Unboxing the “Uncertainty” of Blind Box Marketing: The Interplay of Uncertainty Marketing and the SOR Framework

The blind box phenomenon has resonated strongly with consumers. Brands and producers use uncertainty to captivate customers and build loyalty in a thriving global market. This conceptual paper reviewed relevant literature to redefine “uncertainty” in the context of blind box marketing. This study expands traditional Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) elements by incorporating comprehensive uncertainty dimensions (assortment, promotion, and innovation tactics) alongside variability in stakes (low to high potential gains/losses) and opacity (information concealment levels). These stimuli trigger diverse organism states, from positive emotions like curiosity and excitement to negative ones such as disappointment and risk perception. Behavioral responses range from purchase intentions and brand loyalty to avoidance or complaints, moderated by factors like consumer type, price consciousness, and product involvement. The literature review reveals gaps in prior blind box research, which often overlooks negative emotions and the full range of uncertainty. The proposed model offers practitioners targeted strategies, such as high-opacity designs for thrill-seekers or low-stakes promotions for casual buyers, while guiding empirical tests across industries like toys and entertainment. This paper also introduces a comprehensive uncertainty element with typologies (assortment, promotion, innovation) and variability dimensions (stakes, opacity), addressing limitations in prior studies that narrowly defined product uncertainty. This study advances marketing theory by unifying SOR with uncertainty marketing, providing a robust lens for uncertainty-driven strategies amid a market projected to reach USD 31 billion by 2031.