How to project action through the sound of brand names?

Objectives/research questions: Brand names not only serve to identify specific products and services, but also to convey information. Such information may depend on the sound of the word—independent of its semantic meaning. In this research, we propose that plosive consonants such as [b], [d], [p], and [t] (vs. fricative consonants such as [f], [l], [s], and [s]) elicit the feeling of doing something because of the articulatory movements their pronunciation requires. Method/ approach We ran three experimental studies in a behavioral lab with samples composed of French-speaking participants. Results Study 1 relies on implicit measures to demonstrate that plosive consonants are unconsciously associated with the semantic concept of action. Studies 2 and 3 put this property to the test in the context of threats to personal control. If plosive consonants can simulate action, threats to personal control should increase the perceived attractiveness of brand names that include such sounds since threats to personal control have been shown to trigger a willingness to act. Managerial/societal implications: Our results suggest that managers can project action based on the sounds of their brands—independently of their semantic meaning. Originality The demonstration of the capacity of plosive consonants to evoke action relies on the use of implicit measures and the replication of the observed effect across several studies.