Consumer advertising as a signal of employer attractiveness

This paper deals with the extended audience of advertising. More specifically, it examines how consumer advertising influences the attractiveness of a corporate brand as a potential employer. The results from two experimental studies show that creative advertising signals brand ability, and enhances perceptions of development (Study 1 and 2) and reputation value (Study 2) offered by the brand to employees. Mediation analysis shows that this, in turn, has a positive impact on the overall attractiveness of the brand as an employer. The findings contribute to the growing literature on different stakeholder reactions to consumer advertising and offer a broader picture of how advertising contributes to firm performance, beyond influencing consumers.