Reciprocal Effects Between Multichannel Retailers’ Offline and Online Brand Images

Two experiments were conducted to disentangle reciprocal relationships between multichannel retailers’ offline and online brand images. Results support the cross-channel effect of prior offline brand image on online brand beliefs (biased assimilation) and that of online performance on offline brand beliefs (impact). Consumers’ online and offline brand attitudes were influenced by not only brand beliefs from the respective channel but also by beliefs from the other channel. But, strong prior offline brand image was found to mitigate the impact of online performance on offline brand beliefs in the presence of negative online performance (impact minimization) as a way to eliminate cognitive dissonance.     

Sponsorship portfolio as brand image creation strategies: A commentary essay

This essay discusses Chien, Cornwell, and Pappu's (forthcoming) paper, “Sponsorship portfolio as brand image creation strategy.” Although Chien et al. (forthcoming) seek to enhance understanding of the impact of a brand's sponsorship portfolio on its brand image they are not completely successful in this endeavor. One of their key constructs, the event personality fit (EPF) construct, has no significant effect on brand meaning. This essay suggests that this finding is because of limitations in the brand personality metrics in the study and because of the tautological nature of the hypotheses proposals. Their sponsorship category relatedness (SCR) construct, however, is a useful construct for those seeking to assemble a portfolio of sponsored products that builds positive brand meaning for the sponsor's brand.     

Sponsorship portfolio as a brand-image creation strategy

The meanings held by events are sometimes transferable to a brand through sponsorship. The perceived sponsor-property fit affects brand evaluations. This research hypothesizes that in the case of a sponsorship portfolio, the source of image transfer can be composite, and brand image association may depend on the perceived fit between sponsorships. Building on theories of social cognition and categorization, this research proposes two dimensions of fit: sponsorship category relatedness and event personality fit. Two experiments show that categorical relatedness between sponsorships not only leads to the creation of a unified brand personality for the sponsor, but also enhances brand meaning consistency and clarity. Central category-related traits cue a category membership framework that integrates sponsorships in the portfolio. Under conditions of category ambiguity, the impact of event personality fit emerges. Interestingly, the findings suggest that sponsored properties having a “spiky” brand personality (having both high and low performance on dimensions) may communicate most clearly in a portfolio.     

“New and old”: Consumer evaluations of co-branding between new brands and Chinese time-honored brands

Nowadays, rejuvenation of Chinese time-honored brands, a symbol of Chinese traditional culture, is manifested in their co-branding with new brands. With focus on sincerity and excitement, two fundamental dimensions of brand personality, the authors explore this co-branding strategy which remains unexplored by the extant literature. Based on the integration of brand personality and Stereotype Content Model, a new mechanism is constructed from the perspective of consumers, with brand admiration being the underlying mechanism, as well as product category—hedonic vs. utilitarian—being a boundary condition. Through three experimental studies, the results show that the exciting (vs. sincere) personality of new brands increases consumers’ admiration for both allied brands, which in turn enhances co-branding evaluations, and that the advantage of the exciting personality holds for the hedonic co-branded product, but disappears for the utilitarian one. The research contributes to the co-branding literature and provides implications for brand partner selection and co-branded product design.     

Does exposure to dogs (cows) increase the preference for Puma (the colour white)? Not always

Recently, Berger, & Fitzsimons (2008) showed that conceptual fluency effects could spread to concepts sharing a second-level relation (e.g., priming “dog” can activate “cat,” which can increase the evaluation of the brand Puma). In three laboratory studies we found weak evidence for the above priming effects on related concepts. However, in a population sample, we did find evidence that repeated exposure to a prime is associated with preference for related brands and products.     

Hedonic vs. utilitarian consumption: A cross-cultural perspective based on cultural conditioning

This study investigates the effects of cultural conditioning, product type, and benefit claim type on attitudes and brand personality perceptions among consumers from a society that is more culturally conditioned towards utilitarian consumption (Shanghai, China) and an economy that is less culturally conditioned towards utilitarian consumption (Singapore). Our findings reveal that consumers in Shanghai preferred ads promoting utilitarian rather than hedonic products. They also rated brands of utilitarian products as more sophisticated, competent, exciting, and sincere than hedonic products. No such difference was observed among Singaporeans. These consumers preferred hedonic over utilitarian products but did not perceive them as being different from utilitarian products in terms of brand personality. Theoretical and managerial implications are forwarded, together with directions for future research.     

Brand extension feedback: The role of advertising

Firms often use brand extensions as a way of introducing their new products, although they also risk diluting their brand image. In order to understand how consumers assess extensions and extended brands, the present work proposes and estimates a theoretical model, using the structural equation methodology. The results of the estimation indicate that the attitude towards the extension influences brand image and that this attitude is a consequence of the initial brand beliefs and the coherence of the new product. A multisample analysis also reveals that favoring the introduction of extensions through adequate advertising constitutes an efficient way of protecting brand image.     

A closer look at similarity: The effects of perceived similarity and conjunctive cues on brand extension evaluation

Similarity between a core product and an extension product is regarded as a key success factor for brand extensions. However, a review of the literature reveals that the conditions under which high similarity is beneficial are unclear. In the first experiment, the authors test three models (the brand-attitude-transfer model, the incongruity-induced-affect model, and the “you cannot be good or bad at everything” principle) to predict the role of similarity. They find support only for the brand-attitude-transfer model. This suggests that high similarity is only beneficial when consumers evaluate brands favorably. Furthermore, little is known about how additional information provided by the supplier affects consumers' similarity perceptions without changing the extension product itself more than on a superficial level and without emphasizing common benefits. The authors compare the conditions of high and low core product/extension category similarity. Under the former condition, common peripheral advertising cues, similarity primes, portrayals of core products, and common peripheral design cues increase evaluations of extension products when the brand is evaluated favorably. Under the latter condition, these cues differ with respect to their effect.     

The impact of brand equity and the hedonic level of products on consumer stock-out reactions

We investigate the impact of brand equity and the hedonic level of the product on consumer stock-out responses. We also examine whether the hedonic level of the product moderates the effect of brand equity. Using a sample of Dutch consumers divided over eight product groups and eight retail chains, we tested our hypotheses and found that consumers were more loyal to high-equity brands than to low-equity brands in the case of a stock-out situation. In hedonic product groups, consumers were more likely to switch to another store. Purchasers of high-equity brands in hedonic product groups were, compared to purchasers of high-equity brands in utilitarian product groups, less inclined to postpone the purchase but were more likely to switch to another item by that brand. In addition to these two main variables, we also investigate the effect of variables from prior research and some new variables, such as stockpiling and impulse buying. Finally, we discuss the theoretical and managerial implications of the findings.     

The effect of advertising on brand awareness and perceived quality: An empirical investigation using panel data

We use a panel data set that combines annual brand-level advertising expenditures for over three hundred brands with measures of brand awareness and perceived quality from a large-scale consumer survey to study the effect of advertising. Advertising is modeled as a dynamic investment in a brand’s stocks of awareness and perceived quality and we ask how such an investment changes brand awareness and quality perceptions. Our panel data allow us to control for unobserved heterogeneity across brands and to identify the effect of advertising from the time-series variation within brands. They also allow us to account for the endogeneity of advertising through recently developed dynamic panel data estimation techniques. We find that advertising has consistently a significant positive effect on brand awareness but no significant effect on perceived quality.

The Influence of Hedonic Values on Consumer Behaviors

Summary

This study investigated the influence of hedonic values on the consumer behavior of young Chinese. The results show that hedonic values are negatively associated with utilitarian orientation and positively associated with novelty seeking, responsiveness to promotion stimuli, and preference for foreign brands. Personal income moderates the relationship between hedonic values and brand consciousness. Conceptual importance and managerial implications are discussed.     

Omnichannel-based promotions’ effects on purchase behavior and brand image

This paper examines the effects of utilizing consumers’ digital shopping traces when designing in-store promotions on purchase behavior and brand image. In two experimental studies with 526 and 550 espondents, the authors examine the effects of omnichannel-based promotions (e.g. using digital shopping trace to offer a promotion when the consumer enters the physical store) in two different product categories (utilitarian vs. hedonic), spontaneous/planned purchases and two different retail industries (durable good vs. travel). The results show that retailers benefit from using digital shopping traces as it increases purchases and enhances brand imagery. The effects are moderated by product category and type of purchase.     

By-Brand or By-Category? The Effect of Display Format on Brand Extension Evaluation

Although consumers often encounter brand extensions for the first time during a store visit, most research on brand extensions does not take into consideration how product display in retail environments might affect evaluation of a brand extension. We explore the effect of two distinct display formats on brand extension evaluations: by-brand display, where a brand extension is presented in the context of other products made by the same parent brand (e.g., Nike razors displayed with Nike sneakers, Nike sportswear, etc.), and by-category display, where a brand extension is presented in the context of competing brands within the extension category (e.g., Nike razors displayed with Philips razors, Gillette razors, etc.). Three studies demonstrate that low fit extensions of high quality brands are evaluated more favorably when displayed by-category than by-brand, whereas high fit extensions of low quality brands are evaluated more favorably when displayed by-brand than by-category. In support of the proposed underlying mechanism, we show that display format influences consumers’ evaluations of brand extensions by changing the weight of importance given to parent brand quality and brand-extension fit information. Finally, we demonstrate that display format not only influences evaluation of the extension, but also has downstream consequences for the consumption experience with the extension.     

Exploring ethnic consumer response to crossover brand extensions

This research uses a social identity theory approach to investigate the impact of cultural identity on ethnic consumer response to ethnic crossover brand extensions—brands associated with one ethnic group that crossover into a product category associated with another ethnic group (e.g., McDonald's Café con leche). Study 1 demonstrates that the manner in which crossover brand extensions blend ethnic consumers' in-group and out-group cultural representations impact brand extension cultural fit and parent brand attitudes, and perceived ethnic target market impacts brand extension attitudes. Study 2 demonstrates that high ethnic embeddedness extensions strengthen ethnic consumers' self-brand connections. These findings provide managerial implications for practitioners considering a crossover brand extension strategy.     

Vulnerability of global brands to negative feedback effects

Going global is a successful strategy to leverage a brand's equity, in part, because global is synonymous of quality for consumers. This research examines the impact of competitor brand familiarity on the quality perceptions of global brands in Chile when the brand extends into new product categories. The results indicate that there is a negative impact on the quality perceptions of brand extensions when an extension competes with well-known and well-liked competitor brands. However, brand extension quality beliefs seem to produce negative feedback effects on parent brand quality beliefs only for narrowly extended parent brands but not for broadly extended ones.     

Some antecedents and outcomes of brand love

Survey research is employed to test hypotheses involving brand love, a new marketing construct that assesses satisfied consumers’ passionate emotional attachment to particular brands. Findings suggest that satisfied consumers’ love is greater for brands in product categories perceived as more hedonic (as compared with utilitarian) and for brands that offer more in terms of symbolic benefits. Brand love, in turn, is linked to higher levels of brand loyalty and positive word-of-mouth. Findings also suggest that satisfied consumers tend to be less loyal to brands in more hedonic product categories and to engage in more positive word-of-mouth about self-expressive brands.     

The branding challenges of Asian manufacturing firms

During the past quarter of a century, Asia has risen to become the world's factory. This trend has, however, coincided with the relative decline in value of manufacturing compared to other value adding activities, including R&D, design, and branding. This significant “value shift” has eroded the margins of manufacturing firms and sparked considerable interest among executives in Asia to design, brand, and market their own products. To date, though, this transition from being manufacturing oriented to becoming brand owners has largely only been accomplished by Japanese and Korean firms. In the rest of Asia—including in the rising giants of China and India—there are very few valuable brands. In fact, there is not a single Asian brand from a country other than Japan and Korea in Interbrand's 2008 valuation of the world's top 100 brands. Our article discusses, in depth, the challenges that Asian manufacturing firms encounter as they try to become “branders” and how these challenges can be overcome. Based on our collaboration spanning academia and consulting, we have been able to tap a wealth of information made available through research, case studies, and Interbrand's database of completed brand related assignments across Asia.     

What induces online loyalty? Online versus offline brand images

This study investigates the effect of the interplay between a multi-channel retailer's offline and online brand images on consumers' online perceived risk and online loyalty within the framework of a theory of cognitive dissonance. A sample of 671 female college students participated in an experiment using a 2 (prior offline brand image) × 2 (online performance) between-subjects design. Results reveal that offline brand image exerts significant effects on online brand image - which, in turn, significantly explains online perceived risk - and online customer loyalty. However, online perceived risk has no significant effect on online customer loyalty after controlling for the effects of online and offline brand images. These results provide implications for the direct and indirect halo effects of offline brand image and the direct effect of online performance that may influence consumers' perceptions, expectations, and loyalty regarding multi-channel retailers.     

Impact of component supplier branding on profitability

In recent years, many business-to-business (B2B) component supplier (CS) firms have added branding to their marketing toolbox. By extending the logic of ingredient branding to B2B components, they aim to create “pull” from B2B end customers by building a strong CS brand image among their customers' customers. In contrast with the established “push” approach of building strong relationships with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), it is unclear whether and under which conditions CS branding is a worthy strategy. On the one hand, anecdotal evidence suggests that suppliers can leverage strong CS brand image in negotiations with increasingly powerful OEMs to enhance their financial performance. On the other hand, many B2B managers believe that branding does not work in their industry context and erodes profitability. We build a data set consisting of survey measures and archival data across a broad set of industries. Our results indicate that the financial outcomes of CS branding largely depend on the characteristics of the CS and OEM industries. Unlike dyadic OEM–CS relationships, which enhance profitability invariably across industry contexts, CS branding is effective only in well-defined situations. CS branding initiatives can enhance return in CS industries with substantial levels of product differentiation and technology intensity. However, unfavorable results may arise in industry contexts in which OEM–end customer relationships or OEM brands are important.     

Image feedback effects of brand extensions: Evidence from a longitudinal field study

This paper examines the issue of image feedback effects and potential drivers of these effects by analyzing real-world extensions that have been introduced successfully in the market, using a longitudinal field study. Within the context of typical FMCG extensions, the authors find strong evidence that even for successful extensions, negative image feedback effects can occur, particularly when the perceived quality of the extension fails to meet the quality level of the parent brand. Strong brands tend to be more vulnerable to negative image feedback effects because consumers have a higher reference level for their extensions than for those of weaker brands. The likelihood of negative feedback effects decreases as the level of perceived fit and consumers’ perceptions of the general extendibility of the parent brand increases. But managers cannot, at least in the short run, mitigate negative image feedback effects through increased advertising support. Finally, the findings demonstrate that the feedback effects of a new extension product on parent brand image diminish over time.