The missing big idea: Brand-differentiating messages and advertising effectiveness across the brand funnel

Abstract

While strategy research emphasizes the importance of product differentiation, research on advertising effectiveness has paid limited attention to whether advertising communicates a clear point of brand difference. This study examines the role of brand-differentiating messages (BDMs) in advertising effectiveness across the brand funnel. Using ten years of Super Bowl advertising, we analyze 280 brand-level advertising events and 17,080 daily observations of ad awareness, brand liking, brand consideration, brand purchase intention, and brand purchase. The findings show that BDM has direct positive effects on the earlier stages of the brand funnel, particularly ad awareness and brand liking. In addition, ad liking strengthens the effects of BDM on ad awareness, brand liking, and brand consideration, indicating that positive affect toward the ad amplifies the impact of communicated differentiation. Finally, BDM strengthens the relationships between consideration and purchase intention and between purchase intention and purchase, suggesting that communicated differentiation facilitates conversion across later funnel stages. These results clarify the role of ad liking in advertising effectiveness, identify BDM as an important form of diagnostic advertising content, and show how communicated differentiation influences both level and transition effects across the brand funnel.