The impact of storytelling elements in advertising music video based on cultural values and social contexts to young adult Vietnamese’ emotional appeals: A case of Biti’s

Abstract

Tet, the Vietnamese New Year, is a time for celebration, reunion and is also the most significant occasion in Vietnam. “Đi để trở về (Going far to come back)” is a longstanding music video (MV) advertising campaign, launched in 2017 by the footwear brand Biti’s in Vietnam, typically released around the Tet holiday yearly. This research delves into the impact of storytelling elements (including plot, character and lyric) in Biti’s "Đi để trở về (Going far to come back)" campaign, focusing on seasons 1, 6, and 8. The study is guided by two main objectives: (1) to investigate how Biti’s uses storytelling in its music videos to reflect and engage with the Vietnamese cultural context, particularly during the Tet holiday; and (2), to examine the influence of these storytelling elements on the emotional appeals of Vietnamese young adults. This study uses a qualitative method, including in-depth interviews, contextual analysis, and textual analysis, to examine the portrayal of Vietnamese cultural values and context in storytelling elements to connect emotionally with the audience. Additionally, semi-structured indepth interviews with Vietnamese individuals (aged 19–32), including both those living near and far from their families, were employed to understand their perspectives, perceptions, and emotions regarding the central theme of "Đi để trở về (Going far to come back)". The findings revealed that the "Đi để trở về (Going far to come back)" campaign effectively utilizes storytelling elements, such as plot, character, and lyrics based on Vietnamese cultural values and contexts to resonate with the audience's emotional appeals, particularly the themes of family reunion across different years. Through in-depth interviews, it was found that the emotional appeals of the MVs were stronger among individuals who had similar experiences with the storyline and characters in these MVs. Cultural values including traditional Tet symbols,v family dynamics in the specific contexts, played a significant role in enhancing the emotional impact on viewers