Preception of and Reactions to the Presence of URL's in Print Advertising of a Non-Technology Brand

This thesis, through an experiment of 108 subjects, studies the relationship between the presence of a Uniform Resource Locator (URL or web address) in newspaper advertisements and perception of the product advertised as well as the likelihood to act on the advertisement. The findings reveal URLs do in fact have an effect on perception, although, as it is suggested in the theoretical framework, it does not necessarily induce the subjects to act on the ad. This study also finds there is a stronger inclination for perception change to take place versus the likelihood for consumers to either seek more information or make a purchase of the brand advertised.The results indicate brands are much less likely to be considered high-tech or cutting edge when a URL is included in a newspaper advertisement. This is a departure from earlier work that suggested the inclusion of such URLs would have a positive effect on brand value and/or the perception of the company sponsoring the advertisement. The findings also indicate advertisers may have to change the way they present the use of a companys Web technology. The magic bullet of positive associations with technology in the minds of consumers is losing its efficacy from decreased sensitivity to URL saturation in print ads.