Pride, Guilt, and Self-Regulation in Cause-Related Marketing Advertisements

The use of cause-related marketing (CRM), which occurs when company donations are tied to consumer transactions, has increased significantly in recent years. Traditionally, marketers seeking to advertise charitable support have used guilt appeals. More recently, however, positive appeals such as pride have emerged as viable alternatives. This research explores the effectiveness of guilt and pride appeals in CRM advertising through an application of regulatory focus theory. Across three studies, it is demonstrated that pride appeals are effective for individuals with promotion regulatory orientations. These findings are replicated and explained through the mediating variable of self-efficacy. In addition, the effectiveness of guilt appeals does not differ based on regulatory orientation. This work offers novel findings on the understudied emotion of pride, as well as a more robust understanding of guilt appeals in CRM advertising.