Research Reveals How Language Variations Across Product Categories Impact Click-Through Rates in Japanese Instagram Ads

In recent years, the digital advertising landscape has undergone a profound transformation, with social media platforms emerging as critical arenas for brand communication. Among these, Instagram has become a powerhouse for marketers, leveraging visual content to capture consumer attention and drive engagement. While much of the research in this domain has focused on optimizing images, videos, and the platforms’ underlying recommendation algorithms, the nuanced role of linguistic elements in ad copy remains markedly underexplored. This oversight is particularly evident in non-English contexts, such as Japan, where a rich tapestry of language-specific usage and cultural connotations deeply influences consumer behavior.

A latest pioneering study undertaken by researchers from the University of Tsukuba seeks to illuminate this neglected facet of social media advertising. By meticulously analyzing a comprehensive dataset comprising over 21,000 Instagram advertisements spanning two key product categories—supplements and cosmetics—between July 2021 and June 2023, the investigators have uncovered compelling evidence about how different linguistic features correlate with user engagement, as measured by click-through rates (CTR). Their approach harnessed J-LIWC2015, a sophisticated psycholinguistic dictionary tailored for the Japanese language, capable of categorizing words based on psychological and semantic characteristics.

What sets this research apart is its dual focus on two fundamentally different product types. Supplement advertisements often communicate health benefits or risk reduction, while cosmetic ads typically evoke aesthetics and emotional appeal. This dichotomy provided a fertile ground for examining how subtle variations in language usage resonate differently with audiences depending on the advertised product. The findings highlight that linguistic strategies are far from universal—they are intricately woven with product context, requiring marketers to adopt highly tailored copywriting approaches.

For supplement ads, the presence of language associated with risk or discrepancy stood out as a positive driver of CTR. Words that evoke a sense of caution, potential problems, or an unfulfilled status seemed to provoke stronger user interest and action. This may be reflective of consumers’ heightened sensitivity to health-related messaging, where perceived threats or uncertainties trigger deeper cognitive engagement. Importantly, this contrasts with more positive or motion-focused language, which did not enhance user interaction in the supplement category, underscoring the need for careful semantic framing.

Conversely, cosmetic advertisements exhibited a markedly different linguistic profile influencing engagement. Terms related to visual perception, references to appearance, and expressions of positive emotions collectively boosted CTR in this category. Moreover, motion-related lexicon also positively influenced user response in cosmetics advertising, suggesting that dynamic, vibrant descriptions align well with consumers’ expectations of beauty products. These findings intimate that aesthetic and affective language can effectively captivate audiences by tapping into desires for transformation and self-expression.

An intriguing dimension unveiled by this research is the variable impact of certain linguistic features across product categories. For instance, motion-related words had opposing effects—being detrimental to CTR in supplement advertisements while beneficial in cosmetics ads. This nuanced divergence highlights the complexity of consumer psychology and points to a potential pitfall in employing generic copy strategies across diverse product lines. It encourages marketers to deeply consider product-specific user mindsets and tailor language accordingly.

Beyond practical marketing implications, this study contributes vitally to the scientific understanding of psycholinguistics applied in digital environments. Prior investigations have predominantly concentrated on English-speaking markets; thus, this research enriches the global knowledge base by providing a large-scale quantitative analysis within the Japanese linguistic and cultural context. The use of J-LIWC2015 allowed for a granular dissection of language features, presenting a methodological blueprint that can be adapted for other languages and markets.

The dataset’s scale, encompassing more than twenty-one thousand distinct Instagram advertisements, lends robust statistical power to the conclusions drawn. This extensive scope mitigates biases inherent in smaller datasets and supports more generalizable insights into how language shapes user interactions on social media platforms. Moreover, by focusing on CTR, an objective and widely used metric of advertising effectiveness, the research aligns linguistic analysis directly with measurable business outcomes.

From a strategic standpoint, these insights urge social media marketers and copywriters to embed linguistic psychology into their creative processes actively. Selecting words that strategically tap into risk perception may enhance supplement ad performance, while leveraging vivid, emotive, and dynamic language could maximize cosmetic ad engagement. The identification of product-specific linguistic markers also opens avenues for deploying machine learning algorithms to automate and optimize ad copy generation, potentially revolutionizing digital advertising workflows.

Furthermore, the study underscores the broader significance of cultural and linguistic specificity in global advertising. Automated translations or template-based copywriting without adaptation to local psycholinguistic norms risk diminishing ad effectiveness. Incorporating culturally attuned language models and dictionaries like J-LIWC2015 into advertising analytics can empower brands to resonate authentically with diverse markets, enhancing user experience and commercial success.

The implications extend beyond commercial marketing into academic realms, enriching interdisciplinary fields such as computational social science, behavioral psychology, and natural language processing. By bridging these domains, the research offers a compelling example of how large-scale data analytics and psycholinguistic frameworks can decode the complex interplay between language and human behavior on digital platforms, informing everything from interface design to content moderation policies.

In conclusion, this groundbreaking study from the University of Tsukuba delineates the profound influence of linguistic features on Instagram advertising effectiveness, with distinct patterns emerging across supplement and cosmetic products. Its methodological rigor and focus on non-English digital settings address a critical research gap and furnish actionable knowledge for both academia and industry. As social media advertising continues to evolve, integrating psycholinguistic insights promises to usher in a new era of precision marketing that speaks not only to the mind but also to the cultural fabric of audiences worldwide.

News Publication Date: 15-Apr-2026

Web References:
– DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0338313
– Institute of Business Sciences, University of Tsukuba: https://www.fbs.otsuka.tsukuba.ac.jp/en/
– Master’s / Doctoral Program in Risk and Resilience Engineering: https://www.risk.tsukuba.ac.jp/en/