Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to expand the understanding of the implicit exposure of brands in Web dramas with congruent branding messages shared on social media Moments. This study also aims to examine the mediating role of word of mouth (WOM) and brand love in the relationship between Web-drama connectedness and viewers’ intention to spend and spending per week.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 657 usable questionnaires were gathered from Chinese participants who watch the famous weekly drama “My Huckleberry Friends” and make weekly purchases from McDonald’s. Partial least squares regression was used to test the theoretical model of the study.
Findings
Results of this study reveal that WOM and brand love mediate the relationship between Web-drama connectedness and intention to spend on the exposed brand. Intention to spend mediates the relationship between brand love and spending. WOM mediates the relationship between Web-drama connectedness and spending.
Originality/value
Tencent’s WeChat is a well-known Chinese social media platform with a history of forbidding advertising. Users constantly flood social media with Web-drama content, influencing consumers’ spending habits. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the present study is one of the first attempts to develop an understanding of Web-drama connectedness, brand love, WOM and behavioural intention by tracing the spending on advertised brands. This study highlights how brands maintain consumer spending by enhancing brand love via Web-drama advertising and instigating ticklish moments as “print screens” of WOM on social media.