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To be or not to be different: Exploration of norms and benefits of color differentiation in the marketplace
Abstract
Building a strong brand identity is central for increasing brand equity. As a result, oftentimes, brands develop differentiation strategies in order to stand out from competitors. Yet, is value always gained through differentiation, or is it possible that some value could be forfeited by straying too far from established product category associations? This research examines color norms within product categories and addresses the question of whether visual differentiation is always helpful. With data for 281 top brands, the authors calculate product category color homogeneity scores for 15 product categories and 40 subcategories to empirically explore color norms. Then, these calculations are used in conjunction with brand equity scores to examine the relationship between color differentiation and brand performance. The results show that while color differentiation is helpful for some product categories, it can also be harmful for others. Specifically, the investigation reveals that adhering to color norms may be beneficial for product categories containing a dominant market leader, especially high-involvement categories. The results of this research highlight the existence of visual product category norms, and emphasize both the benefits and risks of visual differentiation should be considered.
... Color is not only a fundamental feature of products and packaging, but also a powerful tool for marketers to create or modify brand images (Labrecque & Milne, 2013). Even though packaging color is not always related to the functionality of the product inside, packaging color can lead to sensory and hedonic expectations about the products and thus impact consumer preference (Piqueras-Fiszman & Spence, 2015;Spence, 2016). ...
... Even though a color-flavor congruent packaging design may result in a positive impact on consumers' experience and attitude toward a product due to consumers' preference for expectation confirmation (Spence, 2012), using a color-flavor incongruent packaging design may be of particular relevance for certain marketing strategies. For instance, using novel colors in packaging design can differentiate a brand from the mainstream brand who adheres to the color norms held by the consumers (Labrecque & Milne, 2013;Pechmann & Ratneshwar, 1991). Specifically, using a color-flavor incongruent packaging design can signify the innovativeness of a brand and make a distinction from the packaging design of mainstream products . ...
... The findings of the present study may have implications for the packaging design of food products for the purpose of brand differentiation (Labrecque & Milne, 2013). Previous research has shown that using a color-flavor incongruent packaging design can signify the innovativeness of a brand and help to dissociate a new brand from the mainstream brand using a color-flavor congruent packaging design . ...
Previous research has shown that people rely on color expectations to guide the visual
search for flavor labels. We report two experiments designed to examine how the
violation of such expectations influenced the subsequent searches. Participants were
cued by a flavor word before searching for the packaging with this flavor label. They
were slower to find the target whose color violated their expectations, indicative of a
significant color-flavor incongruency effect. When searching for the same targets
across two consecutive trials, they showed smaller color-flavor incongruency effects
after they had searched for a color-flavor incongruent target compared to a congruent
target in the preceding trial. When they were searching for different targets from one
trial to the next, their searches were speeded after they had searched for a color-flavor
incongruent target compared to a congruent one in the preceding trial. Collectively,
these results revealed how the color-flavor incongruency effect was modulated by the
recent history of expectation violation in repeated searches, whereas we also observed
a facilitation of expectation violation on the subsequent searches for different targets.
These findings demonstrate how consumers’ product searches can be influenced by
packaging design, and shed light on the flexibility and adaptivity of label searches.
... Color is one of the most applied techniques in marketing, causing emotional reactions that affect consumer behavior (Bagchi and Cheema, 2012;Biers and Richard, 2005;Schnurr et al., 2017). Color is also strongly associated with brand personality, thus evoking emotional responses (Babin et al., 2003;Labrecque and Milne, 2013;Mai et al., 2016). Despite the existence of research focused on color perception related to physics, linguistics, physiology, and synesthesia (Elliot and Maier, 2014), studies focused on the relation between color, marketing, and consumer behavior are still lacking. ...
... Therefore, some authors have addressed the interaction between products and space characteristics on consumer behavior, namely: (i) the impact of ambient odors and retail density on the perception of product quality (Michon et al., 2005); (ii) the effect of ambient and social cues on pleasure and arousal (Baker et al., 1992); (iii) the effect of emotional responses evoked by store environment on the time and money spent in the store (Donovan et al., 1994); and (iv) the effect of store layout on shopping enjoyment and entertainment (Krasonikolakis et al., 2018). Nevertheless, research driven by context color is still lacking (Hagtvedt and Brasel, 2017;Labrecque and Milne, 2013). ...
... This meaning depends on each individual person, their life history, their personality, and their past experiences. It also depends on the contextthat is, it is cognitively different to look at a yellow package knowing from the outset that it contains chocolate milk, or to look at a yellow package knowing that it contains bleach (see, for a review, Elliot and Maier, 2014;Labrecque and Milne, 2013;Shevell and Kingdom, 2008;Wauters et al., 2014). Thus, the symbolic association of each color might vary depending on the situation (Sundar and Kellaris, 2017). ...
Color is one of the most elementary techniques used in marketing and produces behavioral effects reflecting purchase attitudes. However, packaging color has seldom been investigated in-context. Additionally, color research mainly focuses on individual colors, instead of color combinations. Here, we aim to study the putative effect that dominant retail environment colors might produce on attractiveness and product purchase intention, when products use similar store colors, and when products use complementary colors to those of the store. Moreover, we investigate if these choices are product dependent (e.g., do food and non-food products evoke the same packaging color choices in a given retail color context). A total of 653 participants were recruited to participate in two experimental studies disseminated through online platforms. Study 1 showed an interaction between store and product color significantly affecting both product attractiveness and purchase intention. Importantly, we found that the product category might modulate the complementary color-effect, in terms of attractiveness and purchase intention. Study 2 revealed that product-type subtends sensorial experience or semantic derivation mechanisms for preferred color choices. Together these studies unveil a complex relation between product type, context and color that possibly subtend different cognitive decision-making mechanisms. As such, colors cannot be considered as standalone variables in consumer decision making strategies. Here, we shed light into color perception and product strategy, thus helping marketers, retailers and designers to communicate more efficiently and to define a successful brand strategy.
... Especially at the point of purchase, packaging has been identified as the most important vehicle of communication (Underwood et al. 2001;van Rompay et al. 2013). However, although several aspects of package design such as shape (Folkes and Matta 2004;Raghubir and Greenleaf 2006;Schoormans and Robben 1997) and texture (Veryzer and Hutchinson 1998) have been investigated, only limited research attention has been placed on the role that package color plays in shaping consumer preferences (Labrecque and Milne 2013). Package color attracts consumers' attention, creates aesthetic experiences, and renders symbolic value to the brand (Garber et al. 2000;Kauppinen-Räisänen and Luomala 2010;Labrecque and Milne 2012). ...
... Meeting consumers' color expectations has been found to benefit brand equity by increasing processing fluency and facilitating both category and brand identification (Labrecque and Milne 2013). These specific expectations about the color options that brand packages within the given category typically employ are represented in category color norms (Bottomley and Doyle 2006;Labrecque and Milne 2012). ...
... Nonetheless, only limited attention has been placed on the role that different color options might play in shaping consumer preferences (cf. Labrecque and Milne 2013). Veryzer and Hutchinson (1998) argue that color is an essential feature of package design and constitutes a prominent component of the product's visual identity (see also Garber et al. 2000;Labrecque and Milne 2012). ...
Despite the growing amount of research on different aspects of product package design, there is lack of empirical evidence with regard to how package color perceptions may influence consumer preferences. Based on categorization theory, the present paper explores responses to package colors that conform or do not conform to product category color norms. Results of two experiments show that atypical package colors implicate negative consequences to the brand. Findings indicate that perceived package color atypicality increases consumers’ skepticism and, contrary to expectations, decreases interest. These affective reactions negatively influence consumers’ product attitude which subsequently translates into lower purchase intention. The results provide important insights for theory and practice.
... Highlights from the consumer-behavior literature include the observation that blue is the most commonly used color in company logos, and this color has been linked to high perceptions of company competence (Labrecque andMilne, 2012, 2013). Atmospherics studies have shown that blue stores and websites are perceived by consumers to be less crowded, more relaxing, and more trustworthy (Alberts and van der Geest, 2011; Gorn, Chattopadhyay, Sengupta, and Tripathi, 2004;Lee and Rao, 2010;Yüksel, 2009). ...
... Highlights from the consumer-behavior literature include the observation that blue is the most commonly used color in company logos, and this color has been linked to high perceptions of company competence (Labrecque andMilne, 2012, 2013). Atmospherics studies have shown that blue stores and websites are perceived by consumers to be less crowded, more relaxing, and more trustworthy (Alberts and van der Geest, 2011; Gorn, Chattopadhyay, Sengupta, and Tripathi, 2004;Lee and Rao, 2010;Yüksel, 2009). ...
We perceive color everywhere and on everything that we encounter in daily life. Color science has progressed to the point where a great deal is known about the mechanics, evolution, and development of color vision, but less is known about the relation between color vision and psychology. However, color psychology is now a burgeoning, exciting area and this Handbook provides comprehensive coverage of emerging theory and research. Top scholars in the field provide rigorous overviews of work on color categorization, color symbolism and association, color preference, reciprocal relations between color perception and psychological functioning, and variations and deficiencies in color perception. The Handbook of Color Psychology seeks to facilitate cross-fertilization among researchers, both within and across disciplines and areas of research, and is an essential resource for anyone interested in color psychology in both theoretical and applied areas of study.
... A study by Labrecque and Milne (2013) considers the importance of prototypical color use for category membership, however it examines the phenomenon from a brand, rather than product perspective. Within the study, brand logos are coded for their use of color to determine whether differentiation from category norms could harm brand equity. ...
... To the authors' best knowledge, this is the most extensive documentation of in-market color use to signal variety on pack to date. Regarding product design, prior research catalogues the use of packaging attributes to communicate the brand (Bottomley & Doyle, 2006), broad product characteristics (such as tastiness) (Steenis et al., 2017), or the category generally (Labrecque & Milne, 2013). However, this is the first time the use of color to signal variety (specifically flavor, scent or function) has been examined. ...
Line Extensions are among the most common form of product launch in packaged goods markets. As part of this process, brand managers must decide the visual design of the new variant’s packaging. To inform this decision making, this research aims to empirically quantify the efficacy of using colors versus images as signals of product variety on pack. We compare the use of color on 576 packs with perceptions of 1,853 category buyers across three categories in the USA. We find that for 84% of variant types, marketers use common colors to signal variety on pack, while consumers perceive that only 56% of variant types are represented by a particular color. Of greater concern, the colors used in practice and those expected by consumers align in only 16% of cases. By comparison, images are linked to variant types to a significantly greater extent (39% of cases). This suggests images are a stronger and more explicit signal of product variety than color. There are multiple implications arising from this study. It expands scholarly research on the use of colors in product extensions and, at the same time, provides a series of valuable benchmarks for industry practice in the portfolio management domain.
... Research on color has been conducted in various areas, such as marketing strategy, brand strategy, and consumer behavior. Labrecque and Milne (2013), Labrecque, Patrick and Milne (2013), Kapferer (1995), and Abril, Olazábal and Cava (2009) [3][4][5][6] claimed that color is an essential element that represents a brand's identity, communicates important meanings, and distinguishes it from competitors. Moreover, a brand's choice of color can convey various feelings, thoughts, and behaviors that resonate with its target audience and reinforce its positioning in the marketplace [7]. ...
... In this context, research on which colors are appropriate for which brands is a vital step in establishing brand sustainability strategy. Since color has an important influence on consumer decision-making [3,21], it is essential to clearly identify the relationship between them in the sustainability strategy. ...
Green color priming has been introduced as a cue for consumer perceptions of sustainability. Nevertheless, the color green is not necessarily effective in every brand’s sustainability strategy. This study aims to understand the impact of a brand’s color and gender in an investigation of the relationship between sustainability and brand equity, including perceived quality. This study examined Interbrand’s Best Global Brands, conducted an international online survey of more than 400 participants, and demonstrated the relationship between brand color, brand gender, and sustainability using the process macro analysis method. In study 1, it was found that the use of the color green in sustainability color strategy is limited depending on the brand gender of the Best Global Brands through case analysis. In the empirical analysis of study 2, it was discovered that a majority of brands created higher brand equity in the color green than in iconic colors when implementing sustainability strategies. However, brands with a high level of feminine personality with graceful and tender characteristics created a higher level of brand equity when implementing their sustainability strategies with iconic colors than with green. These findings suggest that iconic colors are more effective than the color green in sustainability strategies when the masculine personality level is low, and the feminine personality level is high.
... Gold foil makes an occasional (both distinctive and eye-catching) appearance in the covering of the Lindt Goldhaser Easter chocolate bunny ( [24] p. 84). That said, it has been argued that gold is not widely associated amongst customers with any particular product category or brand [25], excepting perhaps Nescafe's Gold Blend instant coffee, Starbucks Gold Label, and the Lindt gold bunny. Meanwhile, giving a wine label a metallic visual appearance property can be used to effectively convey luxury/elegance [26], as has been successfully achieved in the world of heraldic-looking wine labels [27,28]. ...
... As such, one might want to question just how informative the findings of those studies in which packaging exemplars are presented in isolation actually are (cf. [25]). It would certainly be interesting in future research to investigate whether glossy objects (specifically food and beverage packages) pop-out from realistic shelves of products in the context of visual search [90][91][92][93]. ...
Those stimuli that have a shiny/glossy visual appearance are typically rated as both attractive and attention capturing. Indeed, for millennia, shiny precious metals and glossy lacquerware have been used to enhance the presentation, and thus the perception, of food and drink. As such, one might have expected that adding a shiny/glossy appearance/finish to the outer packaging of food and beverage products would also be desirable. However, the latest research appears to show that many consumers have internalised an association between glossy packaging and greasy (or unhealthy) food products, while matte packaging tends to be associated with those foods that are more natural instead. Furthermore, it turns out that many consumers do not necessarily appreciate the attempt to capture their attention that glossy packaging so often affords. At the same time, it is important to recognise that somewhat different associations may apply in the case of inner versus outer food and beverage packaging. Shiny metallic (inner) packaging may well prime (rightly or wrongly) concerns about sustainability amongst consumers. Given the research that has been published in recent years, food and beverage manufacturers/marketers should think very carefully about whether or not to introduce such shiny/glossy finishes to their packaging.
... In addition, the learned association between the colour 'light blue' and the attribute 'low fat' is strengthened in people's mind and this colour obtains meaning: light blue means/is associated with low fat [82]. These learned colour associations should be taken into account when one is planning to visually differentiate a brand by breaking with colour category norms [84]. People expect functional (sensory) products to have functional (sensory) colours like blue (red) [85] and breaking with the appropriate norm could be deemed ineffective for some product categories [84]. ...
... These learned colour associations should be taken into account when one is planning to visually differentiate a brand by breaking with colour category norms [84]. People expect functional (sensory) products to have functional (sensory) colours like blue (red) [85] and breaking with the appropriate norm could be deemed ineffective for some product categories [84]. A good example is the failure of Crystal Pepsi: they applied clear colours instead of black to signal the absence of caffeine, [49] which could be attributed to unfulfilled taste expectations [39]. ...
This review aims to tackle the challenge of understanding how visual design cues can affect behavioural outcomes in a food context. The review answers two key questions: (1) What are the effects of the most important visual design cues on behavioural outcomes and how can they be explained? (2) What are the research gaps in this area? We start from a comprehensive taxonomy of visual design cues delineating the most important visual design cues. Next, we evaluate the extant research based on a structured, narrative literature review on visual design cues in the food domain. We differentiate between object processed and spatially processed visual design cues in food choice contexts and show how they affect behavioural outcomes through a range of psychological processes (attention, affective-, cognitive-and motivational reactions, food perceptions and attitudes). We end with recommendations which take into account the current food store context, the state-of-art in measuring psychological processes and behavioural outcomes and the specific food-, person-and context-related moderators. This review offers guidance for research to untangle the complexity of the effect of visual design cues in a food choice context.
... Colour is a fundamental driver of emotional responses, significantly influencing consumer behaviour and purchase decisions (Bagchi & Cheema, 2013;Schnurr et al., 2017). Colour is an integral component of brand personality (Labrecque & Milne, 2013;Mai et al., 2016), which helps consumers recognise and remember the brand. Various factors, such as contextual appeal, brand name, label design, and font style, are vital in shaping consumers' sensory experiences and preferences. ...
In today's global markets, the constant arrival of new products represents a challenge for the food industry to offer distinct choices to consumers, primarily due to the parallel sensory attributes and pricing structures of the available food options. Innovators must employ methodologies beyond traditional sensory analysis to ensure the product's success. Researchers must, therefore, explore the entire product experience to understand its influence on consumer behaviours. Food choices are multifaceted, influenced by various factors, including individual physiological and psychological characteristics and intrinsic and extrinsic product attributes. As a result, consumers' decisions are shaped by the multisensory information derived from products they encounter in supermarkets. This review aims to comprehensively examine the factors influencing consumer food choices, from initial product encounters to consumption. The review explores the impact of repetitive tasting on the consumer's attitudes and intentions towards novel products. Additionally, the review investigates which extrinsic attributes capture consumer attention in supermarket settings. It also delves into the effects of extrinsic product attributes on both explicit and implicit emotions and expectations raised about the sensory properties of the product and, ultimately, their purchasing behaviours.
... J. Morton [17] has identified that the use of color increases brand recognition by 80%, which leads to an increase in purchase intentions. L. Labrecque and G. Milne [14] have empirically proved that there is a significant negative connection between the color difference from the market leader and the brand conversion. The scientists [10; 11] have determined that the logo of the market leader becomes crucial in consumers` memory and influences the perception of competing brands. ...
Purpose. To select, analyze, and systematize the logos of Ukrainian online stores of various product categories to identify the characteristic features of their color solutions. Methodology. The methodological basis of the study is a comprehensive approach, methods of analytical and visual-analytical analysis of research objects, and systematization of information on the varieties of color solutions of logos of well-known Ukrainian online stores of 24 product categories. The selection of e-commerce enterprises has been carried out using search engine ratings. Results. An analysis of scientific and practical literature on the specified topic has been conducted. And the information on the psychological and associative influence of colors on consumers has been systematized. Therefore, based on the analysis of color solutions of 720 logos of Ukrainian online stores, their typical variants in different product categories have been selected and described. Also, a clear relationship between the color solution of the online store logo and the category of goods sold has been revealed. Typical color solutions of one-color logos, as well as schemes of color combinations in two-color, three-color, and multi-color logos of linguistic and mixed types of online stores of various product categories, are defined and described. The logos of online stores of certain product categories with similar color schemes were selected and combined into groups. Scientific novelty. Information on color solutions of online store logos is systematized. Typical colors and color combinations for logos of e-commerce brands of various product categories are identified. The principles of color combinations in logos of online stores of various product categories are determined. Practical significance. It is advisable to use the obtained results both in the development of logos of new e-commerce enterprises and in the redesign of existing ones. The results of the research can be used in further scientific research on the design of corporate style of sites for e-commerce enterprises.
... Therefore, the effects of sex, age, and culture on color choices warrant further exploration. Highly saturated colors are linked to an enhanced perception of freshness [49] and are often used in product packaging to signal the health benefits of a certain product [50]. According to our experimental results of three-color packaging designs, cool-toned and saturated colors are relatively suitable choices for the packaging of technology products. ...
The shape and color of a product constitute the aesthetic and visual language that conveys the product’s quality and emotional elements. Evaluating psychological perceptions in experimental scenarios can help determine the optimal product shape and color. The shape of a product is regarded as its fundamental element, which provides visual stimulation to consumers, elicits aesthetic appreciation, encourages purchases, and enhances product visibility. In this study, we comprehensively investigated the emotional design elements of product shapes and colors. We also examined user characteristics and various emotional aspects of product and packaging designs. Three experiments involving portable speakers were conducted to explore the emotional associations between product shape, product color, and packaging color. The first experiment was conducted to identify the most popular speaker shape on the basis of user ratings with four emotion adjectives. The results indicated that the rectangular speaker was the most popular speaker shape, followed by the cylindrical speaker. The second experiment was conducted to identify the most popular color design for the rectangular speaker from the first experiment on the basis of four pairs of emotion adjectives, namely popular–outdated, international–local, innovative–conservative, and elegant–vulgar. The participants were shown color images of the speaker in various color designs and asked to rate them by using these adjectives. The results indicated that the most popular color was dodger blue, followed by lime green. The third experiment was conducted to identify the most popular three-color scheme for the speaker’s packaging box from 45 schemes developed in accordance with Horiguchi’s Munsell New Color Psychology System. The results indicated that the most popular color scheme was cresol (sharp), followed by lavender (refined) and incense (quiet and tranquil). Overall, this study investigates the shape and color of the packaging box of a technology product and contributes to the literature by offering guidance for future research on product shape design and packaging color design. Our findings provide researchers with both theoretical and practical insights into color aesthetics.
... The same diversified perspective was found in our systematic review, as scholars have studied brand names (Kohli, Harich, & Leuthesser, 2005), colour (Bottomley & Doyle, 2006;Labrecque & Milne, 2013), logos (Fajardo, Zhang, & Tsiros, 2016), identity standard manuals (Jordá-Albiñana, Ampuero-Canellas, Vila, & Rojas-Sola, 2009), visual brand identity in advertising (Phillips, McQuarrie, & Griffin, 2014a, 2014b, advertising archetypes in healthcare (Woodside, Persing, Ward, & DeCotiis, 2018), merchandising in retail stores (Roggeveen et al., 2021), structures and patterns in luxury advertising (Gurzki, Schlatter, & Woisetschläger, 2019), rebranding (Zhao, Calantone, & Voorhees, 2018), copycats (Nguyen & Gunasti, 2018), and aesthetics management (Schmitt, Simonson, & Marcus, 1995). ...
Objective: This paper aimed to provide a systematic review of brand identity and understand how literature streams impact the current brand identity frameworks. Method: There are few systematic reviews about this salient topic, and the existing ones have not analyzed how the research in brand identity has evolved in the last 30 years, what have been the leading research streams and gaps, and which future avenues of study could be pursued. To fill this gap, this paper analyzed 67 articles published in 24 leading academic journals (Academic Journal Guide grades 3, 4, and 4*) between 1990 and 2021. Main Results: Five key research streams were identified: brand identity frameworks; consumer behavior; corporate branding; visual brand identity; co-creation. Despite the impressive progress made over the last 30 years, our review points out what we defined as a “middle-age brand identity crisis”, since there is still no convergence among scholars about what brand identity is and what would be its main components. Also, the current research streams uncover concepts and ideas that were not previously included in brand identity frameworks. Relevance / Originality: This study performed a comprehensive systematic analysis of the brand identity literature, highlighting essential recent research not considered by the current brand identity frameworks and connecting it to branding constructs. We also identified that there is still a lack of consensus regarding the brand identity components and dimensions. Theoretical / Methodological Contributions: This paper contributes to the literature by presenting a new framework to shed light on the interactions of brand identity with other branding constructs, proposing that brand identity has a core (brand essence) and extended identity (composed of personality, relationship, symbology, and cultural expressions). A new brand identity taxonomy is also proposed, with complexity and tangibility as its dimensions.
... Furthermore, there is evidence that colour category norms exist, but following the norm or the leader in the category does not always benefit brand equity, which is the case for high-involvement goods. However, it tends to positively affect lowrisk categories, such as consumer goods (Labrecque & Milne, 2013). ...
This master’s thesis presents a new brand identity model for consumer goods called Brand Identity Canvas (BIC), with the objective of helping academics and practitioners build more relevant and stronger brands. Our work updates the current and most influential brand identity models theorised mainly in the 1990s, including components and discussing interactions not previously addressed by scholars. We adopted the Design Science Research methodology, which is adequate for building artefacts and theoretical frameworks. The framework development was based on a literature review and 11 in-depth interviews with practitioners (marketing managers and directors) and academics (marketing and branding professors). The new model has two parts: the first is managerial, with a description of the intrinsic characteristics of the brand and its influences; the second is expressive, with a mood board that explores the brand’s visual aspects. The BIC presents academics and practitioners with an updated framework for defining and developing a brand identity for consumer goods, with dimensions, components, and relations representing an advance on the existing models.
... Colour is critical when consumers engage in low involvement decisions (Garber, Hyatt, & Starr, 2000;2001) and can be used as a marketing tool for fast moving consumer goods (Lichtlé, 2007). Also, for high involvement products colours have been found relevant (see Labrecque & Milne, 2013 for an interesting study of how colour norms for logos in a category influence brand equity). Three components of the packaging colour: hue, brightness, and saturation, can be used . ...
This paper questions whether manufacturers can utilize visual packaging cues, in particular colours and shapes, to communicate the intrinsic attributes of cheeses. While the existence of crossmodal correspondences between packaging shapes and tastes have been demonstrated in previous food studies, we still need knowledge about how the interaction of colour and shape of the packaging that the cheese is sold influence customers’ expectations of taste and liking. Throughout two studies, we illustrate that specific shapes and colours communicate certain cheese tastes. In study 1, we found that, while a mild tasting cheese is associated with round shapes, high colour brightness and low colour saturation, a sharp tasting cheese is associated with an angular shape, lower level of colour brightness and higher level of colour saturation. This knowledge can be utilized to communicate taste via the design of the packaging. In study 2, we moved on to test this via packaging. We found a round shaped packaging combined with high colour brightness and low colour saturation communicates a mild taste, whereas a triangular shape packaging combined with a low colour brightness/ high saturation signals a sharper tasting cheese. Moreover, a round packaging shape elicits the highest degree of liking. Our findings demonstrate that multiple sensory elements of a product’s packaging can enhance respondents’ taste expectations and expected liking of a product. In conclusion, this paper offers guidance to managers seeking to design packaging that communicates the flavour of food products, specifically for cheeses.
... The findings of the present study also have implications for the marketing practice of foods and drink products. Previous research had shown that adhering to the color norms in consumers' minds was beneficial for market leaders, but new brands could use colors that deviate from the color norms for brand differentiation (Labrecque & Milne, 2013). Similarly, considering the role of the front-of-package labels in product differentiation (Vladić et al., 2015;Zhao, Huang, et al., 2017;Zhao, Qi, et al., 2019), novel labels can also be used as the design elements of packaging for product differentiation, especially when a company has multiple product lines for the same brand (Draganska & Jain, 2006). ...
Previous research has shown that people can generate expectations regarding the
color of a food packaging labeled with a certain flavor based on the color-flavor
associations formulated through long-term experiences, and rely on these color
expectations to guide their searches for packaged foods having certain flavor labels.
Here we report three experiments designed to examine whether people can also
generate such color expectations through short-term associations learning to guide
their product searches for novel labels irrelevant to the attributes of food products (e.g.,
constellation labels). The participants performed the visual search for the packaging
with the target constellation label before and after they had learned the color
associations for half of the constellation labels but not for the rest of the labels. In
Experiment 1, we found that the interaction of learning stage (before or after) and label
type (learned or unlearned) was significant in response time. After learning the colorconstellation
associations, they showed faster searches for the constellation labels
whose color associations they had learned (vs. unlearned). Experiment 2 excluded the
interference effect of familiarity in the learning task on the subsequent product search
gain to a certain degree. The incongruent color-constellation association stimuli were
added in the post-test phase in Experiment 3, which further verified that the
participants searched based on color expectations in the product search after the
explicit learning task. These results suggest that learning the color associations for
novel labels can facilitate people’s searches for these labels, presumably due to the
color expectations generated based on these associations. These findings provide
empirical evidence that expectations can be formulated based on recent experiences,
and shed light on the bright future of using novel labels in the marketing practice of
product differentiation.
... Associations between colors and their meanings, political or otherwise, are culturally dependent (Aslam, 2006;Chebat & Morrin, 2007;Fine et al., 1998;Labrecque & Milne, 2013;Lakens, 2011), contribute to creating and maintaining collective identities and illustrate the role of affective processes in political life (Sawer, 2007). In other geographical areas, such as Europe, the use of red and blue may differ from American reality. ...
Several studies have shown that exposure to colors affects cognitive and affective processes. In this paper, we tried to find if colors affect the perception of political messages and activate partisan biases. We focus our study on the Spanish cultural environment. In a prestudy ( n = 991), participants identified red as progressive, blue as conservative, and gray as neutral. In two subsequent experiments ( n = 840; n = 938), we analyzed how these three colors influenced the interpretation of political messages and confronted them with issues ownership. The results show that the colors can activate partisan biases but do not have the same strength as issues ownership.
... Scientific research in color psychology outlines how perceptions of color influence attitudes and choices, such that color can carry meaning and influence affect, cognition, and behavior in consumer contexts [24]. Practitioners in marketing, advertising, and graphic design long have believed that color influences consumer behavior through atmospherics [25,26], brand identity [27], and product evaluations [28,29]. We account for the influence of colorfulness in our model, characterizing it as the perceived color of an area that appears to be more or less chromatic. ...
Despite an increase in the empirical study of crowdfunding platforms and the prevalence of visual information, operations management and marketing literature has yet to explore the role that image characteristics play in crowdfunding success. The authors of this manuscript begin by synthesizing literature on visual processing to identify several image characteristics that are likely to shape crowdfunding success. After detailing measures for each image characteristic, they use them as part of a machine-learning algorithm (Bayesian additive trees), along with project characteristics and textual information, to predict crowdfunding success. Results show that the inclusion of these image characteristics substantially improves prediction over baseline project variables, as well as textual features. Furthermore, image characteristic variables exhibit high importance, similar to variables linked to the number of pictures and number of videos. This research therefore offers valuable resources to researchers and managers who are interested in the role of visual information in ensuring new product success.
... When used in outer packaging, a silver appearance tends to be associated with the packaging of dairy products in the United States while being associated with fresh seafood in Norway; Burton, 2008;Heide & Olsen, 2017). Meanwhile, gold is not widely associated among customers with a particular product category or brand (Labrecque & Milne, 2013), excepting perhaps Nescafe's Gold Blend instant coffee, Starbucks Gold Label, and the Lindt gold bunny mentioned a moment ago. As such, this visual appearance property can effectively be used to convey luxury/elegance (Sperdea & Criveanu, 2014), as has been successfully achieved in the world of (heraldic-looking) wine labels (Heine et al., 2016;Pelet et al., 2020). ...
Many metallic visual stimuli, especially the so-called precious metals, have long had a rich symbolic meaning for humans. Intriguingly, however, while metallic is used to describe sensations associated with pretty much every sensory modality, the descriptor is normally positively valenced in the case of vision while typically being negatively valenced in the case of those metallic sensations that are elicited by the stimulation of the chemical senses. In fact, outside the visual modality, metallic would often appear to be used to describe those sensations that are unfamiliar and unpleasant as much as to refer to any identifiable perceptual quality (or attribute). In this review, we assess those sensory stimuli that people choose to refer to as metallic, summarising the multiple, often symbolic, meanings of (especially precious) metals. The evidence of positively valenced sensation transference from metallic serviceware (e.g., plates, cups, and cutlery) to the food and drink with which it comes into contact is also reviewed.
... Metallic appearance, such as gold and silver, have been used in food and drink packaging (Piqueras-Fiszman et al., 2012b) and even in restaurant menu design (Magnini and Kim, 2016) in order to prime associations with luxury and expense (Sperdea and Criveanu, 2014). Interestingly, a golden appearance does not seem to be specifically associated with a particular product category (Labrecque and Milne, 2013), suggesting that it could be linked to more conceptual attributes (e.g., premiumness) instead of brand/category identity (see Velasco and Spence, 2019). In addition, the descriptor 'elegance' has been considered as a dimension of 'premiumness' or 'luxury' which, in turn, is associated with measures of 'liking' as well as 'willingness-to-pay' (Piqueras-Fiszman and Spence, 2012;Velasco and Spence, 2019). ...
The presence of a metallic surface or appearance of product packaging and servingware can impact both the sensory and hedonic perception of various different foods and beverages, including promoting the impression of quality, premiumness, and luxury. A total of 51 coffee experts and 132 consumers took part in the study. Metallic-coated ceramic cups were used to assess whether the outer coating of the cup would influence the perception of two distinct coffee profiles. Hedonic and sensory ratings were assessed. Given the known link between visual metallic surfaces and premium/luxury perception, we also assessed whether participants' impressions of elegance might be mediating between the cup and positive sensory and hedonic judgments. Interaction effects between coffee type and cup finish revealed that higher sensory and hedonic ratings were given to the Brazilian coffee when it was tasted from the bronze cup, and to the Kenyan coffee when sampled from the gold cup (as compared to all other cups). Interaction effects including ‘expertise level’ showed that experts (in contrast to consumers) gave higher ratings of sweetness for both Brazilian and Kenyan when tasted from the bronze cup. Moreover, ‘elegance’ was a predictor of positive judgments when the Brazilian coffee was served in the bronze cup (for both experts and consumers) and when the Kenyan coffee was served in the white cup (for experts only). Despite the preliminary nature of these results, they nevertheless merit consideration by the industry. In addition to innovation, it makes sense to create receptacles that convey some functional and/or perceptual benefit to the coffee drinking experience.
... With regard to the three elements of the brand identity i.e. brand behavior, brand design, and brand communication, future studies may focus on each of the element in terms of how each contributes to potential tourist persuasion. In addition, brand name [26], logo [27] [28], and color [29] especially in relation to psychology of color, are among research interests worth doing. ...
... Therefore, in an online context, a carefully designed WAVD may be a differentiating factor among thousands of advertisements (Pieters et al. 2010). From a variety of attention-grabbing tools (e.g., shapes, images, font type and size), color plays a vital role in capturing the attention and establishing a strong first-impression on potential consumers (Dreze and Zufryden 1997;Labrecque and Milne 2013). Some theories have arisen to explain this visual impact on consumer behavior. ...
Web advertising is a fast-growing industry in which brands fight for the attention of the most attractive consumers: Millennials and Centennials. This study aims to test the impact of Web Advertising Visual Design (WAVD) on the consumers’ Online Purchase Intention (OPI) and, simultaneously, analyze if such influence differs across those generations. Participants (N = 318) filled in an online questionnaire. Data revealed a direct impact of visual design on consumers’ OPI as well as an indirect impact via Attitude Toward the Brand (ATB). Moreover, results showed that generations Y and Z do not differ significantly in their intentions, although Centennials exhibit a higher coefficient for the influence of WAVD on OPI. Regarding the theoretical implications, the results tend to confirm the Theory of Visual Rhetoric and partially confirm the Theory of Reasoned Action. Managerial implications and research limitations are also discussed.
... For example, Hagtvedt (2011) found that logo typeface can influence how consumers perceive firms' characteristics. Also, Labrecque and Milne (2013) showed that a firm's choice of logo color, as compared to a market leader's choice, can influence its brand equity. Put together, both logo typeface and logo color would certainly influence consumers' evaluations of firms. ...
Logos as a visual cue can help firms communicate their unique identities and capture consumers’ attention. Despite the importance and prevalent use of logos, the logo literature remains fragmented. Hence, this article attempts to provide an overarching research framework based on an extensive and comprehensive review of the existing logo literature. Specifically, we review 124 studies published in business journals over the past 30 years, and classify them into six major research topics: 1) theoretical foundations, 2) logo design/redesign, 3) basic logo elements, 4) additional logo elements, 5) outcomes of logo use, and 6) practical applications of logo use. Finally, we suggest future research directions for academics and provide practitioners with guidelines that help manage logos for their businesses.
Purpose
Product color names related to a consumption setting are commonly used in advertising to persuade. This study aims to use consumption imagery fluency as an underlying mechanism for assessing how such a naming tactic impacts product evaluation.
Design/methodology/approach
Three between-subjects experiments examine how product evaluation, in response to the use of color names containing consumption situation information, varies as a function of their accessibility (Study 1), and also test the role of a naming explanation (Study 2). How readily a consumer takes in consumption imagery is evaluated as a mediator. The studies further check if color attribute serves as a moderator of such color naming effect and that the naming factor contributes to consumption imagery fluency directly or indirectly alters such through their impact on comprehension fluency (Study 3).
Findings
Marketing products with color names related to the consumption setting is more effective than using generic names. Consumption imagery fluency mediates the results. This positive outcome is reduced when color names are less accessible. Fortunately, including an explanation to facilitate reasoning for product color names is helpful to reverse this disadvantage. The same patterns are not evident for highly accessible names. In addition, the effectiveness of consumption situation-related color names is restricted to the circumstance of color attribute as secondary, as opposed to primary. Furthermore, naming factors influence the ease of consumption of imagery whether or not facilitated by comprehension fluency.
Research limitations/implications
This research provides evidence of consumers’ responses to product color naming that involves consumption situations and identifies consumption imagery fluency as a potential means for mediating the studied effect.
Practical implications
Naming a product color in consumption situation-related terms triggers consumption imagery, driving evaluation when color is the secondary attribute of a product.
Originality/value
This research contributes to understanding the influence of naming a product’s color in promotional communication and correlates to productive tactics for advertising messages.
Currently, sports venues are endowed with the important functions of providing sports venues and facilities to the urban public, watching sports events, publicizing the mass sports culture, etc. An in-depth study of how to enhance the attractiveness of sports venue buildings and the competitiveness of the industry to stimulate the public’s potential for sports consumption is necessary. Based on the perspective of color psychology, this study constructs a three-level structural equation model based on the nested data obtained from the questionnaire survey to explore the relationship between managers’ innovative sports venue colors, athletes’ perceived emotional value, and consumers’ sports venue satisfaction. The results show that innovative sports venue colors have a significant positive effect on consumers’ satisfaction with sports venues, and the perceived emotional value has a positive mediating role in the effect of innovative sports venue colors on consumers’ satisfaction with sports venues. This study aims to provide a basis for sports venue managers or event organizers to improve athlete satisfaction, optimize consumer experience, stimulate residents’ motivation to attend games, and strengthen the profitability of the venues.
This research develops a new metric (PBCM) that can identify products within a portfolio that are eroding visual branding cohesion. We show how this new measure gives results equivalent to consumer evaluations of cohesion, without costly and time intensive data collection. The sampling frame for this research is 10 portfolios from five categories (dry dog food, instant coffee, toothpaste, shower gel and chewing gum) in the United Kingdom. In addition, 626 consumers were surveyed to investigate how PBCM affects a consumer’s ability to match an individual product back to its portfolio and recall the brand name. We find that products from high cohesion portfolios have significantly higher (17%) correct brand recall than those from low cohesion portfolios and are matched back to their portfolio by more than twice as many respondents (79% v 35%), significantly faster (2.3 vs. 3.8 minutes).
Ambalaj hemen tüm gıda ürünleri için koruma-muhafaza etme, taşıma, saklama-depolama gibi fiziksel faydalar ile vazgeçilmez bir bileşendir. Ayrıca ambalaj, tüketicilerin dikkatini çekme, ilgi uyandırma ve satın almak yönünde harekete geçirme gibi psikolojik unsurlar barındıran bir görsel iletişim, bir pazarlama aracı olarak öne çıkmaktadır. Bu da işletmeler için rafta markasını farklılaştırmak adına önemli stratejik kararlara bağlıdır. Ambalajlama kararları tüm sektörler için önem arz ederken, bazı sektörlerde işletmenin bazı sınırlılıkları bulunmaktadır. Ambalajlı içme suyu endüstrisi bunların başında gelmektedir. Bir yanda, ürünün ve ambalajın belirli standartlara uygun olması ve tüketici sağlığını koruması önemlidir. Diğer yanda ise, ürünün raflarda dikkat çekici ve diğer marka veya alternatif ürünlerle karşılaştırıldığında çekici olması, satın almaya yönlendirmesi gerekmektedir. Ancak, ambalajlı içme sularının birçoğunda ortaya çıkan bir durum, genellikle benzer şekilde, büyüklüklerde, renklerde olmaları ve tüketicilerin uzaktan markaları ayırt edemeyecek kadar benzer görünmeleridir. Tat ve kalite açısından elbette belirli farklar bulunan, ancak birbirinden bu özellikleriyle farklılaşması diğer gıda ürünlerine göre görece daha zor kabul edilebilecek bu sektörde ambalaj üzerinden farklılaşmanın potansiyel taşıdığı düşünülmektedir. Bu çalışmanın temel odak noktası, içme suyu ambalajının psikolojik etkileridir. Diğer birçok üründen farklı olarak tasarım, renk, şekil gibi alanlarda işletmelere sınırlı esneklik sunan bu alanda maliyet faktörleri, pazarlama stratejileri ve tüketici tepkileri arasındaki simbiyotik ilişkiye odaklanan ambalaj stratejilerinin tüketiciler üzerindeki etkilerini değerlendirmeyi amaçlamaktadır. Araştırmada doküman taraması yapılarak literatürde yer alan bilgiler ışığında, yoğun rekabet ortamında tüketicinin dikkatini çekmek için yarışan farklı aktörlerin ve mesajların bulunduğu ambalajlı su sektöründe keşfedilmeyi bekleyen ambalajlama stratejileri alanına ilişkin bazı çıkarımlarda bulunulmuş ve değerlendirmeler yapılmıştır.
Researchers have increasingly turned to crowdfunding platforms to gain insights into entrepreneurial activity and dynamics. While previous studies have explored various factors influencing crowdfunding success, such as technology, communication, and marketing strategies, the role of visual elements that can be automatically extracted from images has received less attention. This is surprising, considering that crowdfunding platforms emphasize the importance of attention‐grabbing and high‐resolution images, and previous research has shown that image characteristics can significantly impact product evaluations. Indeed, a comprehensive review of empirical articles ( n = 202) utilized Kickstarter data, focusing on the incorporation of visual information in their analyses. Our findings reveal that only 29.70% controlled for the number of images, and less than 12% considered any image details. In this manuscript, we contribute to the existing literature by emphasizing the significance of visual characteristics as essential variables in empirical investigations of crowdfunding success. We review the literature on image processing and its relevance to the business domain, highlighting two types of visual variables: visual counts (number of pictures and number of videos) and image details. Building upon previous work that discussed the role of color, composition, and figure–ground relationships, we introduce visual scene elements that have not yet been explored in crowdfunding, including the number of faces, the number of concepts depicted, and the ease of identifying those concepts. To demonstrate the predictive value of visual counts and image details, we analyze Kickstarter data using flexible machine learning models (Lasso, Ridge, Bayesian additive regression trees, and eXtreme Gradient Boosting). Our results highlight that visual count features are two of the top three predictors of success and highlight the ease at which researchers can incorporate some information about visual information. Our results also show that simple image detail features such as color matter a lot, and our proposed measures of visual scene elements can also be useful. By supplementing our article with R and Python codes that help authors extract image details ( https://osf.io/ujnzp/ ), we hope to stimulate scholars in various disciplines to consider visual information data in their empirical research and enhance the impact of visual cues on crowdfunding success.
We propose a novel framework for incorporating qualitative data into quantitative models for causal estimation. Previous methods use categorical variables derived from qualitative data to build quantitative models. However, this approach can lead to data-sparse categories and yield inconsistent (asymptotically biased) and imprecise (finite sample biased) estimates if the qualitative information is dynamic and intricate. We use functional analysis to create a more nuanced and flexible framework. We embed the observed categories into a latent Baire space and introduce a continuous linear map -- a Hilbert space embedding -- from the Baire space of categories to a Reproducing Kernel Hilbert Space (RKHS) of representation functions. Through the Riesz representation theorem, we establish that the canonical treatment of categorical variables in causal models can be transformed into an identified structure in the RKHS. Transfer learning acts as a catalyst to streamline estimation -- embeddings from traditional models are paired with the kernel trick to form the Hilbert space embedding. We validate our model through comprehensive simulation evidence and demonstrate its relevance in a real-world study that contrasts theoretical predictions from economics and psychology in an e-commerce marketplace. The results confirm the superior performance of our model, particularly in scenarios where qualitative information is nuanced and complex.
The structure of the book is designed to provide a comprehensive exploration of the principles of neuromarketing and their application to the wine production industry in the Abruzzo region of Italy. The book is divided into several sections that build on each other to create a coherent narrative and provide a thorough analysis of the topic.
Section 2, introduces the concept of decision-making and its relevance to marketing, psychology, and neuroscience. This section also discusses the emerging field of neuroeconomics, which combines principles from neuroscience and economics to study decision-making processes.
Section 3, explores the science of neuromarketing, including its history, tools, and methods. This section also discusses the benefits of using neuromarketing to uncover hidden motivations of consumers and gain insights into their emotional and cognitive responses to marketing stimuli.
Section 4, focuses on individual differences in consumer behavior and preferences and how they can be studied using neuromarketing techniques. This section also explores the role of aesthetic properties of products in consumer decision-making.
Section 5, delves into the role of color in decision-making processes, including its properties, perception, and preference. This section also discusses the difficulties associated with studying color and its use in marketing.
Section 6, examines the wine industry and its properties, as well as consumer preferences in relation to wine. This section argues that wine is an ideal product for neuromarketing research due to its unique properties and consumer appeal.
Section 7, explores the concept of cross modal correspondence, which refers to the relationship between different sensory modalities such as color, taste, and aroma. This section discusses color associations and meanings, as well as their relationship with emotions and consumer expectations.
Section 8, focuses specifically on the use of color in the wine industry, including explicit and implicit consumer preferences. This section presents the results of empirical research on the impact of label color on consumer behavior and provides a detailed discussion of the findings.
Section 9, concludes the book and discusses potential new directions for research and the limitations of the current study. Finally, the book ends with a section on references and supplementary materials.
Overall, the structure of the book is designed to provide a comprehensive analysis of the principles of neuromarketing and their application to the wine industry, with a particular emphasis on the role of color in consumer decision-making processes.
Color saturation—the color's purity and intensity (also known as vividness)—is a visual feature that has been under‐investigated in the context of green marketing. To advance knowledge of this topic, we performed five experimental studies to confirm that consumers tend to unconsciously associate low color saturation with a product's “gentler” impact on the environment. This perception of eco‐friendliness, in turn, increases their trust in the product maker's greenness. Our research disentangles the direct and indirect impact (via consumers' perceptions of materials' naturalness, product authenticity, and product durability) of low‐saturation colors on the perceived eco‐friendliness of consumer products. Furthermore, the results reveal that, by fostering perceptions of eco‐friendliness and green trust, such colors favorably influence consumers' behavioral intentions (i.e., their purchase intention and intention to pay a premium price for the product). Ultimately, the paper provides useful insights for companies and marketers interested in leveraging the meaning of color saturation to elicit perceptions of environmental compatibility.
The color of green product advertisements is an important factor affecting consumers’ preferences. Based on the theory of the self-control system, this paper explores the influence mechanism and boundary conditions of green product ad color on consumers’ preferences through three experiments. Experiment 1 tested the effect of advertisement color type (green/color) on consumers’ preferences for green products. The results show that color ad can promote consumers’ preferences for green products compared with green ad. Experiment 1 also analyzed the mediating role of the self-control system between advertisement color type (green/color) and consumers’ preferences. Experiment 2 further clarified the boundary of the main effect. The effect of ad color (green/color) on consumers’ preferences was only effective in the context of green products. Experiment 3 explored the moderating effect of green product type (egoistic/altruistic) on the main effect. The results show that only when the green product type is altruistic, the ad color type (green/color) can significantly affect consumers’ preferences. This study is the first to link the ad color of green products with consumers’ preferences. The findings confirm that the use of color ad for green products can elicit higher consumers’ preferences than pure green ad, which enriches the research on the color of green product advertisements.
Understanding how consumers categorize a consumer good as eco-friendly is key to facilitating consumers' purchasing of products with lower environmental footprints. Scholarship has increasingly addressed this question. However, most research has examined a single cue that prevents the building of a holistic explanation. An integrative review of studies may provide not only a synthesis of the state of the art but also an overarching integrative theoretical framework that explains what cues consumers use to categorize products as green and the mechanisms guiding the interpretation of these cues. This review of 29 studies examining consumers' assessment of eco-friendliness in consumer goods unearths five cues used as surrogate indicators of eco-friendliness. Nevertheless, these cues are not entirely related to the actual environmental footprint of a product based on the life cycle assessment. Drawing from schema categorization theory, an integrative theoretical framework is presented whereby categorization processes are said to be guided by consumers' lay theories. A research agenda is outlined to stimulate new lines of inquiry around lay theories and product attributes.
A rapidly growing body of empirical research has recently started to emerge highlighting the connotative and/or semiotic meanings that consumers typically associate with specific abstract visual design features, such as colours (either when presented individually or in combination), simple shapes/curvilinearity, and the orientation and relative position of those design elements on product packaging. While certain of our affective responses to such basic visual design features appear almost innate, the majority are likely established via the internalization of the statistical regularities of the food and beverage marketplace (i.e. as a result of associative learning), as in the case of round typeface and sweet-tasting products. Researchers continue to document the wide range of crossmodal correspondences that underpin the links between individual visual packaging design features and specific properties of food and drink products (such as their taste, flavour, or healthfulness), and the ways in which marketers are now capitalizing on such understanding to increase sales. This narrative review highlights the further research that is still needed to establish the connotative or symbolic/semiotic meaning(s) of particular combinations of design features (such as coloured stripes in a specific orientation), as opposed to individual cues in national food markets and also, increasingly, cross-culturally in the case of international brands.
Purpose
Would a green color label increase the dollar amount consumers are willing to pay for a green product? Would nature images (such as a leaf or flower) on the label have the same effect? This paper aims to examine the role of these labeling strategies in influencing consumer willing to pay.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a 2 × 3 experiment, the authors empirically test the research questions across two studies: in the controlled-lab setting with 160 students (Study 1) and in a field-setting with 268 consumers shopping at a grocery store (Study 2).
Findings
Results are consistent across both studies. Surprisingly, participants are willing to pay more for the product when it has a white-toned label rather than a green-toned one. Follow-up path analysis, with Study 2 data, reveals that a white-toned label has both an indirect (through more favorable evaluations of the product’s environmental friendliness), as well as a direct impact on willingness to pay. In providing a post hoc explanation, it is argued that a white-toned label better directs attention towards the claim signaling the product’s eco-friendliness, while providing a “clean”, “high-quality” look. In both studies however, nature images on the label did not have a significant effect.
Practical implications
Insights are particularly interesting for practitioners seeking to better label/package green products.
Originality/value
This investigation is the first to empirically examine how color and images on the label influence the dollar amount consumers are willing to pay for a green product. Findings reveal that counter to common belief, the heavy use of the color green on eco-friendly product labels might not be appropriate; a predominantly white-toned label works better.
People’s expectations concerning the functional properties and efficacy of pharmaceuticals are influenced by a wide variety of product-extrinsic factors, such as the colour (of both product and pack), form (e.g., tablet vs. capsule), and shape (e.g., round, oval, or diamond-shaped) of medicines, and the multisensory design of the product packaging. The sound symbolic properties of a medicine’s brand name, as well as its processing fluency, have also been shown to exert a significant influence over people’s expectations. However, given that non-adherence has long been a key issues with medical treatment, further research is urgently needed in order to determine the extent (albeit likely limited) to which these various product-extrinsic factors influence non-compliance, while at the same time avoiding the confusion that has been caused by the proliferation of look-alike/sound-alike drugs in the marketplace in recent years. Further research is also needed in order to help establish the cross-cultural consensuality of the meanings that are attached by consumers to these various different product-extrinsic sensory cues (especially colour) in the pharmaceutical category, and to firmly establish the robustness of any colour-based placebo effects. At the same time, however, it is currently unclear which cue (or cues) dominate(s) when multiple product attributes are manipulated simultaneously given that the influence of colour, shape, sound symbolism, etc., have typically only been studied individually to date. The multisensory design of pharmaceuticals and their packaging therefore constitutes a particularly intriguing, not to mention important, applied area for food/sensory scientists, marketing researchers, and cognitive neuroscientists.
Color has long been considered important by both the manufacturing industry and academia because it affects people’s perceptions, emotions, and behaviors. However, the evaluation of purchasing behavior until now has mainly been only in an experimental environment, and there have been concerns that differed from the actual consumer behavior. Therefore, the causal effect of the strong impression of a manufacturer’s brand color on the purchase behavior in the Japanese automobile industry was verified. Covariate was homogenized by propensity score matching based on the online survey, and the causal effect on purchase intention was extracted. As a result, the impression of the brand color had a positive effect on the purchase intention. This effect was estimated to be 5.739 in odds ratio. Commercial brands, logos, emblems, car body colors, dealers, showrooms, and even professional baseball teams were found to be factors that foster brand color.
Marketers often use green in marketing communications to signal sustainability, despite the lack of supportive data. This article is a report of two experiments to observe consumer reactions to advertisements that use color to indicate environmental friendliness. The pretest and Study 1 confirm that consumers associate green with environmental friendliness and gray with environmental unfriendliness. Thus green (gray) is more (less) effective for producing positive ad attitudes and purchase intentions. Consumer perceptions regarding color appropriateness mediate the effects. Study 2 shows that persuasion knowledge moderates the effects: when consumers have high persuasive knowledge, green has a less positive effect; gray has a less negative effect; blue remains neutral. The study concludes that green functions as a peripheral cue signaling an eco‐friendly brand image, but the use of green may backfire when consumers are aware that green is used to bias responses.
This study introduces and defines a novel color family—au naturel colors—and proposes that featuring these hues on product packaging enhances consumer willingness to pay (WTP) for healthy food products, but not for unhealthy food products. This effect occurs irrespective of the fit between the colors of the product and of the packaging, and of the color lightness or saturation. Perceptions of product authenticity mediate the relationship between au naturel colors packaging and consumer WTP for the product. The results of seven studies provide support for the proposed conceptual framework, contributing to the literature on consumer responses to colors and packaging features, and allowing to draw implications for the marketing of healthy food products.
Extant literature has documented the direct effects of both sound frequency and color saturation on the perceived size of products. However, the cross-modal interaction effect of the two on size perception is yet unknown. Through three studies, this paper proposes that the effect of sound frequency on the perceived size of product is moderated by that product's own color saturation, and this further had downstream effects on consumers' product preference and purchase when they possess predetermined product usage goals toward bigger/smaller sizes. Study 1 found behavioral evidence that only when the color of the product is in high saturation can the sound frequency significantly influence the perceived size of the product, with low (vs. high) frequency leading to larger (vs. smaller) perceived size. When the product's color is in low saturation, the effect of sound frequency on perceived size disappears. Study 2 adopted the event-related potential technique and found that high (vs. low) saturation elicited higher arousal (mirrored by P300 amplitudes). Sound frequency is first moderated by color saturation and was then mediated by arousal to affect the perceived product size. The above results were also replicated in the field (Study 3). Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Crossmodal correspondences refer to the tendency to associate a pair of features across different senses; specifically, consumers can associate the color of packaging with a certain flavor label for packaged foods after repeated exposure to the packaging of mainstream, everyday products. We conducted two studies to examine how the incongruency between packaging color and flavor labeling influences consumers’ evaluations of a food product and their perceptions of a brand. The results revealed that the participants liked a food product less when its packaging color was incongruent with its flavor label, but the magnitude of this color−flavor incongruency effect decreased after participants repeatedly searched for these products on the shelves of a virtual supermarket. Participants also considered the brand of packaged foods to be more innovative when the products’ packaging colors were incongruent with flavor labels, and the magnitude of this color−flavor incongruency effect on brand perception was not influenced by their experience of searching for a product in virtual reality (VR). Together, these results suggested that crossmodal congruency is an important factor to consider in packaging design and can be used as a marketing tool to increase product likability and attract consumers’ attention
Consumers purchase conspicuous goods, such as luxury cars, to satisfy both social and functional needs. Heterogeneity in the emphases that consumers place on these two drivers of utility in conspicuous goods markets creates two broad groups: functionality-oriented and exclusivity-oriented consumer segments. A game-theoretic model reveals how this segmentation affects the equilibrium extent of value enhancements in functionality and exclusivity, prices and profits. We show that firms increase value enhancements in their product when functionality-oriented consumers perceive greater product differentiation. In contrast, firms reduce value enhancements in their product if exclusivity-oriented consumers perceive greater product differentiation. We also show that, in the presence of such heterogeneous consumers, lower perceived product differentiation is consistent with higher profitability. We also find conditions in which firm profits could decrease with a higher proportion of exclusivity-oriented consumers. The proposed model helps explain why conspicuous good manufacturers pursue lower within-category product differentiation (as validated empirically with an application to the automotive industry). These findings also provide prescriptions for firms' product value enhancement decisions—in equilibrium, increase in the size of the functionality-oriented consumer segment leads to reduced value enhancements in functionality and exclusivity.
Product packaging is an important element for branding that directly affects product sales. We have developed a method for creating package images that better express brand perception as a way to motivate purchasing behavior and increase sales. The method works by replacing a color that gives an impression different from the brand perception with one that better expresses the brand perception and that is appropriate for the target product. Brand perceptions perceived by consumers were identified by administering a questionnaire to 160 participants. We constructed two databases: a color database of the correspondence between colors and typical adjectives representing various inner emotional states and a feature database for target products. Using these databases, we applied appropriate colors to packaging (except for areas providing information or containing the logo) to express brand perceptions more accurately. We evaluated this method by performing two experiments, one with 96 participants to determine how changing a package color changed the viewer's impression of the product and the other with seven design experts to determine how this method could help them simulate package design. The results revealed that displaying an appropriately revised package image reduced the gap between the brand perception and the impression obtained upon viewing the package image and gave design experts new ideas for package design.
Products can be assigned to a brand via their visual similarity. This paper analyzes and categorizes studies for brand-related similarity assessment. Four brand levels are defined (Historic Connection, Product Portfolio, Product Family and Competitor Brand). In addition, the product is divided into four substructures (Layout, Shape, Color and Graphic). The focus of this paper is on the substructure shape, which is subdivided into edge and surface models. With these and other criteria, existing studies of this substructure are categorized. As a result, the need for research to determine similarity based on surface models is identified. The determination of similarity should also be possible across different structures and be based on objective calculation and subjective evaluation.
In a multisensory perspective, there can be little doubting that the multisensory atmospherics in stores and other commercial spaces affect the behavior of consumers in systematic ways (see Spence 2018a; Spence et al. 2014, for reviews). This message has created a revolution in sensory marketing, such that across virtually every product category, retailers (and manufacturers) are now increasingly seeking to influence the “sensory experience” of their consumers. One of the key questions then becomes how should a company design its multisensory atmospherics in store to ensure that the return on investment is worthwhile? And what is the relevant metric, anyway? Increased sales, or column inches in the press? But lurking in the background is also an ethical question around whether the effective design of multisensory atmospherics may be pushing more of us into consuming more than we otherwise might (see Spence 2015, 2018b, for reviews). In this talk, I will review the consumer scientific evidence related to visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory, and even gustatory aspects of the store environment and their influence on the consumer’s behavior. I will highlight a number of areas where further research is needed in order to better understand how the multisensory retail environment shapes customer experience and shopping behavior. I will also discuss the latest findings in terms of the currently accepted cognitive neuroscience models of multisensory perception. Should there be time, I would also like to briefly address the question of whether there are meaningful individual/cultural differences in the desire for/avoidance of overly stimulating environments among consumers. Finally, I will take a look at how new technologies are changing the multisensory landscape for consumers.
Over the years the wine has had a considerable development in terms of competitiveness given that more and more companies are joining this agro-industrial market and it is crucial to develop strategies such as branding aimed at the country variant so that this In this way, greater international support and recognition of a good land that harvests quality wine is generated. For this reason, in the following work we can observe a theoretical framework directed towards the explanation of competitiveness in a general way together with the development of the concept of branding together with the country variant, mentioned above, so that in this way there is a contribution towards the wine industry, a concept that is also explained in a concise way to give the reader an overview of the importance of the relationship between branding and competitiveness. This work is a qualitative analysis based on a descriptive-documentary study.
Purpose – A product colour plays an important role in consumers’ preferences. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the impact of the three-dimensional character of colour (brightness, saturation and vividness) on children’s behaviour towards a food product and as a source of well-being.
Design/methodology/approach – Two experimentswere conducted. Study 1 was conducted with 62 children and used four visuals of syrup presenting two colours (red/green) and two variations of vividness (vivid/dim).
Study 2 was conducted with 70 children and used four pictures of stewed apples and four pictures of pouches to test the influence of each dimension of colour on children’s preferences for the product and the product packaging.
Findings – Results show that the three-dimensional character of colour plays an important role in children’s gustatory inferences and well-being.
Research limitations/implications – The study is restricted to one food product (in each study) habitually consumed by children. Other products could be investigated to show how colour can contribute to children’s well-being.
Practical implications – The paper addresses the issue of well-being as a potential brand-positioning element.
Social implications – The paper suggests new avenues to use the brightness/saturation or vividness of a product or packaging colour as a potential element to arouse positive sensations that generate children’s well-being even when the product is not a preferred one.
Originality/value – This works initiates creative thinking concerning the impact of a product colour on children consumers.
This article explores the role that color can play in building brand meaning with two experiments. Without prior conditioning, we demonstrate how an appropriately chosen color for a brand name (logo) can bring inherent and immediate value to a brand. Experiment 1 explores the notion of congruity, showing that it is more appropriate for functional products to be presented in functional colors, and sensorysocial products in sensory-social colors. Experiment 2 examines the effect of red and blue on brands of products that can be classified as both functional and sensory-social, and the ability of color to enhance a brand's desired image. When people know how brands are attempting to position themselves, people consider colors congruent with those positions to be more appropriate.
The authors extend previous models for premarket forecasting of new durable consumer goods by including parameters that reflect consumers' categorization and consideration processes. They propose a model and measurement methodology, which they apply to the premarket forecasting of a new automobile. They describe empirical data collection, parameter estimation, managerial implications, validation issues, and future research needs. The extended model generates new managerial insights into positioning and marketing planning effectiveness, can be used to simulate the effects of changes in positioning strategy on consideration and choice, and provides more detailed information about why consumers consider or reject a new brand. The relevance of the categorization extension for other new product models that condition choice on a consideration set is also explored.
215 *Gerald J. Gorn is Professor of Marketing and Senior Wei-Lun Fellow (e-mail: mkgorn@ust.hk), and Jaideep Sengupta is Associate Professor of Marketing (e-mail: mkjaisen@ust.hk), School of Business and Manage-ment, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Amitava Chat-topadhyay is L'Oreal Chaired Professor of Marketing Innovation and Cre-ativity, INSEAD (The authors investigate the link between the color of a Web page's background screen while the page is downloading and the perceived quickness of the download. They draw on research that supports links between color and feelings of relaxation and between feelings of relax-ation and time perception. The authors predict that the background screen color influences how quickly a page is perceived to download and that feelings of relaxation mediate this influence. In a series of experi-ments, they manipulate the hue, value, and chroma dimensions of the color to induce more or less relaxed feeling states. The findings suggest that for each dimension, colors that induce more relaxed feeling states lead to greater perceived quickness. The authors provide triangulating evidence with an alternative manipulation: the number of times subjects wait for a download. As does color, this also leads to variation in levels of relaxation and perceived quickness. A final experiment reveals that color not only affects perceived download quickness but also has conse-quences for users' evaluations of the Web site and their likelihood of recommending it to others.
In designing print ads, one of the decisions the advertiser must make is which color(s) to use as executional cues in the ad. Typically, color decisions are based on intuition and anecdotal evidence. To provide guidelines for these decisions, this research proposes and tests a conceptual framework linking the hue, chroma, and value of the color(s) in an ad to consumers' feelings and attitudes. In an experimental study, the three dimensions of color used in an ad are manipulated using a between-subjects design. The results support the hypotheses that ads containing colors with a higher level of value lead to greater liking for the ad, and this effect is mediated by the greater feelings of relaxation elicited by the higher value color. Feelings play an equally important role in the effect of chroma. Consistent with the hypotheses, higher levels of chroma elicit greater feelings of excitement, which in turn increase ad likeability. A follow-up study found that although managers often select higher value and higher chroma colors, in a large number of cases they do not. The findings of both studies are integrated in our discussion of the importance of value and chroma in increasing the range of options available to a manager faced with the selection of colors in an ad.
Brand salience—the extent to which a brand visually stands out from its competitors—is vital in competing on the shelf, yet is not easy to achieve in practice. This study proposes a methodology to determine the competitive salience of brands, based on a model of visual search and eye-movement recordings collected during a brand search experiment. We estimate brand salience at the point of purchase, based on perceptual features (color, luminance, edges) and how these are influenced by consumers' search goals. We show that the salience of brands has a pervasive effect on search performance, and is determined by two key components: The bottom-up component is due to in-store activity and package design. The top-down component is due to out-of-store marketing activities such as advertising. We show that about one-third of salience on the shelf is due to out-of-store and two-thirds due to in-store marketing. The proposed methodology for competitive salience analysis exposes the optimal visual differentiation level of a brand versus its competitors, and of each SKU versus the other SKUs of the same brand. The model of the visual search process and methodology for competitive salience analysis enable diagnostic analyses of the current levels of visual differentiation of brands and SKUs at the point of purchase, and provide directions for increasing these.
Presents a spreading-activation theory of human semantic processing,
which can be applied to a wide range of recent experimental results.
The theory is based on M. R. Quillian's (1967) theory of semantic
memory search and semantic preparation, or priming. In conjunction
with this, several misconceptions concerning Quillian's theory are
discussed. A number of additional assumptions are proposed for his
theory to apply it to recent experiments. The present paper shows
how the extended theory can account for results of several production
experiments by E. F. Loftus, J. F. Juola and R. C. Atkinson's (1971)
multiple-category experiment, C. Conrad's (1972) sentence-verification
experiments, and several categorization experiments on the effect
of semantic relatedness and typicality by K. J. Holyoak and A. L.
Glass (1975), L. J. Rips et al (1973), and E. Rosch (1973). The paper
also provides a critique of the Rips et al model for categorization
judgments.
Mandler theorized that the level of congruity between a product and a more general product category schema may influence the nature of information processing and thus product evaluations. Products that are moderately incongruent with their associated category schemas are expected to stimulate processing that leads to a more favorable evaluation relative to products that are either congruent of extremely incongruent. Data from three experiments conducted in new product contexts are consistent with Mandler's hypothesis and serve as a basis for theorizing about the process. Copyright 1989 by the University of Chicago.
The strategic importance of the product positioning decision in achieving success in the marketplace is well recognized. However, there has been relatively limited development of the theoretical foundation for the positioning options that are available to firms. This article proposes a conceptual approach that can assist marketing managers in making a major positioning decision: What type of comparisons should be emphasized to achieve brand association? The framework is derived from the psychological literature on categorization. Five sets of propositions linking product positioning options with the processing of brand level information by consumers are developed. The managerial implications of the propositions for formulating an associative positioning strategy for a brand are presented.
Results of four studies demonstrate that perceptions of how different a brand is from other brands in the product category affect perceptions of the brand's position within the category. Specifically, perceptions that a brand is strongly discrepant result in a subtyped (or niche) position, whereas perceptions that a brand is moderately discrepant result in a differentiated position within the general category. Perceptions of discrepancy are affected both by the extent of discrepancy on an attribute and whether the discrepant information is concentrated in a single ad for the brand or dispersed across multiple ads for the product. The effects associated with a subtyped position, in comparison with a differentiated position, are identified (study 1) and are found to increase with time (study 2). The subtyped versus differentiated distinction for a strongly versus moderately discrepant brand is validated with a sorting task (study 3). This distinction is shown to hold in the context of multiple discrepant brands that differ in their extent of discrepancy (study 4). Implications of the findings for a theoretical understanding of subtyping versus differentiation and for the application of positioning strategies in the marketplace are discussed.
The authors extend previous models for premarket forecasting of new durable consumer goods by including parameters that reflect consumers’ categorization and consideration processes. They propose a model and measurement methodology, which they apply to the premarket forecasting of a new automobile. They describe empirical data collection, parameter estimation, managerial implications, validation issues, and future research needs. The extended model generates new managerial insights into positioning and marketing planning effectiveness, can be used to simulate the effects of changes in positioning strategy on consideration and choice, and provides more detailed information about why consumers consider or reject a new brand. The relevance of the categorization extension for other new product models that condition choice on a consideration set is also explored.
The author presents a conceptual model of brand equity from the perspective of the individual consumer. Customer-based brand equity is defined as the differential effect of brand knowledge on consumer response to the marketing of the brand. A brand is said to have positive (negative) customer-based brand equity when consumers react more (less) favorably to an element of the marketing mix for the brand than they do to the same marketing mix element when it is attributed to a fictitiously named or unnamed version of the product or service. Brand knowledge is conceptualized according to an associative network memory model in terms of two components, brand awareness and brand image (i.e., a set of brand associations). Customer-based brand equity occurs when the consumer is familiar with the brand and holds some favorable, strong, and unique brand associations in memory. Issues in building, measuring, and managing customer-based brand equity are discussed, as well as areas for future research.
The author presents a conceptual model of brand equity from the perspective of the individual consumer. Customer-based brand equity is defined as the differential effect of brand knowledge on consumer response to the marketing of the brand. A brand is said to have positive (negative) customer-based brand equity when consumers react more (less) favorably to an element of the marketing mix for the brand than they do to the same marketing mix element when it is attributed to a fictitiously named or unnamed version of the product or service. Brand knowledge is conceptualized according to an associative network memory model in terms of two components, brand awareness and brand image (i. e., a set of brand associations). Customer-based brand equity occurs when the consumer is familiar with the brand and holds some favorable, strong, and unique brand associations in memory. Issues in building, measuring, and managing customer-based brand equity are discussed, as well as areas for future research.
Ann M. Olazábal, Anita Cava, and René Sacasas, EditorsUniversity of Miami School of Business AdministrationEditors’ Note: This is the last print issue of JAMS in which the “Marketing & the Law” section will be published. Future editions of this section will appear as a regular JAMS online supplement via SpringerLink at http://www.springerlink.com/content/120573/. For submissions, please contact the new managing editor, Dr. Patricia Abril, at pabril@miami.edu.DOI: 10.1007/s11747-009-0159-8Defending Single Color Trademarks: A Lesson from the Australian CourtsWoolworths Limited v. British Petroleum Plc (2006) FCAFC 132Byron W. Keating and Tim R. ColtmanIntroductionUnder what circumstances can a single color be registered as a trademark? Australia’s courts considered this issue for the first time in Woolworths Ltd. v. BP Plc (“Woolworths”). The case provides valuable insight into some of the challenges associated with the registration of single color trademarks in Australia and beyond. ...
Results of four studies demonstrate that perceptions of how different a brand is from other brands in the product category affect perceptions of the brand's position within the category. Specifically, perceptions that a brand is strongly discrepant result in a subtyped (or niche) position, whereas perceptions that a brand is moderately discrepant result in a differentiated position within the general category. Perceptions of discrepancy are affected both by the extent of discrepancy on an attribute and whether the discrepant information is concentrated in a single ad for the brand or dispersed across multiple ads for the product. The effects associated with a subtyped position, in comparison with a differentiated position, are identified (study 1) and are found to increase with time (study 2). The subtyped versus differentiated distinction for a strongly versus moderately discrepant brand is validated with a sorting task (study 3). This distinction is shown to hold in the context of multiple discrepant brands that differ in their extent of discrepancy (study 4). Implications of the findings for a theoretical understanding of subtyping versus differentiation and for the application of positioning strategies in the marketplace are discussed.
Despite the pervasive use of the terms "market segmentation" and "product differentiation," there has been and continues to be considerable misunderstanding about their meaning and use. The authors attempt to lessen the confusion by the use of traditional and contemporary economic theory and product preference maps.
From beverages to consumer electronics, marketers are using color in innovative ways. Despite this, little academic research
has investigated the role that color plays in marketing. This paper examines how color affects consumer perceptions through
a series of four studies. The authors provide a framework and empirical evidence that draws on research in aesthetics, color
psychology, and associative learning to map hues onto brand personality dimensions (Study 1), as well as examine the roles
of saturation and value for amplifying brand personality traits (Study 2). The authors also demonstrate how marketers can
strategically use color to alter brand personality and purchase intent (Study 3), and how color influences the likability
and familiarity of a brand (Study 4). The results underscore the importance of recognizing the impact of color in forming
consumer brand perceptions.
The successful registration of a color as a trademark requires the courts to assess whether the color has developed secondary meaning with respect to a specific brand. Survey evidence often is used to support distinctiveness claims but frequently carries little weight because of criticisms of the methodology used. Cadbury's application to register the color purple in New Zealand, for instance, provided a context for comparing three methods of establishing brand/color distinctiveness: a traditional approach and two novel approaches involving a color wheel and choice modeling. All three methods revealed strong associations between Cadbury and purple, but the new methods tested are potentially more robust and less susceptible to challenge in the courts.
This article develops empirically based guidelines to assist managers in selecting or modifying package designs for achieving desired consumer responses. Seven studies identify the key types of package designs, including the factors that differentiate those package designs, and determine how these holistic designs are related to consumer brand impressions. The selection of package designs can be simplified with the use of five holistic types: massive, contrasting, natural, delicate, and nondescript designs. Sincere brands should have natural package designs, exciting brands should have contrasting designs, competent brands should have delicate designs, sophisticated brands should have natural or delicate designs, and rugged brands should have contrasting or massive designs. The authors discuss the potential trade-offs among the impressions created by holistic design types and illustrate their findings with numerous real packages.
The principal focus of Sections 43a and 43c of the Lanham Act is on the states of mind - particularly confusion, deception, and dilution - of the relevant public (e.g., prospective purchasers). Other key concepts of trademark law (acquired distinctiveness, secondary meaning, fame and genericism) also refer to psychological states of mind. Yet beyond acknowledging that these concepts refer to psychological states of mind, little has been done to describe how the vast body of relevant psychological literature provides an understanding of the development of and change in these psychological states. The objective of this paper is to remedy this neglect by discussing how the relevant scientific literature provides a foundation for greater understanding of these key concepts.
Prior research has typically grouped color effects into a single class of effects and has ignored situational aspects of consumer responses to color. In the present study, color effects are shown to exhibit different patterns depending on the type of response examined. Further, these effects are described as a function of color wavelength. Evaluative effects are most positive at the short wavelength (blue) end of the visible spectrum, while the activation response engendered by color exhibits a U-shaped pattern across wavelengths. Results of the study support the existence of these two distinct dimensions, and potential applications of the findings are discussed.
Data are presented demonstrating that similarity judgments between pairs of product categories can be asymmetrical and that brand name associations can reverse the direction of asymmetry. Brand name associations can, but do not necessarily, increase perceived similarity between product categories. The results support the view that similarity judgments between product categories are highly relative and context dependent. Because similarity plays a key role in models of affect transfer between branded products, similarity asymmetry has direct implications for brand extension strategy. Companies may be able to minimize the risk of brand extension to core products by accentuating the variant status of the extensions.
Marketing theorists espouse that the long-term success of a brand is contingent upon the proper selection and operationalization of brand meaning prior to market entry. Nevertheless, prior research has not addressed how to design multiple branding elements that together can convey consistent brand meaning. Results of the first study support a relationship between structural characteristics of the brand name (e.g., front vs. back vowels) and the brand mark's size, shape, and color. The second study found that brands with marks that are consistent in design with the brand name better communicate intended brand meaning. An important implication is that a properly operationalized brand may require fewer marketing expenditures to create brand image.
Anticipating the speed of market entry can help the feature pioneer and me-too brands develop more informed product launch
strategies. This paper explains imitation speed, broken down into the incidence and timing of imitation, across 144 imitators
and 847 nonimitators in 22 consumer packaged goods subcategories. On average, it takes 85 weeks for a me-too brand to introduce
its feature imitation. Increasing category market share increases the incidence of imitation and, conditional on their occurrence,
decreases the time to market of feature imitators. Faster entry arises for store brands as they are more likely to imitate
and tend to take shorter times to market. Price premium does not have a significant effect on the incidence or timing of a
me-too brand as it tends to dissipate after the first year. Brands imitate innovative features more often than noninnovative
features. Some evidence indicates these imitators can take a longer time to enter the market. New product managers may benefit
from the direction as well as the magnitude of these results.
Brand identity complements brand equity and it forms an important part of the strategic management of brands. Identity elements include a well-known brand name, logo, font type, symbols, colour, shape, as well as unique product and benefit descriptions. These different elements can contribute to distinct consumer perceptions of various brands in the marketplace and help to differentiate brands from competitors. Brand managers need to start with a vision of what they want their brand to represent and then use the appropriate identity elements to build the brand. Some brand identity components may be influential to choice at the subconscious level of consumers, and therefore the understanding of individual psychological processes of perception and social meaning is required by brand managers.
Prior research has suggested that the brand consumers believe is the market leader or market pioneer can earn positive feedback for these achievements. The key question is how do consumers form these beliefs? This research examines the sources of information and cognitive processes that consumers utilise when determining which brand in a particular product category is a pioneer or market leader. These processes of source identification - including memory trace, schematic inferencing, direct-cue retrieval, and guessing-- are applied in this brand characteristic context, and measured in terms of their relative frequency of occurrence, degree of confidence from each process, and accuracy of each process. Consumers may feel varying degrees of confidence in the different types of inferential processes, and these different processes may actually result in varying degrees of accuracy. Results show that consumers typically evoke "schematic inference" as a rationale for their identification of a given brand as having a category characteristic. Those who use memory trace, however, are particularly confident that they have identified the true category characteristic, but are particularly inaccurate in such identification for the pioneer brand. These findings are discussed in the broader context of source inferential processes and their importance to marketing strategy.
This article focuses on memory-based choice situations where changes in a brand's accessibility may affect the probability that it is retrieved and considered for choice. In such instances, factors other than evaluation may affect which brands are brought to mind at purchase. Two experiments are described that manipulate the determinants of brand accessibility and measure consequent effects on retrieval, consideration, choice, and evaluation. Results provide evidence for the influence of memory during the brand-choice process. For a brand to be selected in memory-based choice, the consumer must recall that brand and fail to recall other brands that might otherwise be preferred. Copyright 1990 by the University of Chicago.
Holistic package design
- U Orth
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New Gap logo ignites firestorm
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Apple doin' the logo-motion
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