such as subsequent indulgence intention or intention to implement an exercise health goal. Research implications include the suggestion that if marketers properly execute fear-primed promotional messages with non-indulgent food offerings, they can satisfy the notion that ‘One good health decision can lead to another.’