Research into the cultural differences in advertising is still relative young. Although a number of articles deal with the topic, a large number of them focuses on specific topics or specific product categories, and does only rarely attempt to link their findings with previously researched cultural dimensions. Equally the majority of the research focuses on America and the Far East, and few articles deal with Europe exclusively. This study will, hopefully, fill this gap.

Previous research has suggested that not only the appeals, but also the communication style as well as the information content is significantly different in various cultures. My analysis so far has shown significant differences in the appeals used, however using methods like the Resnik-Stern Classification System and Simon's Creative Strategies in addition to the appeals, the analysis of differences and similarities of commercials in the three countries can be enhanced significantly.

Equally important can be the difference and similarities in various product categories, particularly as some products may well be considered more "culturally charged" than others. Anecdotal evidence exists, that commercials for washing powders and other household goods differ only slightly from culture to culture, however food and drinks advertising seems to be significantly different.

Previous research has en large focused on describing the observed differences, with few attempts (Albers-Miller and Gelb among the most prominent ones) being made to try and relate the observed differences in appeals, communication style and information content back to cultural dimensions. Using cluster analysis, as well as statistical methods, I will attempt to link the observed differences and similarities back to cultural dimensions. A detailed framework for which still has to be developed.

Additionally, I will attempt to test, in a type of focus-group-setting, how different commercials are perceived when displayed to members of an other cultural group - and what type of reactions they show towards being exposed to a different type of strategy and/ or commercial message. To achieve this, I will show commercials, localised for one market, to a small selection of members of another culture (market): For example British Holsten advertising to German consumers, Dutch Heineken commercials to British viewers. Following the viewing, we will discuss their reactions to the commercials, as an additional qualitative analysis of exposure to foreign advertising content.

The introduction places the current study into its overall context. It discusses the advertising market in general, and the international advertising market in particular. It also discusses the fundamentals of the standardisation/localisation debate, as well as presents the market figures for the three countries and introduces the regulatory framework as well as the media environment of the countries studied.

Chapter Two looks at research into intercultural dimensions, and sets the framework for analysis of the findings and their relation to culture. This chapter reviews the major theories, including the works of Hall, Hofstede and Schwarz.

Chapter Three focuses on existing research into international advertising and cultural differences. It presents some major studies in and their findings as well as discusses their relevance to this study.

Chapter Four focuses on the methodology, and explores methodologies and concepts that have been used in previous research. It discusses the methodologies used in light of the objectives of this study and presents the methodology for this study.

Chapter Five explores the possible links between values, appeals (Pollay), communication style (Simon) and information content (Resnick-Stern) and the cultural dimensions and research presented in chapter two. This chapter provides the link between the research findings and the cultural dimensions.

Chapter Six presents the findings for advertising as a whole, and explores the possible links as discussed in the previous chapter. It also includes a more detailed view of the limitations and regulations of advertising as a whole in the countries, and goes on to discuss the implications.

Chapter Seven presents the findings for selected product areas, focusing more in depth on certain significantly different and similar areas, and explores the reasons for these observations. It also discusses the country specific factors, such as economic and regulatory factors, as well as broader implications for selected sectors.

Chapter Eight focuses on the effects that exposure to a different set of appeals, styles and information content has. It explores, resulting from the focus group analysis, how consumers would react to these differences.

Chapter Nine details the conclusions and implications of the study, reviewing the study's purpose, discussing the study's limitations, and gives directions for future research.

In the next twelve months I will further collect and analyse commercials, as well as analyse the commercials for communication styles and information content. I will also further familiarise myself with the regulatory requirements for different product categories in the countries discussed.

The study is expected to be completed by the end of September 2001.