Literature Review
Using riddles, or tropes, in advertising is certainly not a new concept, however applying them in the online environment presents an intriguing way to connect with consumers by combining visual rhetoric with the tool that the Internet is best known for, interactivity. In traditional advertising, in the last few decades, a shift has been made to presenting advertisements that are more open, i.e. focused on imagery, and less of a call to action, i.e. focused on a verbal cue to buy the product. These open ads are often described as ambiguous, complex and implicit, providing less guidance than usual towards processing of the advertiser's appeal. Willingness to succumb to interpretation of meaning in an open advertisement depends upon the consumer's initial motivation to learn more about the product being advertised. (Ketalaar et al., 2004) This motivation can be characterized as a need for cognition, an element that will serve as a key determinant in understanding a consumer's reaction to open, intra-site advertising.
Open, intra-site advertisements must elicit a quick consumer response with well-designed and culturally appropriate imagery in order to persuade. For consumers to process open advertisements, three things need to be in place: a high level of motivation for the product category, a high need for cognition, and ultimate, timely success in finding an acceptable explanation for the message being evoked in the online advertisement. The following discussion of visual rhetoric and its implications will further describe this phenomena and the research completed in this area to date regarding presentation and processing of advertisements.