1. Introduction
The current internationalization period plays an increasing role in marketing communication research, mainly through new persuasive techniques, in order to make an entry into the foreign market while retaining their position as a leader in the domestic market. Marketing communication is a link between company and consumer that requires the integration of ethical persuasive techniques. In recent decades, the analysis of persuasive techniques has dominated the empirical and theoretical literature [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12]. From an international perspective, art may be an important means of persuasion for the country of origin [7,11,13] and may be a source of competitive advantage for market communication [10,14,15].
Marketing communication, as an important cultural phenomenon in modern society [7,16], has only been tangentially examined in terms of sustainability [17,18,19]. Although there are studies in the scientific literature related to modern persuasion practices [20,21,22,23,24,25], few studies have analyzed the associated ethical issues [26,27]. Marketers are required to consider both traditional and modern persuasion techniques to create strategic value. Dion and Arnould [14] explained the effect of integrating art into marketing communication strategies, while Ogden et al. [28], Tran et al. [29], and Hwanga and Ohb [30] have used music in order to enhance consumers’ emotional experiences. The studies that analyzed links between sustainability and culture, art, marketing communication, rhetoric, or persuasion represent an interest.
The objective of this study was to test the influence of artistic communication on customer perception, implying a sustainable effect on the country of origin. The empirical and theoretical results made it possible to answer the research question. These results indicate that artistic persuasion influenced customers’ perceptions from a marketing communication analysis perspective.
The study model and hypotheses were confirmed. The empirical and theoretical results suggested that the customers’ perceptions of domestic brands depended positively on ethical persuasion based on culture and art as a sustainable effect on their country of origin. Regarding customers operating in international markets, this hypothesis was confirmed. Thus, it was concluded that the higher the value of art integration in ethical persuasion, the higher the customer’s ethnocentrism, while implying a sustainable effect on the country of origin, exactly as expected. This research presented the first empirical explanation regarding the value of art and culture from an ethical persuasion analysis that involved favoritism toward domestic products as a sustainable effect on the country of origin.
2. Review of Literature
In the recent internationalization period, marketing communication has had an impact on customers’ perceptions of their country of origin [31]. In recent years, marketing has been an important “catalyst” in the process of economic development [32], with an impact on customers’ quality of life and “other related issues” [33]. The core of marketing is represented by companies and their approaches to the market environment by providing companies with tools to improve their values and the values of their customers [34]. Marketing integration needs to be implemented in the organizational structure of the company [35].
In the last four decades, the country of origin effect was studied by international researchers [36,37,38,39,40]. Furthermore, an analysis of the country of origin’s image advantage [41,42,43] and a meta-analysis [44] were conducted. The country of origin effect was studied in terms of customer ethnocentrism and animosity [45,46,47]. Moreover, the relationship between the country of origin and equity theory [48] and the country of origin’s sustainable reputation contribution [49] to the international expansion of the multinational market [50] represented an interest.
Besides its economic role, modern marketing communication also has a motivational effect [51]. It creates a new value system and changes the customer’s world perception values [52]. In the globalization era, with increasing technological importance, marketers are required to consider human essence, namely, the customer’s subconscious [53], while emotional information is processed unconsciously [54]. Persuasive marketing communication based on ethics is considered to have a sustainable effect on the country of origin.
For the past few decades, the analysis of persuasion has dominated the theoretical literature [1,2,3,4,6,7,10,11,12]. Furthermore, meta-analyses of persuasive communication theory were described [55,56]. Marketers tend to implement persuasive practices. Persuasive style effectiveness has an impact on marketing communication in accordance with the type of persuasive tactic used. Effective communication plays a key role in marketing structure [27]. Over time, marketers have highlighted a variety of persuasive practices in marketing communication that have an impact on consumers.
2.1. Traditional and Modern Approaches to Persuasive Marketing Communication
From the beginning of the concept, persuasive communication was named rhetoric—“the science and art of persuasion”—and was mainly focused on credibility, reason, and emotions [5]. In “the post-World War II consumer boom,” the Hidden Persuaders book was the first to mention persuasive techniques that shaped public opinion, advertising practices, research, and regulation in the marketing industry [8]. The role of rhetoric is rooted in argument, poetry, and persuasion. In marketing communication, it refers to the economic stories’ dependence on the rhetoric in the business environment. Milberg [57] measured the value of rhetoric in analyzing some articles’ content with three items regarding their implications in the international trade field, their implications on explicit or implicit policy, and whether the articles contained empirical content. By incorporating persuasive communications principles, marketers tend to increase their success and encourage customer behavior change.
Clarke [2] noted that complex information needs to be presented in “a written format,” while personal contact is more effective for persuasion as a social influence form. Moreover, it was noted that a prior persuasive message that presents something with insufficient information tends to influence subsequent messages with an influence on customer behavior [12]. Catoiu et al. [58] mentioned that a company’s marketing communication based on price fairness may influence customers’ “value perception” and their buying intentions. The company’s message is considered efficient regarding an issue that needs to be solved in accordance with others who have “handled” situations like that in a consistent and cooperative style of marketing communication that is advantageous for customer satisfaction [9]. One may consider persuasive tools as companies’ information based on cause-related campaigns that are creating a favorable brand image [59] and on corporate social responsibility [60,61], which increases a company’s reputation and positive image [62,63].
Persuasive strategies that facilitate “the social effects” on companies and individuals are considered trustworthy. Kupor et al. [6] assumed that highlighting a target’s achievement or a target’s potential would influence consumers’ perceptions. For unmotivated consumers, it is recommended to implement an image strategy that involves consumers in “the advertisement’s message” to enhance their motivational level [64]. Allison et al. [1] assumed that responsible companies are required to implement persuasive models based on issue-relevant information, while inexperienced ones tend to be influenced by a group identity cue.
Tuka et al. [65] defined positive persuasive attempts in marketing communications as those that are used primarily under conditions of dissimilarity and only after the impact of similarity. It is considered that a company’s informative campaigns highlighting itself as a product leader that is offering innovative products of superior quality [66] may change customer behavior. Dasa et al. [67] noted that the concept is based on a study of persuasion, knowledge, pricing, and customer mood, which influence customers’ decisions to buy and the underlying marketer pricing tactics. One may consider highlighting online payment security, convenience, and availability [68] or merchandising practices that “increase the visibility of sustainable products” [69], which may influence consumer behavior. Hedhli et al. [4] suggested that using marketing communication based on celebrity credibility acts as a peripheral and also a central element with persuasive effects, namely, as an internalization dual role.
It is a known fact that customized advertising is proactively generated by the customer and persuaded by the customer’s intervention in the advertising process and marketing communication changes. Personalizing marketing communication fosters positive customer and connection experiences [70], while interpersonal persuasiveness influences customer attitudes [71].
The integration of both interactive and traditional media tends to be more effective for marketing communication campaigns [72]. The Internet and mobile devices “have become useful tools” [73] in the digital era and this recent pandemic period. The cyber environment is a challenge and also an opportunity for both companies and consumers, where this requires persuasive information to be trustworthy [74]. All parts of digitalization, such as artificial intelligence [75]; the Internet of things; chatbots; “focus on data, online reputation, and virtual reality” [76]; and the big data analytics context [77], need to be integrated into the company’s marketing communication. Schaper and Schicktanz [16] also noted that websites have frequently transposed different forms of persuasive techniques as a “visual makeup.” As social media begins to play a key role in marketing communications by building customer relationships [78], its effective integration into the company’s marketing communication is becoming necessary.
Modern marketing techniques of persuasion consider viral stealth marketing. Furthermore, buzz marketing, which integrates persuasive forms used by influencers, is a traditional or electronic word-of-mouth environment. Word-of-mouth communication establishes a personal interaction and allows for subtle communication with customers [79]. In order to change consumer behavior, word-of-mouth effects are mentioned as being a force [80]. Persuasive communication has been adapted to the modern environment in an emerging digital marketplace [81]. Waters et al. [82] mentioned that companies are using social media communication techniques through the theory of entertainment persuasion. Persuasive strategies and tactics are influencing a company’s popularity.
2.2. Art-Based Marketing Communication
The present period is characterized by an increasing “focus on science” and art. For decades, research on marketing communication and persuasion has dominated the empirical and theoretical literature, while art’s role in persuasive marketing communication has been studied only tangentially [7,10,11,13,15,83]. Caniato et al. [84] considered whether revisiting eclectic and holistic thinking can encourage “both art and science” in future research. Countries around the world compete for customer attention, and cultural heritage exploited in a sustainable manner is vital to a community’s quality of life improvement [85].
Suh et al. [86] analyzed the relationship between the country of origin effect and cultural appropriation. It is a well-known fact that art and cultural production add value and are an important part of the global economy. It can be considered that art and culture represent a symbolic contribution to prestige for individuals, cities, and countries [87]. Art and culture are considered appropriate to be used in marketing communications. Clifton [41] described a country’s marketing communication as images based on “artistic, cultural, and heritage icons” and its industrial or sporting past. Artistic communication is an integral part of marketing communication. In a case study of European capitals, Rosa, Bocci, and Dryjanska [88] concluded that the contents of the capitals’ websites with aesthetic, artistic, historical, art-architectural, and cultural aspects have an influence on consumer behavior. The authors assumed that cultural offers on websites are required to include calendars of events, exhibitions, music, theater, trade fairs, and festivals. On the websites of different European capitals, there are frequent references to aesthetics. As examples, in France, the focus was art; in Belgium, it was art and design; in Austria, it was design and opera; in Spain, it was cinema; and in Germany, it was mostly cited as literature on the Berlin website. The arts’ potential may boost societal transformations [89].
Art can support marketers in obtaining knowledge, learning from experience, and benefiting from new opportunities. Hagtvedt and Patrick [90] were the first to analyze the “art infusion effect.” Marketers integrate art into their marketing communication by recreating famous paintings as backgrounds or prints on packages [15], by integrating music [29,91], through mobile applications [28], or as websites’ background music [30]. One may consider that art’s inclusion in marketing communication generates awe [14] and creates emotions [15].
2.3. Hypotheses Developed from the Literature
In the present context of internationalization, countries, cities, and companies are vulnerable as they lose touch with their final customers. This brings the importance of marketing communication research to the fore. The process of international integration [24] requires countries to make a significant change in marketing communication. Orts [92] mentioned that there is a relationship between persuasion and power distance. Communication and social change occur at many levels, mainly at the neurological level of the national state and the human community [93]. Persuasion or rhetoric [21,22,94] may help marketers to make a difference while the distance becomes significant due to the business environment’s internationalization.
Zorn and Koidl [95] mentioned marketing, culture, and sales as one concept. Culture is both an important economic development element and an indicator of individual quality of life wellness [96]. In the context of globalization, a nation’s cultural differences interact with the business environment [97]. Shahid and Ashfaq [24] explored the cultural depiction in multinationals’ marketing communication. A cultural economy represents the importance of culture, while cultural goods have both economic and artistic value. In 1980, UNESCO started the creation of cultural policies and the dedication of funds for this important sector. The cultural marketing concept implements tactics and strategies for promoting and developing both the cultural and artistic sectors [98]. The value of the cultural heritage of World Heritage Sites by UNESCO may strengthen the national image of countries [99]. The hybrid cultural–industrial policies of cities in different countries suggest that traditional welfare-based arts policies may target internal processes or cultural dynamics as a production system [20]. Baumgarth and Wieker [100] determined that consumers perceive graffiti or street art as art with a positive influence on aproduct’s evaluation. It is essential to research cultural potential and to identify a cultural strategy [96] for the development of a country or city.
Famous artistic creations are considered to constitute the millennium spiritual culture of human society [101]. It is known that factors that determine the social value of a country’s heritage are existence, economic, aesthetic, and legacy value [99]. Suh et al. [86] considered that cultural appropriation positively influences the country of origin’s effect, meaning the attitude toward the domestic country, its companies, its products, and customer purchase intentions. Luka et al. [7] noted that cultural policies and models are different in accordance with a country or region, but marketing communication can make sustainability relevant. Cultural differences in predicting equity theory [102] are important for a country’s sustainable development. Istudor et al. [17] noted that migration to EU member states plus the United Kingdom is also directly influenced by “the achievement of the sustainable development goals” of countries. Romanian cultural heritage is “a proud remembrance of the heritage conveyed” [103] and of the sustainable environment [19]. Pirosca et al. [18] noted that some universities in Romania adopt a sustainability strategy in order to make a difference, which led to the development of the country’s image.
Modern science analyzes rhetoric with persuasive effects. Castillo [21] described vocal manipulation as part of rhetoric. Moreover, rhetoric, as part of the communication field, is an integral part of verbal and written information [22]. Sabie and Androniceanu [27] noted that marketing communication may have both a positive impact by obtaining desired customer behaviors or achieving objectives and a negative impact by distorting messages or causing frustration and tension. Higgins and Walkerb [5] mentioned that company marketing communication influences social actors’ ways of thinking, feeling, and acting. Language is assumed to be important [104], while different dialects of the spokesperson are a persuasive marketing tool to influence multilingual environments, such as China [105].
Rhetoric has endured in each culture’s literary, artistic, and folkloric history [106]. Rhetoric, or persuasion, needs to be based on morality and ethical communication. It is assumed that English travel writing was intended to manipulate the image of Romania. Marketers are required to appeal in terms of ethics and morality [94]. Pop, Dabija, and Iorga [26] noted the importance of the ethical dimension of the persuasion model’s impact. Ethics is applicable to both “traditional marketing actions” and activities based on “neuro-marketing research.” Marketers need to use ethical and moral terms to have a sustainable impact.
Hence, we proposed the following hypothesis:
Culture-based persuasion in marketing communication has a positive effect on consumer behavior that implies a sustainable effect on the country of origin.
Analyzing the effectiveness of communication tools is a complex process. Effective communication may actively support the sustainable development of companies [107]. Persuasive ethical marketing communication supports the promotion of sustainable business development [108], while sustainability-oriented consumers tend to prefer domestic products [109]. Morand and Merriman [110] considered that equality theory, as a counterbalance to equity theory, has a sustainable effect on consumers. Heras et al. [89] noted the interface between “arts and sustainability,” analyzing the fields of artistic performance, narrative, literary, audio–visual, and plastic arts. It is considered that behavioral commitments to sustainability may be influenced by using the arts, aesthetics, and art-based methods to develop an emotional connection to sustainable living [111].
Art is the world’s “most sacred” cultural resource, with a total value of artworks estimated at about USD1.5 trillion, while for the evaluation of the value of works based on culture and art, there is an international art institution doing valuation work [112]. The art market, as part of the culture of a country, has a substantial role in social influence [25,87,113]. Zorn and Koidl [95] mentioned that art companies should incorporate special promotions instead of just art-based works in a particular context. Museums and galleries (or sculpture galleries) are an important part of the social economy [114] that contributes to the creation of a positive image through persuasive communication [115] and involves visitors in the experience of active creation [116].
Art-based marketing communication is a “recognized part” of the culture. Freadman [117] analyzed art, mainly essays and the poetic function, to reveal the rhetorical strategies. Poems can be implemented in theoretical persuasion [118]. Queen Marie, “Mother of all Romanians,” wrote emotional fairy tales in order to create a positive royal image [23].
There are companies that integrate art as an allusion by recreating famous paintings as the advertisement background or prints on packages. Arts-based initiatives increase “the perceived product value.” Companies that incorporated recreations of famous paintings as a marketing communication tool had registered benefits [15], while art creates emotions that affect brand evaluation. Emotions are a fundamental mechanism that affects product and price evaluations, while people tend to act on their own perception of reality. Customers notice companies and value brands that use art in their marketing communications [15]. Art and magic also relate to marketing communication strategy, for example, their implications in the luxury industry. Luxury brands are endowed with an aura of authenticity because of their original work, which is likely to be works of art. Retail luxury marketing communication intends to generate awe rather than community [14].
Music, as an integral part of art, also stimulates public emotions. In the present digital period, music can be involved through a mobile application like iTunes [28]. Tran, Goulding, and Shiu [29] suggested that music technological integration in marketing communication has an impact on consumer experience. E-commerce website background music has a positive effect on consumer affective experience [30]. Music was registered as having persuasive beneficial effects on customers, and the music implementation model has a profound value on human well-being [91].
Based on theoretic literature, we proposed the following hypothesis:
Art-based persuasion in marketing communication has a positive effect on consumer behavior that implies a sustainable effect on the country of origin.
3. Material and Methods
The research method for this study was exploratory research based on secondary data and a survey. Its purpose was to explore respondents’ opinions, attitudes, and values. This study aimed to highlight the role of art-based persuasion in marketing communication and its sustainable effect on the country of origin. The purpose of this study was to measure customers’ perception of artistic persuasion as a marketing communication tool.
The model (see Figure 1) tested the value of culture [7,24,96] and art [10,13,15] in persuasive marketing communication, implying a sustainable effect on the country of origin. The research topic is essential in the process of internationalization. All multiple-item constructs were evaluated on seven-point Likert scales (between 1 as totally disagree and 7 as totally agree) (see Table 1).
3.1. Independent and Dependent Variables
Sustainable effect on the country of origin (from an ethical and moral perspective, with an impact on customer ethnocentrism): The strongest predictor of country-of-origin perceptions is considered to be familiarity with products “made in a country,” followed by nationality, the manufacturing process, and product complexity dimensions [119]. From an ethical and moral perspective, persuasive marketing communication has a positive impact on consumer behavior that implies a sustainable effect on the country of origin. Marketing communication based on ethical labels influences consumer behavior through activating “a holistic moral affective evaluation of the offering” [120]. Higgins and Walker [5] measured rhetorical impact with three items regarding the ethos, logos, and pathos as persuasive strategies of sustainable business. Prince et al. [121] polled UK consumers on four items related to moral foundations (sanctity, loyalty, and authority), ethnocentrism, cosmopolitanism, and perceptions of domestic versus foreign products and cultures in order to investigate product judgment effects. In this study, rhetorical impact was evaluated by questioning respondents to evaluate each of the following items on a seven-point Likert scale: (1) marketing communication must be based on ethical and moral principles, (2) I prefer to buy mostly domestic products, and (3) promoted products from domestic producers have a higher level of trust. The three-item measure was obtainedby employing factor analysis. Factor analysis confirmed the underlying design. Cronbach’s alpha was 0.583, which exceeds the generally agreed limit (see Table 2).
Marketing communication based on the country’s culture: The cultural value in marketing communication refers to the power of the traditions, art, and national values of the multicultural market in order to ensure the sustainable well-being of residents, companies, and countries. Yum and Canary [102] used cultural values in terms ofa country’s cultural values as a means of survival or self-expression and traditional and secular values. Shahid and Ashfaq [24] adopted cultural depiction in multinationals’ advertising measures, including culture in the internationalization process, as follows: lively or youthful spirit, family, hedonism, patriotism, desire with implied sexuality, magic, community, sports, joy, or fun. Luka et al. [7] included six questions that referred to the implementation level of “the communication infrastructure” of historical sites as a sustainable tool in the country’s cultural heritage environment as follows: the purpose of the visit, the number of visits, future visitors’ intentions, the information sources, website, and communication via social media evaluation. In our research, we measured the cultural environment by questioning respondents to evaluate the following items on a seven-point Likert scale: (1) culture is a country’s development indicator, and (2) persuasive communication is essential in a business environment. Factor analysis confirmed the underlying design. All variables were loaded above the 0.70 threshold. Cronbach’s alpha was 0.634, which exceeds the generally agreed limit (see Table 2).
Art-based marketing communication: The artistic value in marketing communication refers to the benefits of arts-based campaigns for businesses due to the appearance of customer emotion after art integration. Art infusion improves the evaluation of a product and a brand [90]. Emotions are a fundamental mechanism that affects product and price evaluations, while people tend to act on their own perception of reality. Estes et al. [15] evaluated the impact of art in marketing communication by using the following items: advertisement images, primarily paintings and photographs, to evaluate products (perceived luxury and brand affect). Quach et al. [10] measured the value of art in marketing communication by questioning respondents to evaluate items: the presence or absence of artwork of the pro-environmental luxury or luxury brand (the no-artwork–luxury condition, the artwork–luxury condition, the no-artwork–pro-environmental luxury condition, and the artwork–pro-environmental luxury condition). We measured art’s impact by questioning respondents to evaluate the following items on a seven-point Likert scale: (1) art is an effective marketing communication technique, (2) music must be integrated as a marketing communication technique, and (3) marketing communication is persuasive. Table 2 presents the factor analysis results. Cronbach’s alpha was 0.625, which exceeds the generally agreed limit (see Table 2).
Control variables: Ahmed and d’Astous [119] measured demographic variables, such as the respondents’ age, income, education, marital status, and children. Javalgi et al. [46] measured demographic variables, such as the respondents’ gender, age, education, and income. We analyzed the control variables using demographic variables: the respondent’s age, marital status, occupation, and education.
3.2. Statistical Analysis and Interpretation
The empirical analysis of the hypotheses was based on a survey with 689 respondents (55.3% females and 44.7% males; 83.7% living in urban areas). The majority of respondents included in the empirical project sample were from Romania [15,122]. The response rate was 73% of the overall population [123].
Cronbach’s alpha statistics were used to test the model concept’s multi-item measurement scales’ reliability (see Table 2). Nunnally and Bernstein [124] mentioned that Cronbach’s alpha coefficients can be categorized as follows: below 0.50 as insufficient, between 0.50 and 0.69 as moderate, between 0.70 and 0.79 as a satisfactory level, and higher than 0.80 as a good level of reliability. In our research, a sustainable effect on the country of origin indicated a reliability coefficient of 0.583, while culture-based marketing communication indicated a coefficient of 0.634 and art-based marketing communication indicated a satisfactory coefficient of 0.625. Each reliability coefficient corresponded to the normative acceptability of alpha statistics.
After the alpha statistics were calculated, the items were statistically tested through factor analysis, and the data confirmed the suitability. The factors’ composition was taken into account when their value was above 0.3 [125,126]. Correspondingly, the factor loading for the items set that measured culture-based marketing communication was 0.856. The loadings for the sustainable effect on the country of origin ranged between 0.557 and 0.834, which provided a valid construct measurement with heavy loading. The same applied to the three items that contributed to the art-based marketing communication, which was a formation construct that loaded heavily on the same factor, ranging from 0.657 to 0.805 (see Table 2).
In terms of discriminant validity [127], the correlation matrix of variables was tested if issues of multicollinearity (0.9) were present [125] (Hair et al., 1987). The correlation table below indicated the connections between the variables. No correlation coefficient higher than a value of 0.9 was found. Nevertheless, the highest correlation coefficient was the one between culture-based marketing communication and art-based marketing communication, which was 0.594. In this respect, Table 3 summarizes all the results of the correlations between the independent variables:
Table 4 summarizes both independent variable regression analyses created with the factor analysis’s help with respect to the sustainable effect on the country of origin as a dependent variable. Due to the factor analysis and scale reliability results, it was analyzed as a single construct.
First, in the linear regression analysis, it was necessary to go through the model summary. As seen below (see Table 4), the multiple correlation coefficient R was statistically significant with a representation of 42.0%. Furthermore, R2 = 17.7% indicated the percentage by which the dependent variable variation was influenced by the independent variable values. It also meant that only with this percentage did the model fit. AnR2 value of 1 represents total influence, while a value of 0 represents a non-existent influence of the independent variable on the dependent variable.
Second, in the regression analysis, it was necessary to analyze the ANOVA (see Table 5). In our study, the significance value was p = 0.000 (p < 0.05). This indicated that the model was significant since the significance coefficient was lower than 0.05. According to this regression model, the independent variables as a cohort were connected to the dependent variable. Next, we analyzed how every single construct was connected to the dependent variable.
By analyzing the standardized coefficient betas, each independent variable significantly affected a dependent variable (see Table 6). A rise in a positive beta value indicates a positive relationship between the independent and dependent variables. Next, we analyzed how each construct was related to the dependent variable. Both culture-based persuasive marketing communication and art-based persuasive marketing communication variables were significant in this regression model. The significance of culture-based persuasive marketing communication was 0.000 (p < 0.05), with a beta value of 0.232, and art-based persuasive communication was 0.000 (p < 0.05), with a beta value of 0.192. The positive sign represented a positive relationship between persuasive marketing communication with a cultural and artistic basis and its sustainable effect on the country of origin. That is, the higher the value of culture and art in persuasive marketing communication, the greater the level of sustainable effect on the country of origin. This positive relationship was identical to that initially expected by Hypotheses 1 and 2.
Finally, variables such as the respondent’s age, marital status, occupation, and education were not statistically significant, with p-values of 0.274, 0.063, 0.094, and 0.813, respectively. However, demographics are important because they increase the model’s representativeness and match percentage.
After analyzing the results of this regression model, they can be considered statistically significant. It can be concluded that both Hypotheses 1 and 2 were confirmed. The relationship fit, exactly as we expected. Both hypotheses specified a positive relationship between the independent and dependent variables.
The undergone analysis showed that the research was statistically significant. The value of art and culture, where art is a socio-cultural phenomenon [101], indicated a positive relationship of customer preference as a sustainable effect on the country of origin, basically the same as expected. The hypotheses were supported and were fully confirmed, both by the empirical analysis results and theoretical literature. The results indicated that art-based and culture-based persuasive marketing communication had a positive impact on customer perception based on a sustainable effect on the country of origin, which is an important asset in the process of international integration. The value of art was accepted as significant in persuasive and artistic communication, which is required to be integrated into long-term marketing strategies. These results confirmed our expectations regarding the value of art and culture’s impact as persuasion on customer behavior with a sustainable effect on the country of origin.
4. Results and Discussions
In the process of international integration, macroeconomics is important to be studied [128] from a persuasive ethical communication perspective [108,120,121] with respect to customer ethnocentrism [45,46,47], while implying a sustainable effect [49,107] on the country of origin [43]. The nation’s cultural differences interact with the business environment [97]. Culture is noted both as an indicator of the well-being of people’s quality of life and as an important element of the economic development [96] of a country. Arts and culture are represented in multinationals’ marketing communication [24] with a sustainable social influence role [25,87,113].
The objective of this study was to test the art-based persuasion and influence on customers, mainly Romanian residents, with respect to ethical marketing communication, implying a sustainable effect on the country of origin. By reviewing the international literature, we found that contingency theory has contributed to determining the internal and external factors that are relevant to art persuasion influence on international, national, and individual levels. The literature review helped to establish the role of persuasion in marketing communication with the involvement of ethical persuasion, culture, and art. Persuasive marketing communication based on rhetoric includes arguments, dialects, poetry, essays, poems, fairy tales, and ethical persuasion. Persuasive marketing communication based on culture includes tradition, cultural heritage, arts and companies from the art market, sustainability, and national values. Persuasive marketing communication based on art includes art-based company campaigns, artworks, paintings, sculptures, and music.
Hypothesis 1 posited the relationship between culture-based persuasive marketing communication and customer ethnocentrism as having a sustainable effect on the country of origin. This variable indicated statistical significance in the regression round with the positive relation between culture-based persuasive marketing communication and customer ethnocentrism due to ethical and moral persuasion. This relationship is also supported by the following authors: Baumgarth and Wieker [100], Florea [101], Suh et al. [86], Luka et al. [7], Ternovski and Yasseri [19], Grigoroudis et al. [87], and Prieto-Rodriguez and Vecco [113]. A possible explanation of this state could be that the more Romanian respondents tended to experience the value of culture from the received ethical marketing communication, the more they tended toward ethnocentrism, therefore implying a sustainable effect on the country of origin, exactly as expected.
Hypothesis 2 posited the relationship between art-based persuasive marketing communication and customer ethnocentrism as having a sustainable effect on the country of origin. The results in the regression round indicated significance between the two. Therefore, the higher the value of art in ethical-based persuasive marketing communication, the greater the customer ethnocentrism, which implied a sustainable effect on the country of origin, exactly as expected. This relationship is well-known for its ambiguity in international literature. However, after analyzing the results above, we observed that art was foundto impact the dependent variable. This relationship is also supported by the following authors: Morand and Merriman [110], Shrivastava [111], Estes et al. [15], Kallestrup [23], Krizanova et al. [107], Brancatisano et al. [91], and Esztergar-Kiss et al. [108].
This indicated that consumers consider the arts, mainly rhetoric, culture, and art, as appropriate to be integrated as part of marketing communications. Mainly, marketers do not have sufficient information about the impact of art persuasion on consumer behavior, while studies are suggesting that art-based marketing communication is effective. The hypothesis that art-based marketing communication is an effective technique is justified both by empirical results and theoretical analysis [15,20,25,91].
5. Conclusions
The empirical and theoretical results made it possible to answer the research question. This research indicated the positive relationship between the value of art in persuasive marketing communication and an ethical and moral basis, which implied a sustainable effect on the country of origin. The study hypotheses were confirmed. The empirical results suggested that Romanian respondents considered that ethical marketing communication depended positively on persuasive art-based initiatives.
Marketing communication based on ethical labels [120], moral foundations [121], and rhetoric [5] influences consumer behavior and has a sustainable effect on the country of origin. Luka et al. [7] indicated that differences between countries in terms of cultural policies and marketing communication can make sustainability relevant. Shahid and Ashfaq [24] documented cultural depiction in multinationals’ advertising in the internationalization process, while Estes et al. [15] presented the impact of art in marketing communication.
This research presented the first empirical explication of the value of art in ethical persuasive marketing communication and its impact on consumer ethnocentrism as a sustainable effect on the country of origin. It was also one of the few that investigated the determination of emotion [23,28,30,47,53], culture [86,101], and art [11,14,20] in relation to persuasive initiatives incorporation to add value for consumers.
The data from this empirical and theoretical research provided support for both hypotheses. The main contribution of the article is to reveal the role of artistic persuasion in marketing communication and its added value for consumers through integrating the value of art into marketing structures. The research also assessed the attitudes of respondents regarding the role of persuasion based on the arts, mainly ethical persuasion or rhetoric, culture, art, and its trends used in marketing communication. It can be concluded that artistic communication is a chic trend. Art-based persuasion is of strategic importance to the future of companies and the sustainable environment of their countries of origin. This study is not without limitations, but we hope it provides insights for scientists, researchers, and company managers.
Conceptualization, A.M.; methodology, I.D.; software, A.C.; validation, I.D.; formal analysis, I.D.; investigation, A.M.; resources, A.M.; data curation, A.M.; writing—original draft preparation, A.M.; writing—review and editing, L.D.R.; visualization, L.D.R.; supervision, L.D.R.; project administration, A.C.; funding acquisition, L.D.R. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
This work was partially supported by a grant from the Romanian Ministry of European Funds, POC program, project number P_40_382/119598–ASECOMP, based on subsequent contract no. 1418/19.02.2020.
The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, and in our research we take into consideration American Marketing Association Code of Ethics, ICC/Esomar International Code on Market and Social Research, also Bucharest University of Economic Study Code of Ethics and Deontology.
Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study, prior to answering the questionnaire.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Descriptive statistics.
| n | Mean | Std. |
Minimum | Maximum | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valid | Missing | |||||
| Sustainable Effect on the Country of Origin | ||||||
| Marketing communication must be based on ethical and moral principles | 517 | 172 | 5.8395 | 1.20856 | 1 | 7 |
| I prefer to buy mostly domestic products | 512 | 177 | 4.9238 | 1.25749 | 1 | 7 |
| Promoted products from domestic producers have a higher level of trust | 513 | 176 | 4.5653 | 1.40177 | 1 | 7 |
| Culture-Based Marketing Communication | ||||||
| Culture is a country’s development indicator | 511 | 178 | 5.7867 | 1.10414 | 1 | 7 |
| Persuasive communication is essential in a business environment | 510 | 179 | 6.1980 | 1.02713 | 1 | 7 |
| Art-Based Marketing Communication | ||||||
| Art is an effective marketing communication technique | 510 | 179 | 5.4078 | 1.20833 | 1 | 7 |
| Music integration should be used as a marketing communication technique | 511 | 178 | 5.6458 | 1.20692 | 1 | 7 |
| Marketing communication is persuasive | 511 | 178 | 5.2564 | 1.13536 | 1 | 7 |
Reliability and validity.
| Variable | Cronbach’s Alpha | Measure | Factor Loading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sustainable Effect on the Country of Origin | 0.583 |
|
0.557 |
| Culture-Based |
0.634 |
|
0.856 |
| Art-Based |
0.625 |
|
0.799 |
Correlations of independent variables.
| Correlations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sustainable Effect on the Country of Origin | Culture-Based Marketing Communication | Art-Based Marketing Communication | |
| Sustainable Effect on the Country of Origin | 1 | 0.349 ** | 0.343 ** |
| Culture-Based Marketing Communication | 1 | 0.594 ** | |
| Art-Based Marketing Communication | 1 | ||
**: Correlation was significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
Model summary.
| Model | R | R2 | Adjusted R2 | Std. Error of the Estimate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0.377 a | 0.142 | 0.138 | 0.88218 |
| 2 | 0.420 b | 0.177 | 0.166 | 0.86788 |
a: Predictors: (Constant), art-based marketing communication, culture-based marketing communication; b: Predictors: (Constant), art-based marketing communication, culture-based marketing communication, respondents’ marital status, occupation, education, and age.
ANOVA.
| ANOVA a | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | Sum of Squares | df | Mean Square | F | Sig. | |
| 1 | Regression | 60.482 | 2 | 30.241 | 38.858 | 0.000 b |
| Residual | 365.772 | 470 | 0.778 | |||
| Total | 426.254 | 472 | ||||
| 2 | Regression | 75.253 | 6 | 12.542 | 16.651 | 0.000 c |
| Residual | 351.000 | 466 | 0.753 | |||
| Total | 426.254 | 472 | ||||
a: Dependent variable: The sustainable effect on the country of origin; b: Predictors: (constant), art-basedmarketing communication; culture-based marketing communication; c: Predictors: (constant), art-basemarketing communication; culture-based marketing communication; respondents’ marital status, occupation, education, and age.
Regression analysis.
| Coefficients a | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | Unstandardized Coefficients | Standardized Coefficients | t | Sig. | ||
| B | Std. Error | Beta | ||||
| 1 | (Constant) | 2.529 | 0.296 | 8.556 | 0.000 | |
| Culture-Based Marketing Communication | 0.246 | 0.056 | 0.233 | 4.419 | 0.000 | |
| Art-Based Marketing Communication | 0.203 | 0.056 | 0.190 | 3.615 | 0.000 | |
| 2 | (Constant) | 2.292 | 0.353 | 6.488 | 0.000 | |
| Culture-Based Marketing Communication | 0.245 | 0.055 | 0.232 | 4.473 | 0.000 | |
| Art-Based Marketing Communication | 0.205 | 0.056 | 0.192 | 3.701 | 0.000 | |
| Age of respondents | 0.043 | 0.040 | 0.062 | 1.095 | 0.274 | |
| Marital status | 0.100 | 0.054 | 0.105 | 1.862 | 0.063 | |
| Occupation | −0.020 | 0.012 | −0.077 | −1.678 | 0.094 | |
| Education | 0.014 | 0.059 | 0.011 | 0.237 | 0.813 | |
a: Dependent variable: The sustainable effect on the country of origin.
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; Rosca, Laura Daniela 1
; Dumitru, Ionel 1 ; Canda, Andrei 2 1 Marketing Department, Marketing Faculty, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 6 Piata Romana, 1st District, 010374 Bucharest, Romania;
2 iSense Solutions, 010981 Bucharest, Romania;