Conveying brand authenticity through television advertising in a transmedia world

Television advertising is an important channel through which brands create equity, based on the brand associations that consumers derive from viewing television advertisements (TV ads). This study examines how these associations' effect on brand authenticity may depend on how brand-related information is received through multiple media channels. The entity-referent correspondence framework conceptualises brand authenticity along three dimensions of truthfulness. Based on a national panel involving food brands, this study indicates that TV ad-related brand associations strongly influence brand authenticity, depending on consumer social brand engagement and brand scandal awareness. In turn, brand authenticity reinforces brand equity by improving brand clarity and uniqueness. Our findings provide insights to assist advertisers design TV advertising campaigns that create authentic brands.