Dr Samantha Ford
MA, BA, PhD
Current positions
Lecturer in Marketing
University of Bristol Business School
Contact
Press and media
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Research interests
Dr Samantha Ford is a Lecturer in Marketing at the University of Bristol Business School. Their research interests are in applying linguistic theory and methods to marketing research, particularly in the fields of consumer research and social marketing. Samantha specializes in the creative use and effectiveness of figurative communication in advertising, exploring the relationship between consumer psychology/behaviour and linguistic/cognitive phenomena such as metaphor and metonymy. Samantha has also worked in collaboration with marketing practitioners to inform both theory and practice. Samantha completed her PhD in English Language and Applied Linguistics at the University of Birmingham (2023) with no corrections and has worked at the Birmingham Business School (2019-2020).
Projects and supervisions
Research projects
Investigating the creative use and effectiveness of figurative communication in advertising: A collaboration with marketing practitioners
Role
Student
Description
This project explores how advertisers use creative, imaginative language and visuals to influence what people think and how they behave. It focuses on figurative techniques—like metaphors (comparing one thing to…Managing organisational unit
University of Bristol Business SchoolDates
01/01/2018 to 31/12/2023
Maths, Music, and Metaphor
Role
Student
Description
Investigated verbal and gestural metaphors in primary school maths and music classrooms, and developed methods to analyse data with ELAN softwareManaging organisational unit
University of Bristol Business SchoolDates
01/06/2016 to 30/06/2016
Exploring Multimodal Metaphor (and Metonymy) in Advertising
Role
Student
Description
The “Exploring Metaphor and Metonymy in Advertising” (EMMA) project has involved collaborations with national and international advertising agencies to understand how metaphor is best used in advertising and to explore…Managing organisational unit
University of Bristol Business SchoolDates
01/10/2015 to 31/10/2017
Publications
Recent publications
01/01/2026Aesthetic metaphor in advertising
Advertising aesthetics: Aesthetic approaches to advertising theory and practice
Creativity as balance
EURAM 2025 Proceedings
One Hundred Ways to Resist Corporate Branding
Metaphor and Symbol
Two reflections on the PhD thesis
Cognitive Psychology Bulletin
Investigating the creative use and effectiveness of figurative communication in advertising: a collaboration with marketing practitioners
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