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Article

How Can TV Food Programs Be Used as an Effective Restaurant Marketing Tool? An Extension of ELM with Perceived Risk

by
Hye Jin Sung
1,
Hyun Young Kim
2 and
Meehee Cho
2,*
1
Department of Foodservice Management, PaiChai University, 155-40, Baejae-ro, Seo-gu, Daejeon-si 35345, Korea
2
College of Hotel and Tourism Management, Kyung Hee University, 26, Kyungheedae-ro, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul 02447, Korea
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sustainability 2020, 12(17), 7131; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12177131
Submission received: 2 August 2020 / Revised: 28 August 2020 / Accepted: 30 August 2020 / Published: 1 September 2020
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Restaurant Sustainable Strategic Management (SSM))
Browse Figure
Versions Notes

Abstract

:
In today’s modern society, television (TV) food programs exert significant influence in the domestic and international foodservice market. This study applied the elaboration likelihood model (ELM) to examine the information processing and decision-making activities of restaurant customers related to TV food shows that they watched. The ELM was expanded and tested by including perceived risk as a factor influencing attitude towards a restaurant. A total of 347 responses obtained from Korean residents, who had obtained information delivered by a messenger in a TV program and had subsequently visited that restaurant in the three months prior to the survey were analyzed. Results revealed that the information quality components significantly influenced attitude towards restaurants. For the peripheral route, while the credibility of the messenger had no significant impact, the vividness of expression had a positive impact on attitude towards restaurants. Performance risk was shown to have a negative impact on attitude towards the restaurant. However, time risk, possibly requiring long-distance travel or long waiting times for available tables played a positive role. The long wait times may be perceived well because many people wanting to eat at the restaurants is a positive sign about the experience. Attitude towards a restaurant positively influenced visit intention. Based on the study’s findings, discussion, implications, and limitations for future studies are provided.

1. Introduction

Television programs based on cooking and eating activities have become more popular since people are likely to stay at home due to the recent coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak. Newly coined terms, “Honbab” and “honsool”, which mean eating alone and drinking alone, respectively, gained popularity in conjunction with social distancing even as the one-person household lifestyle became a ubiquitous phenomenon [1]. In the current reality, where everything including economic stability and interpersonal relationships is becoming more uncertain, viewers gain an emotional connection and assuage the fundamental and basic emotion of loneliness by watching cooking and food-related shows [1]. This phenomenon represents a desire in the viewers to taste the restaurant menu items and becomes a motivating factor to visit that place in person. As such, the existing TV cooking programs can have a very large impact on the foodservice industry and act as a catalyst to vitalize the foodservice market, which has been stumbling due to COVID-19.
Modern restaurant customers receive more varied information through various modes of media channels due to changes in the media environment and the emergence of new media. TV programs introducing restaurants have especially been considered a source of trustworthy information for potential customers [2]. In contrast, the discovery of staged and false information about a restaurant on TV programs led to a feeling of betrayal and distrust among restaurant customers who had trusted these programs and visited the restaurant [3]. Therefore, while restaurant TV shows filled with exaggerated expressions of tastiness are being shunned by viewers, honest and differentiated cooking programs have become hugely popular [4]. It is easy to find restaurants that have been certified by such popular programs to be packed with customers. The literature has reported that word of mouth (WOM) would be more influential on individual attitudes and behavior than other marketing sources [5]. This is perhaps because interpersonal communication allows individuals to ask customized questions and obtain information without any commercial purposes. Thus, WOM can be viewed as being more flexible and trustworthy when compared with information provided unilaterally through media such as TV programs [5]. Similarly, the prior setting wherein people blindly trusted the restaurant as they appeared on TV shows does not exist any longer. This may be caused due to the increase in restaurant customers who are mindful of what TV program the restaurant appeared in and who introduced it before making the decision to visit. This implies that customers no longer rely only on the credibility of the medium of TV broadcasting, but rather on the quality of the information provided by a TV program and the credibility and characteristics of the messenger. A representative example is “Baek Jong-won’s Alley Restaurant” (one of the most popular Korean TV food programs), which is acknowledged to be a program that has a great influence not only on the foodservice industry but also on the society as a whole. In fact, it was placed first in the variety program brand reputation rankings for December 2018 [6]. It differs vastly from the other restaurant TV programs as its goal is to investigate the operational problems of each restaurant and provide solutions, fully disclosing not only the strengths, but also their faults. Restaurants that receive a favorable opinion from Baek Jong-won (lead host of the program) are instantly brimming with customers, while those that incite anger are flooded with criticism [3]. Because the information provided by the program is considered to be accurate and neutral, it provides useful information to customers by disclosing the story of the restaurant in detail. Moreover, Baek Jong-won’s credibility and his vivid expressions about foods can create a positive attitude towards the restaurant and leads to improved visit intent in viewers. In addition, restaurants mentioned by the comedian Lee Young-Ja on “Omniscient Interfering View” have immediately become famous, and the Korea Expressway Corporation stated that after the broadcast where she ate at rest stations, the sales of food surged by 200% [7]. The reason that the menu items and the restaurants introduced by Lee Young-ja achieved such great success was due to her vivid expressions which created an illusion of having the food right in front of one’s eyes, which led to actual visiting behavior. The food-related TV programs that gained popularity in Korea also gained a lot of popularity overseas, sometimes leading to an increase in demand for the Korean food items that were introduced in the broadcast [8]. An episode from the Korean cooking variety program “Street Food Fighter 2” showed Baek Jong-won eating at a food alley in Taiwan, which inspired Taiwanese viewers of the program to queue up to eat from the street food places shown in the episode [9]. This proved that the host’s influence is not only limited to Korea, but also has a significant impact overseas.
Therefore, this study examines the manner in which customers process information on restaurants that is provided by restaurant TV programs, which are presently known to have a great impact on the foodservice market [6,7]. It also investigates the impact it has on attitude formation and visit intention with regard to restaurants. To this end, the elaboration likelihood model (ELM) was applied. Dual-process theories such as the ELM have been often utilized to explain the information processing mechanisms adopted by customers who process, select, and accept huge amounts of information, in addition to studying attitude formation [10,11,12]. Thus, it can be effective in better understanding the information processing mechanisms of restaurant customers and in determining the influence on customers’ attitude and visit intention. The ELM proposes two types of information processing routes. One is the central route, where attitude is formed through central cues such as the quality of information, and the other is the peripheral route, where attitude is formed through the influence of peripheral cues such as the credibility of the messenger [13,14,15,16]. While this study included information quality as the central route and source credibility as the peripheral route, it also included “vividness of expression”, which is defined as the vivid message delivered by the messenger in the peripheral route, focusing on information characteristics of TV food programs. Nisbett and Ross [17] emphasized the clarity of information while discussing the properties that make one focus on the message. Sundar and Kalyanaraman [18] argued that not only was vivid information more appealing, but it was also more likely to be remembered in the long term. This is supported by Dayan and Katz [19] revealing that vivid messages and a sense of realism in TV programs could beget empathy in viewers. As TVs deliver information, vivid expression becomes a significant variable in attitude formation, while the subordinate variables of this peripheral route were included to examine their influencing relationships.
In addition, this study’s framework includes perceived risk, which is well known as an important factor in forming customers’ attitudes. Litvin et al. [20] stated that customers are likely to perceive risk due to the nature of restaurant service, whose characteristics cannot be determined before actually experiencing the service. Thus, consumers’ perceived risk caused by this uncertainty is a critical factor that impacts attitude towards a restaurant [21]. Literature proposed that perceived risk is explained from a multi-faceted perspective. For instance, as the evaluation of food taste is extremely subjective, and as dining service is involved in strong intangible characteristics, the consumer perceives a “performance risk” [22]. As another dimension of perceived risks, customers who want to visit restaurants that have appeared on TV programs may perceive “time risk” when requiring long-distance travel or long waiting times [23]. Likewise, “performance risk” and “time risk” could have a greater impact on consumer attitudes towards restaurants that have been introduced through TV programs. We, therefore, conducted a systematic examination of the information processing mechanism of restaurant customers by incorporating the characteristics of TV programs. Based on the results, we aim to provide useful implications for establishing marketing strategies to be employed for restaurant sustained businesses.

2. Literature Review and Hypotheses

2.1. Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)

We adapted the ELM to investigate how restaurant customers form attitudes after watching TV food shows. The ELM was proposed by Petty and Cacioppo [24] and became a useful model for explaining the process of attitude formation in individuals following the selection and acceptance of presented information. The ELM includes the routes for processing persuasion messages as the central and the peripheral route. The appropriate message may be determined based on the route used for processing [12]. In the central route, the content of the information and the message itself are important, and information is processed through central cues such as information quality or persuasiveness [25]. The peripheral route uses peripheral cues such as endorsers, logos, pictures, and colors, which are not directly connected to the persuasion message. When specific information is presented, consumers may scrutinize it in depth by focusing on central cues; however, in some other cases, they might focus on heuristic cues rather than on the information itself and make decisions accordingly [26]. One early study by Petty and Cacioppo [24] stated that the various facets of changes in individual attitudes cannot be explained simply through one route, and different routes are applied based on the level of elaboration likelihood. Thus, if the level of elaboration is high, information is processed through the central route, which is related to the quality of the information. On the other hand, if the level of elaboration is low, information is processed through the peripheral route, which is related to the credibility of the source [15].
With the rapid growth in new media due to the development of mobile, various information, and communications technology, the ELM is now being applied in a variety of study contexts. For example. Ha and Ahn [13] applying the ELM to social media found that for Twitter users, the quality of the argument (for the central route) and the credibility of the source (for the peripheral route) were found to significantly influence the usefulness of the information. Following prior relevant positions in the literature, this study examines the quality of the information presented in TV programs as the central route and the characteristics of the messenger as the peripheral route [24,27,28].

2.1.1. Central (Route) Variable: Argument Quality

The quality of the information presented in TV food programs as the central route was assessed based on three variables—accuracy, neutrality, and comprehensiveness [27,29,30,31].
First, information accuracy is defined as the degree of perception that the information being offered is accurate [27]. Metzger and Flanagin [32] defined information accuracy as the degree to which a broadcast or other source is error-free and whether the information can be verified offline. Thus, the more accurate the information, the more credibility that one can gain from viewers. Metzger [33] stated that information accuracy is an important standard to evaluate objectiveness, currentness, and credibility. Metzger and Flanagin [32] argued that online consumers often used simple strategies for verifying information, involving relatively less effort, instead of investing efforts in strict and detailed procedures. Thus, due to the revelation that the past broadcast programs on restaurants provided false or exaggerated information, viewers now respond cautiously while determining whether a program provides accurate information. When the accuracy of the information provided by TV food shows came under suspicion, the program attempted to increase credibility by broadcasting special episodes through emergency inspections on restaurants that have bad reviews from the customers. As a result, the more accurate they perceive the information to be, the more they consider the information to be of good quality, and this can affect attitude formation towards the restaurant.
Second, information neutrality is defined as a state where the information is presented objectively and neutrally so as not to be biased towards one side [34]. Thus, the credibility of the message increases when positive and negative information is presented together. Online reviews are perceived to be superior when delivering both positive and negative information, thereby receiving a high score or rating [35]. A study on the effectiveness of advertisement messages revealed that interactive advertising is more effective than one-way advertising [29,34]. TV programs introducing restaurants or food have rapidly changed over the last few years. While only positive information was broadcast in the past, modern programs that broadcast both positive and negative information without embellishments or exclusion are increasing and gaining a lot of popularity. This is because the customers perceived the information to be neutral, leading them to trust the message and subsequently creating a positive impact on their attitude towards the restaurant.
Third, the comprehensiveness of information is defined as the extent to which the content is sufficiently, deeply, extensively, and meticulously handled [31]; this can represent the completeness of the message [27]. One popular TV program, “Wednesday Food Talk”, which featured experts from various fields, including food, who provided comprehensive information based on their knowledge and opinions about the featured restaurant. The restaurants (and the menu items) introduced in this program not only shot to the top of internet search charts, but also witnessed increasing customers [36]. Thus, the perception that the information is comprehensive can create a more positive perception of information quality, which further influences attitude formation towards the restaurant.
The quality of the information delivered in the message increases the acceptance of the information by consumers and directly and indirectly influences attitudes based on the viewer’s interpretation and evaluation of the information [37]. The higher the information quality (which is a central route), the stronger its impact on changes in consumer attitude [38]. Based on this discussion, the following hypotheses were formulated in an attempt to determine the impact that the quality of information from TV food programs has on attitudes towards the restaurants.
Hypothesis 1 (H1).
The accuracy of the information provided in TV food programs positively influences the attitude towards the restaurant.
Hypothesis 2 (H2).
The neutrality of the information provided in TV food programs positively influences the attitude towards the restaurant.
Hypothesis 3 (H3).
The comprehensiveness of the information provided in TV food programs positively influences the attitude towards the restaurant.

2.1.2. Peripheral (Route) Variable: Characteristics of the Messenger

While online and short messaging service (SMS) reviews are considered as information delivery methods using text and pictures, TV broadcasts deliver information in a video format which adds more vividness [39]. In the case of TV food programs, the vividness and concreteness with which the messenger expresses the flavor of the food can greatly impact the persuasiveness of the message. For example, one of the most popular comedians appears in the popular show “Omniscient Interfering View” and has gained great popularity by genuinely expressing flavors to the extent that people could imagine the food being in front of them [40]. This stimulated people to go out and eat that food at the restaurant. The food and restaurants introduced by that comedian have been experiencing great success. Therefore, this study includes the vividness of expression along with credibility, as a characteristic of the messenger.
The credibility of the messenger includes the expertise, trust, and reliability of the one delivering the persuasion message [15]. Thus, many of these factors become critical when the recipient processes the contextual information [12]. Many scholars supported this position that source credibility is considered as being the most important characteristic [27,28]. The higher the source’s credibility in the information processing mechanism, the more the elaboration process would be utilized [41]. The higher the expertise of the source perceived by the customer, the higher the perceived value of the information provided by the source, leading to increased information acceptance [42]. Therefore, the expertise of the source was found to have a significant impact on changes in consumer attitudes and behavior [38].
The vividness of the messenger’s expression depends on whether the messenger is able to clearly deliver the information while stimulating the imagination. The messenger vividly expresses the experience to the point that familiarity induces concreteness, reality, and experiential empathy in the audience [39]. Previous literature has viewed the vividness of expression to be effective in improving information quality [17,39]. This study regards a messenger’s characteristic as the vividness of expression. This is because an observation of popular TV food shows reveals that there are programs in which many panel members express the taste of food in their own way, and also include the cast members visiting restaurants to taste the food. Thus, the expression methods may be depending on who the messenger is, further greatly influences the information processing of viewers who receive this information. Therefore, this study proposes the following hypotheses to determine the impact that messenger characteristics perceived by customers who view TV food programs have on attitude towards restaurants.
Hypothesis 4 (H4).
The credibility of the messenger in TV food programs positively influences the attitude towards the restaurant.
Hypothesis 5 (H5).
The vividness of the messenger’s expression in TV food programs positively influences the attitude towards the restaurant.

2.2. Perceived Risk

Bauer [43] defined perceived risk as a state combining uncertainty regarding the result after selection and the seriousness of the result. Peter and Ryan [44] defined perceived risk as an expectation of loss related to purchases. Another study by Mandrik and Bao [45] explained that the perception of risk occurs when uncertainty or anxiety regarding a behavior, and the seriousness of the negative result that stems from that behavior is perceived.
The inconsistency and intangibility of restaurant products and services make it difficult for consumers to expect their quality before experiencing them. Because of this, the perceived risks that restaurant consumers have may be large [20]. The perceived risk has been addressed as a multidimensional concept. The literature identified various dimensions of perceived risk such as performance risk, physical risk, psychological risk, and time risk [22,46,47]. In addition, previous research has found that perceived risk plays different roles in consumer behavior based on purchase situations [48]. Thus, this study focused on performance risk and time risk as having significant effects on decision-making in a situation where a person visits a restaurant that was introduced through a TV food program.
Performance risk is defined as the potential loss that may occur when a good or service performs worse than expected [49,50]. In the context of a visit to a restaurant introduced in a TV program, it can refer to whether the food will be as tasty as expected, whether it will be worth the money, and whether it will be as good as it looked in the TV program. Consumers perceive higher performance risk for experience-based products such as dining, due to the functionality and quality of the product being uncertain, vague, and intangible in nature [51]. Therefore, the more the performance risk perceived by viewers of food programs, the greater the negative attitude would be towards a restaurant.
Time risk is defined as the loss of time and effort that occurs when a good or service is purchased [50]. Time loss can occur if the restaurant introduced on TV is located far away; even if it is close to one’s home, there is time risk if the waiting times are long. Extended waiting times have been found to be accompanied by the economic and psychological losses of customers influencing negative emotions [52,53]. Therefore, this study proposes the following hypothesis on the relationship between the risk perceived by dining customers who have watched food-related TV programs and attitude towards the restaurant.
Hypothesis 6 (H6).
The performance risk perceived by consumers in vising a restaurant introduced in TV food programs negatively influences the attitude towards the restaurant.
Hypothesis 7 (H7).
The time risk perceived by consumers in vising a restaurant introduced in TV programs negatively influences the attitude towards the restaurant.

2.3. Attitude and Visit Intention

Attitude can be seen as the evaluation of preference or non-preference, emotion, and behavioral trends that an individual has regarding a specific subject or idea [54]. It refers to the typical evaluation that a person makes about themselves, other people, or specific targets or issues [24]. Attitude is a core concept that summarizes the customer’s evaluation of a product or brand, and it is considered to be the most important variable in influencing consumer behavior [55]. Attitudes can be formed based on external information through persuasion or recommendation, and the higher the quality of the argument, the greater the impact it can have on highly positive attitudes [38]. The ELM proposes that information acceptance and attitude formation occur through the two different processing channels of the central and the peripheral route based on the individual interests or tendencies of the individual. This is a very useful model to describe the formation and modifying process of an individual’s attitude based on their selection and acceptance of information [24]. Thus, the quality of the information provided through TV food programs and the credibility of the source have an impact on attitudes towards restaurants; this can lead to intent to visit the restaurant. The quality of the argument and the expertise of the source has an impact on users’ attitude [38].
Intent is a core concept in behavior theory, and it is defined as the will or conviction of an individual to conduct actions to visit soon after the attitude towards a subject was formed in the consumer [56]. Consumer perception regarding a good or service can bring about changes in an individual’s attitude, and this attitude has an impact on purchase intent [57]. The research of Homer and Yoon [58] also stated that purchase intent is the intention of the consumer to purchase a good or service, and that attitude has a direct impact on purchase intent. The construct of “visit intent” in this study was operationalized as a behavioral intent by the customer to visit the restaurant. The following hypothesis has been proposed:
Hypothesis 8 (H8).
The attitude towards the restaurant positively influences visit intention.
This research framework is presented in Figure 1.

3. Methodology

3.1. Sampling and Data Collection

The survey respondents in our study were Korean residents who are over the age of 20, who have obtained information on restaurants in TV food programs, and have the experience of visiting the restaurant they saw on TV in the past three months before the survey period. We excluded responses from individuals who have watched TV food programs that have the format of a voiceover actor delivering restaurant information due to the difficulty to measure public confidence of the source.
Data collection was conducted over two weeks from 1 February to 14 February 2019 using an online research survey company in Korea with a panel size of over 1.3 million people. A total of 347 responses were obtained and a profile of the sample is presented in Table 1.

3.2. The Study Measures

The study’s survey questionnaire was developed to measure the nine constructs to achieve the objectives of this study. Nine items were used to measure the quality of the information including accuracy, neutrality, and comprehensiveness based on prior studies [27,30,31]. In addition, to measure the source credibility of the messenger’s characteristics, four items were used based on Cheung et al. [27] and Sussman and Siegal [15]. Also, four items were adapted from Schlinger [59] to measure the variable vividness of expression. For measuring perceived risk, we used three items on performance risk derived from Stone and Gronhaug [47] and another three items on time risk derived from Laroche et al. [50]. Attitude towards the restaurant was assessed using four items derived from Han et al. [60] and Baker et al. [61]. Another four items were used to assess visit intention based on Oliver [57] and Han et al. [60]. All the questions were originally developed in English; however, they were translated to Korean and revised to improve clarity. All scale items were measured with five-point Likert-type scales ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5).

3.3. Analytical Methods

The demographic profile of the respondents on sample data was descriptively analyzed. We used a two-step approach to conduct data analyses. First, the reliability and construct validity were assessed by conducting confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in the first step. The research model and the proposed hypotheses were tested by developing and testing the structural equation model (SEM) in the second step.

4. Data Analysis and Results

4.1. Measurement Model

The measurement model fit was assessed by a CFA. Seven model-fit indices were used to estimate the measurement model fit: χ2 divided by the degrees of freedom (CMIN/df) (<3), goodness of fit index (GFI) (>0.90), root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) (<0.08), root mean squared residual (RMR) (<0.08), normed fit index (NFI) (>0.9), NNFI (>0.9), and comparative fit index (CFI) (>0.9) [61]. The measurement model showed a good fit with the data collected (χ2 = 644.822, df = 396, CMIN/df = 1.628, RMR = 0.028, GFI = 0.894, NFI = 0.901, incremental fit index (IFI) = 0.960, CFI = 0.959, RMSEA = 0.043). The adequacy of the measurement model was evaluated based on the criteria of reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity. First, reliability was examined based on the composite reliability (CR) values. Table 2 shows that all of the values are above 0.7, indicating adequate composite reliability [61]. The average variance extracted (AVE) values for all variables were higher than the suggested threshold value of 0.5, suggesting the convergent validity of the scale [62].
To verify discriminant validity between each factor that has verified convergent validity, the average variance extracted (AVE) of each potential factor and the square of the correlation between potential factors were compared to see if all the AVE values were larger than the squares of the correlations [63]. The results of the analysis showed that all potential latent factors had discriminant validity as shown in Table 3.

4.2. Structural Model

The SEM analysis with the maximum likelihood estimation was conducted using the AMOS 22.0 (IBM, Armonk, NY, USA) statistics package program for hypothesis verification. The indices of fit for the SEM model were χ2 = 564.488, df = 387, p = 0.000, χ2 divided by the degrees of freedom (CMIN/df) = 1.459, root mean squared residual (RMR) = 0.039, goodness of fit index (GFI) = 0.908, normed fit index (NFI) = 0.914, incremental fit index (IFI) = 0.971, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.971, and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.036, which satisfied the recommended thresholds. The results of verifying hypotheses are presented in Table 4. The three information quality factors, accuracy (β = 0.223, t = 2.688, p = 0.007), neutrality (β = 0.205, t = 2.703, p = 0.007), and comprehensiveness (β = 0.313, t = 3.74, p = 0.000) were shown to have a positive impact on attitude towards the restaurant, thereby supporting Hypothesis 1, Hypothesis 2, and Hypothesis 3. However, source credibility (β = −0.111, t = −1.439, p = 0.15) was not significantly related to attitude towards the restaurant, leading to rejection of Hypothesis 4. Vividness of expression (β = 0.171, t = 2.248, p = 0.025) was shown to have a positive impact on attitude towards the restaurant supporting Hypothesis 5. Performance risk was shown to have a negative impact on attitude towards the restaurant (β = −0.193, t = −3.158, p = 0.002), but time risk was found to be have a positive impact on attitude towards the restaurant (β = 0.117, t = 1.989, p = 0.047), thereby supporting Hypothesis 6 but rejecting Hypothesis 7. Finally, attitude towards the restaurant (β = 0.421, t = 6.819, p = 0.000) was shown to have a positive impact on visit intention, thereby supporting Hypothesis 8.

5. Discussion and Conclusion

5.1. Discussion

This study applied the ELM to examine the pathways through which restaurant information provided by TV food programs (which are known to wield a large amount of influence in the Korea foodservice market) are processed. Our analysis also examined the impacts the main components of the ELM have on attitude towards restaurants and visit intention. In addition, as perceived risk about the restaurant’s menus and service influences the formation of an attitude towards a restaurant, two types of perceived risks (performance and time) were added in our expanded ELM.
The study’s results showed that accuracy, neutrality, and comprehensiveness (component variables of quality of information, in the central route of the ELM) had a positive impact on customer attitudes towards a restaurant. Vividness of expression (one of the messenger characteristics, in the peripheral route) has a positive impact on customer attitude towards a restaurant, while source credibility does not have a meaningful impact. Results of testing whether perceived risk factors impact attitude towards the restaurant revealed that performance risk had a negative impact, while time risk had a positive one. Attitude towards a restaurant has a positive impact on visit intention.
This study revealed that the variables that form the central route of quality of information had a greater impact on attitude formation than those in the peripheral route of the vividness of expression. Therefore, the higher the comprehensiveness, accuracy, and neutrality of the restaurant information delivered through TV food programs, and the more vivid the expression of the messenger, the greater the impact on the formation of a positive attitude towards the restaurant. On the other hand, source credibility was shown to be a factor that does not have any significant impact, which is a different result from the existing research [38,41,42] that demonstrated that source credibility significantly affected consumer attitude and behavior changes. In an effort to interpret this result, we paid attention to one early study investigating how source credibility is related to communication effectiveness [64]. The authors reported that degrees of source credibility were not significantly associated with communication effectiveness. Rather effective communication skills were found to be more useful to deliver information. This can be applied to explain our result, implying that dining out at a restaurant is an experiential good, thereby indicating that rather than source credibility, the ability of the messenger to make one imagine the experience of eating that food through vivid expression is more important for attitude formation than expert knowledge. In addition, the result that a higher performance risk leads to a greater negative impact on one’s attitude towards a restaurant is in agreement with the argument [20,51] that performance risk can occur in making a purchasing decision for experiential goods such as dining. In contrast to the prior literature’s findings [52,53], we revealed that the more the perceived time risk, the more positive the attitude towards the restaurant. This might be because even as time risk is perceived while waiting in line for a long time to eat the food, this situation can give confidence regarding the food and service provided by the restaurant. For example, the restaurant introduced by a very popular TV food program, Baek Jong-won’s Alley Restaurant, continues to have a large stream of visitors despite substantial time losses for customers who come from other regions and wait in line early in the morning. Instead, the higher the time risk, the more the confidence among people that the food and service of that restaurant will be of high quality, which can lead to a positive attitude towards that restaurant. Attitude towards the restaurant was shown to have a positive impact on visit intention which is a result that is in agreement with previous research [59,63,65]. Thus, the more positive the attitude towards a restaurant formed through TV food programs, the greater will be the intention to visit the restaurant in the future.

5.2. Conclusions

Our results provide important theoretical and practical implications to develop a more effective marketing tool to be used for sustained restaurant businesses. The significance of the results from a theoretical perspective is as follows. First, this study is meaningful in terms of applying the ELM to the information processing and decision-making activities of restaurant customers based on the information provided by TV food programs, which currently wield great influence in the domestic and international foodservice markets. Through an examination of the influence of TV food programs, we identified more important factors that can lead to more positive attitudes towards a restaurant and subdivided them into information and messenger characteristics. These findings can be used to more specifically address relevant research topics in the future. Second, this study expanded extant research, which only considered the simple causal relationships, by broadening the scope of the ELM along with performance risk and time risk. Perceived risk had an even more significant impact when actually visiting restaurants introduced in TV food programs are an important variable in forming consumer attitudes. Third, while this analysis relates to the decision-making process of restaurant customers influenced by watching TV food programs, it can be expanded to be applied to various types of channels, such as single-person platforms (YouTube).
This study also provides practical implications for devising marketing strategies that link positive attitude formation towards restaurants and promote visit intent by examining the systematic information processing mechanism of restaurant customers based on the characteristics of TV food programs. Our study provides useful information for TV food program producers and creators regarding which attributes they should focus their productions on. First, in this study, the recipients of information provided by TV food programs were impacted in the form of attitude towards restaurants by the component factors of comprehensiveness, accuracy, and neutrality from the central route of quality of information. This implies that TV food program producers and creators need to present comprehensive information from various perspectives when producing shows, as it is important to accurately show both the pros and cons of a restaurant instead of providing limited information. Second, dining out at a restaurant is experiential goods and the ability of a messenger to express the food characteristics in a vivid manner is more impactful in leading to more positive attitudes than their credibility related to expertise and trustworthiness. This implies that it is important to produce food-related broadcasts or videos that use vivid expressions that make the viewer imagine that they are eating the food at the restaurant. One of the ten keywords that were identified in the market trend analysis in 2019, conducted by the Seoul National University Consumer Trend Analysis Center, was emotional representative. It refers to a person or good or service that represents emotion [66]. Messengers in current TV food programs or on YouTube channels play the role of an emotional representative by representing the emotions of the viewers. The more the viewers feel engaged and empathetic to the emotions of the emotional representative, the more their attitudes and behaviors can be positive to the program. Therefore, producers must endeavor to present even the minutest details to gain the commitment of viewers, and using a full-screen layout that is optimized for the mobile environment can act as an important factor for strong commitment [67]. In addition, it would be much more effective to describe in detail one’s own impression and emotions than to present functional values such as prices or brands [68]. Third, the more the performance risk perceived through the restaurant information presented in TV food programs, the more negative the attitude towards the restaurant will be. On the other hand, we found that the more the perceived time risk, the more positive the attitude towards a restaurant would be. As the likelihood of perceiving performance risk is high for experiential goods such as dining out, there is a need to explain performance aspects such as the taste of the food and price in relation to food quality in more detail when presenting restaurant information. “Cost-to-benefit” consumption is a popular trend and an important factor in making decisions to select a restaurant for dining out. Therefore, the provision of information focusing on “cost-to-benefit” or price-to-performance may be able to reduce performance risk, thereby aiding in the formation of a positive attitude towards the restaurant. In most cases, waiting to receive service is perceived as a negative experience that requires time and physical and mental exertion from the perspective of the customer [53]. However, this study showed that the more the perceived time risk, the attitude towards a restaurant tends to change more positively. This result implies that viewers who want to visit the restaurant that has been introduced through TV food programs are more likely to accept the given wait times and temporal inefficiencies. While time risk is perceived through the perspective of people standing in line, this can also be a factor to positively change the attitude towards the restaurant as it is associated with the confidence and trust in the quality of food and service at that restaurant. Therefore, it would be more effective to make efforts in marketing for exposure than in reducing time risk. Efforts such as these will positively change attitudes toward the restaurant and contribute to increasing visit intention. In conclusion, TV food programs are used as a tool for efficient information delivery to the viewers, and further can be very effective in promoting restaurants. In particular, the literature has addressed TV food programs in an emphasis on their positive and powerful ability to deliver information that is regarded as more professional, trustworthy, and vivid [2,39]. Because of this, TV food programs can have more positive and long-lasting effects on reviewers including restaurant consumers. Considering this aspect, TV food programs as a powerful source of information may possibly have a long-term effect on restaurant customers and their visit intentions.

5.3. Limitations and Future Research

This study presents the following limitations and future research directions. First, data gathered for this study targeted restaurant customers, causing difficulty to apply the study’s findings to other study contexts. In addition, all of the respondents were Korean residents although TV food programs currently wield a great amount of influence in the worldwide foodservice market. Thus, a more rigorous data collection process should be used in future research for enhancing the generalization of study findings. Additionally, we limited our study’s subject to programs broadcast on TV. This can be a significant limitation because other more popular channels were excluded. Thus, future studies need to include a greater variety of program categories such as single-person internet platforms (YouTube) or other channels to address similar relevant issues. Additionally, we have tested only two types of risk (performance risk and time risk) added to the ELM. However, other types of risk can play a significant role in a relevant research framework. Thus, a more comprehensive dimensional risk concept should be applied in future studies. This will not only expand the range of its academic scope but also aid researchers in deriving academically sound results.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, H.J.S. and H.Y.K.; Methodology, H.J.S.; Software, H.Y.K.; Validation, H.J.S. and H.Y.K.; Formal Analysis, H.J.S.; Investigation, H.J.S.; Resources, H.J.S.; Data Curation, H.J.S.; Writing—Original Draft Preparation, H.J.S. and H.Y.K.; Writing—Review and Editing, M.C.; Visualization, M.C.; Supervision, M.C.; Project Administration, M.C. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

This work was supported by the PaiChai University research grant in 2020.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Sustainability 12 07131 g001 550
Figure 1. Research Framework.
Figure 1. Research Framework.
Sustainability 12 07131 g001
Table
Table 1. Responders’ profiles (n = 347).
Table 1. Responders’ profiles (n = 347).
Demographic CharacteristicsFrequencyPercentage
GenderMale19556.2
Female15243.8
Age20–29 years11733.7
30–39 years11733.7
40–49 years7822.5
50–59 years298.4
Above 60 years61.7
Marital statusSingle19054.8
Married15745.2
Educational levelHigh school257.2
College degree4513.0
University degree24169.5
Graduate school3610.4
Monthly household incomeBelow USD 20008023.1
USD 2000–29008725.1
USD 3000–39006518.7
USD 4000–49005114.7
USD 5000–59003710.7
Above USD 6000277.8
OccupationStudent4914.1
Office workers or government employee15243.8
Sales and service246.9
Professional job4111.8
Technical job174.9
Self-employed236.6
Housewife288.1
Others133.7
Table
Table 2. Measurement model assessment.
Table 2. Measurement model assessment.
Variables and ItemStandardized LoadingCR 1AVE 2
Accuracy (α = 0.786)
This TV food program made the characteristics of the restaurant easy to understand.0.7990.8810.714
This TV food program accurately depicted the characteristics of the restaurant.0.817
This TV food program accurately depicted the restaurant’s menus.0.632
Neutrality (α = 0.803)
The information provided in this TV food program is objective. 0.8300.8750.700
The information provided in this TV food program gives a balanced view of pros and cons.0.738
The information provided in this TV food program is neutral.0.713
Comprehensiveness (α = 0.802)
This TV food program provides in-depth information on the restaurant.0.7950.8630.677
This TV food program provides a broad spectrum of information on the restaurant.0.792
This TV food program provides required information from all aspects.0.702
Source credibility (α = 0.912)
The messenger in this TV food program has extensive knowledge of the restaurant business.0.7510.9250.758
The messenger in this TV food program is an expert in the restaurant business.0.754
The messenger in this TV food program is a trustworthy person. 0.904
The messenger in this TV food program is a credible person. 0.917
Vividness of expression (α = 0.860)
The messenger of this TV food program expresses the experience so vividly that it reminds you of a similar experience.0.7910.9220.748
The messenger of this TV food program expresses the experience so vividly that it makes you feel like that you are eating at the restaurant.0.721
The messenger of this TV food program clearly expresses the emotions they are feeling.0.800
The messenger of this TV food program realistically expresses the emotions they are feeling.0.795
Performance risk (α = 0.850)
When I plan to visit a restaurant introduced in a TV food program, I am concerned whether it will be as good as it appeared in the broadcast.0.8540.9020.755
When I plan to visit a restaurant introduced in a TV food program, I am worried whether it will be worth the money. 0.711
When I plan to visit a restaurant introduced in a TV food program, I am concerned whether it will be as good as I expect. 0.868
Time risk (α = 0.821)
I believe that visiting a restaurant that was introduced in a TV food program will be an inefficient use of my time. 0.8950.8590.675
I believe that visiting a restaurant that was introduced in a TV food program will cause a loss of my time. 0.842
As wait times can be higher for restaurants that have been introduced in TV food program, more of my personal time is required.0.613
Attitude toward the restaurant (α = 0.863)
I believe that it is wise to visit the restaurant that has been introduced in a TV food program. 0.8050.9220.747
I believe that it is beneficial to visit the restaurant that has been introduced in a TV food program.0.831
I believe that it is good to visit the restaurant that has been introduced in a TV food program. 0.775
I believe that it will be enjoyable to visit the restaurant that has been introduced in a TV food program.0.719
Visit intention (α = 0.899)
I plan to continue to visit the restaurant that has been introduced in a TV food program.0.8990.9240.754
I will make an effort to visit a restaurant that has been introduced in a TV food program.0.733
I think I will visit a restaurant that has been introduced in a TV food program more actively in the future.0.726
I want to visit a restaurant that has been introduced in a TV food program if I have the opportunity.0.901
1 CR = composite reliability; 2 AVE = average variance extracted.
Table
Table 3. Correlations of analysis between the variables.
Table 3. Correlations of analysis between the variables.
Variable 1123456789
1. AC0.7140.2600.3380.3200.3520.0230.0100.2500.173
2. NE0.5100.7000.3490.1650.1630.0040.0010.2940.103
3. CO0.5810.5910.6770.3010.2510.0010.0040.3300.155
4. SC0.5660.4060.5490.7580.5010.0040.0000.1360.120
5. VE0.5930.4040.5010.7080.7480.0330.0060.1640.136
6. PR0.151−0.0650.0120.0620.1810.7550.1270.0100.004
7. TR−0.1000.029−0.0640.003−0.0760.3570.6750.0000.010
8. AR0.5000.5420.5750.3690.405−0.101−0.0060.7470.169
9. VI0.4160.3210.3940.3470.3690.060−0.1030.4110.754
Mean3.7113.4003.2333.6773.7293.4232.8013.2953.570
S.D.(0.618)(0.651)(0.698)(0.760)(0.603)(0.699)(0.768)(0.622)(0.714)
1 AC = accuracy; NE = neutrality; CO = comprehensiveness; SC = source credibility; VE = vividness of expression; PR = performance risk; TR = time risk; AR = attitude toward the restaurant; VI = visit intention. Diagonal elements show the average variance extracted (AVE). Below the diagonal is the correlation coefficient. Above the diagonal is the square root of the correlation coefficient.
Table
Table 4. Result of structural model analysis.
Table 4. Result of structural model analysis.
Hypotheses 2Betat-Value 1p-ValueDecision
H1AC -> AR0.2232.6880.007 **supported
H2NE -> AR0.2052.7030.007 **supported
H3CO -> AR0.3133.740.000 ***supported
H4SC -> AR−0.111−1.4390.15rejected
H5VE -> AR0.1712.2480.025 *supported
H6PR -> AR−0.193−3.1580.002 *supported
H7TR -> AR0.1171.9890.047 *rejected
H8AR -> VI0.4216.8190.000 ***supported
1 Critical t-values.; *** p < 0.001, ** p < 0.01, * p < 0.05. 2 Note. AC = Accuracy; NE = Neutrality; CO = Comprehensiveness; SC = Source credibility; VE = Vividness of expression; PR = Performance risk; TR = Time risk; AR = Attitude toward the restaurant; VI = visit intention.

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Sung, H.J.; Kim, H.Y.; Cho, M. How Can TV Food Programs Be Used as an Effective Restaurant Marketing Tool? An Extension of ELM with Perceived Risk. Sustainability 2020, 12, 7131. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12177131

AMA Style

Sung HJ, Kim HY, Cho M. How Can TV Food Programs Be Used as an Effective Restaurant Marketing Tool? An Extension of ELM with Perceived Risk. Sustainability. 2020; 12(17):7131. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12177131

Chicago/Turabian Style

Sung, Hye Jin, Hyun Young Kim, and Meehee Cho. 2020. "How Can TV Food Programs Be Used as an Effective Restaurant Marketing Tool? An Extension of ELM with Perceived Risk" Sustainability 12, no. 17: 7131. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12177131

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