Coping with Digital Extortion: An Experimental Study of Benefit Appeals and Normative Appeals

Digital extortion has emerged as a significant threat to organizations that rely on information technologies for their operations. Using human subject experimentation, we study the effectiveness of message appeals in encouraging defenders to adopt two mitigation strategies, investment in security and refusal to pay ransoms, to digital extortion threats. We explore two types of appeals, benefit and normative, for this purpose. We find that the decisions of the defenders (representing any organization that can be a potential victim) deviate from the predictions of game theory. However, given the strategic interactions between the defenders and the attacker as well as noisy decision-making behaviors, it is challenging to untangle the influence of the appeals on the defenders. We develop a structural model based on the quantal response equilibrium framework to measure how message appeals change the defenders’ utilities of investment and payment refusal. Although the interventions may be successful in increasing the utilities of investment and/or payment refusal, their impacts on investment rate and payment rate are mitigated by the attacker reducing ransoms. Thus, it is challenging for an intervention to significantly boost a community’s investment rate or to suppress the ransom payment rate. We characterize how security outcomes of a community (including expected ransom, attack rate, investment rate, and payment rate) vary with the defenders’ utilities of investment and pay refusal. This paper was accepted by Chris Forman, information systems.

Creative Appeals in Firm-Generated Content and Product Performance

Creative and original message appeals stimulate customers, generating arousal through novelties, meanings, associations, inspirations, human emotions and connections, and the degree to which the message appeals resonate and get the attention of the customers. Hedonic appeals imbue desirability around a product, endowing it with mystery or coolness, subtly invoking intentions, anticipation, and agency. Firms should highlight more about the hedonic rather than utilitarian features of products with high quality, highly consistent, or less complex firm-generated messages to persuade consumers to purchase. High-quality content is original and virtuosic, novel and compelling, curated and accurate, insightful and relevant, relatable and credible, authentic and immersive, and engaging and resonating with customers. Message goal consistency calls for alignment to central brand guidelines (i.e., what the brand stands for, its value proposition, and its purpose) and adherence to the brand DNA regarding look and feel, tone and manner in content creation. Writing clearly and concisely in a novel approach creates intrigue by making firm-generated content communications stick. Excellent writing and easy readability make for easy comprehension and consequently better persuasion. Firms stand to gain more by devoting resources, such as employee training for content creation and technology acquisition in getting high quality, easy-to-comprehend, and goal consistent messages to customers.

It makes a difference! Impact of social and personal message appeals on engagement with sponsored posts

PurposeGrounded in uses and gratifications (U&G) theory and relying on the congruence/incongruence approaches, the current research aims to contribute to the study of interactive marketing by measuring the effectiveness of social and personal sponsored post message appeals on consumer psychological and behavioral engagement. A conceptual framework is suggested.Design/methodology/approachData were collected during a field experiment conducted on Facebook, consisting of two sponsored Facebook post campaigns, followed by a survey distributed to consumers who were exposed to the experiment.FindingsA structural path model suggests that the congruence of the social message appeal of sponsored Facebook posts leads directly to psychological engagement that follows affective response. This path elevates an indirect effect toward behavioral engagement. Additionally, it was found that the incongruence of the personal message appeal of sponsored Facebook posts leads directly to behavioral engagement.Originality/valueThe novelty of the current research focuses on the unexplored subject of sponsored Facebook post message appeal effectiveness. Based on U&G theory applied to social media and the (in)congruence approaches, the study suggests a new dichotomy of message appeal for digital advertising, i.e. social vs. personal message strategies. Consumer engagement with the two appeals adds value to theory and practice by conceptualizing the effect of sponsored post content strategies on consumer engagement in Facebook while incorporating ad content with a hierarchical process.

Developing persuasive message appeals to encourage young people to discuss their organ donation wishes with family

Many young donors (i.e., young people who wish to donate organs upon death) are unaware of the need for family discussion to increase the likelihood of family consent for donation. They have low motivation to discuss and have not notified family of their wishes. We addressed a gap in existing research by developing and piloting six persuasive message appeals targeted specifically at young donors to encourage family discussion about donation. Young donors, who were Australian residents (7 females, 2 males) aged 21-25 years (M = 23.00; SD = 1.73), participated in qualitative interviews. Participants commented on their reactions to each message appeal, message effectiveness, and preferred appeals. Responses to message appeals were mixed. Mixed reactions were reflected in preferences for solely positive appeals or both positive and negative. Some participants felt negative emotional appeals were more impactful and memorable. Reactions to the provision of strategies to aid actual discussion (i.e., what to say, when to discuss, reminder prompts) in messages were guided by young donors’ views of family discussion as either ‘no big deal’ or requiring preparation. Participants believed that including scenarios in which a person makes a donation decision for themselves or a loved one was thought provoking, motivating, and clearly conveyed the impact of the choice not to discuss on others. The four preferred message appeals included equal numbers of messages with positive and negative framing, high and low/no strategy, and individual vs. other perspective. Future piloting of these message appeals with a larger audience of young donors will determine message effectiveness in encouraging family discussion.

Penggunaan Message Appeals dalam Strategi Pesan Kampanye Anti Kekerasan Berbasis Gender Online

Meningkatnya kasus Kekerasan Berbasis Gender Online (KBGO) dalam enam tahun terakhir membuat Sub Divisi Digital At-Risks SAFEnet (Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network) melakukan Kampanye “Awas KBGO!” untuk memberikan warning kepada publik. Strategi pesan dengan menggunakan daya tarik pesan masih belum berhasil untuk meningkatkan awareness publik. Penelitian ini berfokus untuk menganalisis kekuatan dan tantangan penggunaan message appeals dalam strategi pesan Kampanye “Awas KBGO!”. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah studi kasus pada organisasi nirlaba SAFEnet dengan teknik pengumpulan data yakni wawancara, observasi, dan studi pustaka. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa Kampanye “Awas KBGO!” menggunakan strategi pesan message appeals (daya tarik pesan) yang terbagi menjadi dua yaitu reasoning appeals (daya tarik alasan) dan emotional appeals (daya tarik emosional). Emotional appeals yang digunakan menimbulkan dua perasaan yaitu perasaan positif dan perasaan negatif. Penggunaan pesan kampanye yang menimbulkan perasaan negatif berupa fear appeals lebih dominan dibandingkan dengan pesan positif. Kekuatan pesan kampanye terletak pada penggunaan data dan fakta, sedangkan fear appeals justru menjadi tantangan karena menimbulkan perasaan tidak nyaman bagi target audiens. Substansi penelitian ini memberikan kontribusi berupa rekomendasi kebijakan baru kepada SAFEnet untuk memperbanyak pesan kampanye yang memanusiakan (humanize) dengan narasi positif dan teknik storytelling.