There is a lack of literature analysing the characteristics and purchasing behaviour of “Tweeners”. This paper aims to focus on components of visual content targeting Tweeners in order to better understand their characteristics and, importantly, so that marketers may better design and deliver effective and appealing communications.
Three components of visual content are studied: outfit, backdrop, and model size. A controlled experiment is used. A Fishbein formulation is adopted with evaluative beliefs being toward visual components and attitude is toward the advertisement, Aad. The key research questions concern the relationships between evaluative beliefs regarding visual components, Aad, and intentions to purchase fashion apparel.
The paper reveals that purchase intentions for most categories of outfits are unaffected by the backdrop of the advertisement. However, a pronounced interaction between outfit and backdrop is found for one category of outfit. In contrast with research using older girls and women, no effect for body size is found.
In order to control model characteristics, a single model image was manipulated to produce the model size treatment. Only four outfits and two backdrop conditions were used. Replications with more models, outfits, and backdrops are needed. This is especially true of backgrounds and outfits, given the strong backdrop by outfit interaction.
The lack of a model size effect and the strong outfit by backdrop interaction suggest generalising research conducted with older groups to the younger cohort may be inappropriate.
