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Audio Mining: The Role of Vocal Tone in Persuasion

Author

Listed:
  • Xin (Shane) Wang
  • Shijie Lu
  • X I Li
  • Mansur Khamitov
  • Neil Bendle
  • J. Jeffrey Inman
  • Andrew T Stephen

Abstract

Persuasion success is often related to hard-to-measure characteristics, such as the way the persuader speaks. To examine how vocal tones impact persuasion in an online appeal, this research measures persuaders’ vocal tones in Kickstarter video pitches using novel audio mining technology. Connecting vocal tone dimensions with real-world funding outcomes offers insight into the impact of vocal tones on receivers’ actions. The core hypothesis of this paper is that a successful persuasion attempt is associated with vocal tones denoting (1) focus, (2) low stress, and (3) stable emotions. These three vocal tone dimensions—which are in line with the stereotype content model—matter because they allow receivers to make inferences about a persuader’s competence. The hypotheses are tested with a large-scale empirical study using Kickstarter data, which is then replicated in a different category. In addition, two controlled experiments provide evidence that perceptions of competence mediate the impact of the three vocal tones on persuasion attempt success. The results identify key indicators of persuasion attempt success and suggest a greater role for audio mining in academic consumer research.

Suggested Citation

  • Xin (Shane) Wang & Shijie Lu & X I Li & Mansur Khamitov & Neil Bendle & J. Jeffrey Inman & Andrew T Stephen, 2021. "Audio Mining: The Role of Vocal Tone in Persuasion," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 48(2), pages 189-211.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:jconrs:v:48:y:2021:i:2:p:189-211.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/jcr/ucab012
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Emaad Manzoor & Nikhil Malik, 2023. "Designing Effective Music Excerpts," Papers 2309.14475, arXiv.org.
    2. Shuili Du & Assaad El Akremi & Ming Jia, 2023. "Quantitative Research on Corporate Social Responsibility: A Quest for Relevance and Rigor in a Quickly Evolving, Turbulent World," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 187(1), pages 1-15, September.
    3. Allison, Thomas H. & Warnick, Benjamin J. & Davis, Blakley C. & Cardon, Melissa S., 2022. "Can you hear me now? Engendering passion and preparedness perceptions with vocal expressions in crowdfunding pitches," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 37(3).
    4. Jeffrey D. Shulman & Olivier Toubia & Raena Saddler, 2023. "Editorial: Marketing’s Role in the Evolving Discipline of Product Management," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 42(1), pages 1-5, January.

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