A Meta-Analysis on Personalization in Marketing Communication

数字信息和通信技术的兴起增加了个性化通信的应用，以满足消费者的需求，例如，个性化电子邮件或在线定向广告。个性化被认为是当今市场营销的主要趋势之一。虽然广告商和营销者可以从个性化营销沟通中受益，但这种沟通方式也引起了人们的担忧，因为它可能会侵扰消费者，并引起消费者的反响，他们认为公司侵犯了他们的隐私。尽管营销沟通领域内外的学术关注个性化沟通，但个性化的定义和通用框架都没有。因此，以前的研究结果是不同的、支离破碎的，因此很难比较和评估。关于个性化的市场沟通是导致消费者积极的反应还是消极的反应，以及在什么情况下个性化的营销信息会导致积极的或消极的结果，研究还没有定论。目前这项研究的目的是通过进行整合先前研究结果的荟萃分析来填补这一空白。元分析进一步应用调节变量，并测试个性化在营销沟通中的效果是否取决于1)用作输入的个人数据类型，2)个性化水平，3)消息格式和渠道，4)不同类型的消费者反应(情感、认知和行为)，5)跨消费者，6)跨品牌和行业。通过比较正负效应的条件和检验个性化水平的非线性效应，本研究首次评估了个性化-隐私悖论的不同解释的潜在功能和优点。该项目通过建立一个检验个性化营销传播效应的综合框架来为科学做出贡献，指导未来的研究，因为元分析有助于确定在实证研究中重要的控制变量，并有助于找出文献和实证研究中的差距，促进研究议程的进一步发展。它通过对不同类型的个性化营销沟通及其影响的洞察提供实际影响，并可指导为个性化实践投资制定的衡量或关键绩效指标。该项目对社会产生了影响，因为它可能会发现特别容易受到个性化营销沟通影响的消费者群体。反过来，这又向消费者代表提供有关消费者扫盲计划的信息，并向法律制定者和监管机构通报是否应该保护特定的消费者群体，以及制定旨在提高消费者意识和知识的规章制度是否明智。

The rise of digital information and communication technologies has increased the application of personalized communication to address consumers though, for example, personalized emails or online retargeting advertising. Personalization is considered nowadays as one of the major marketing trends. Though advertisers and marketers can benefit from personalized marketing communication, this communication practice also raises concerns as it can be intrusive and evoke reactance by consumers who believe that a firm violates their privacy.Despite the academic attention on personalized communication in and outside the field of marketing communication, there is neither a unified definition nor a common framework of personalization. As a result, prior findings are heterogeneous, fragmented, and therefore difficult to compare and to evaluate. Research is inconclusive about whether personalized market communication results in positive or negative consumer response and under which circumstances personalized marketing messages lead to either positive or negative outcomes. The aim of the current study is to fill this gap by conducting a meta-analysis that integrates prior research findings. The meta-analysis further applies moderator variables and tests whether the effects of personalization in marketing communication depend on 1) types of personal data that are used as input, 2) levels of personalization, 3) message formats and channels, 4) across different types of consumer responses (affective, cognitive and behavioral), 5) across consumers, and 6) across brands and sectors. By comparing the conditions for positive and negative effects and by testing non-linear effects of the levels of personalization, the study further assesses for the first time the underlying function and the merit of different explanations of the personalization-privacy paradox.The project provides a contribution to science by establishing an integrative framework for the examination of personalized marketing communication effects, guiding future research as the meta-analysis helps to identify crucial variables that are important to control for in empirical studies and helps to identify gaps in the literature and empirical research facilitating the further development of a research agenda. It provides practical implications through insights in different types of personalized marketing communication and their effects and it may guide the measurement or key performance indicators formulated for investments in personalization practices. The project provides implications for the society, as it may uncover consumer groups that are especially vulnerable to personalized marketing communication. This, in turn, informs consumer representatives about consumer literacy programs and law makers and regulators about whether specific groups of consumers should be protected and whether it is wise to create rules and regulations with the aim to increase consumer awareness and knowledge.