Pro-social marketing campaigns: Willingness to pay and purchase intention for fare-trade chocolate

Concerns related to the ethical issues are evident in the increasingly socially conscious marketplace. This paper investigated the importance of fair-trade communication activities in the buying decision-making process. The role of empathy in influencing the willingness to pay (WTP) and the purchase intention (PI) was also explored. A mail survey with a sample of 199 Italian people was conducted. A between subjects factorial design was used to test the hypotheses. Results showed the effectiveness of pro-social marketing campaigns in increasing consumers’ WTP and PI for fare-trade chocolate. Contextually, consumers with a high level of emotional empathy showed a greater PI as opposed to those with a low level. The study enriches the literature on ethical consumption and provides some guidance to manufacturers and product managers for understanding the role of pro-social marketing communication in influencing consumer behaviour.