Editorial
Longevity. That’s the name of the game when it comes to measuring whether a brand is able to both survive and thrive in the marketplace. Not only is it important for a consumer to be aware of a particular brand, but the real test of “where the rubber meets the road” is if the consumer continues to repurchase and use that particular brand. Of course in today’s global marketplace, having multiple-brands that succeed is most important so that a company can grow their share of their consumers. But a brand is not a one-dimensional entity. Corporations, as a brand, have to be concerned with how they are perceived and received, and the product or service itself can affect any relationship. Branding is a complex concept that deals with consumer acceptance, product/service quality, presentation and pricing as part of the overall marketing situation.
Arora presents us with a framework that includes search, experience and credence attributes that are analyzed using conjoint analysis to estimate the utilities of the aforementioned attributes that may be used in the positioning of teeth whitening products. The author also examines the role of pricing and a specific health care issue that may also impact consumer choice of this particular product. The findings may help marketers in designing new products and positioning teeth whitening products based on desirable attributes.
DaSilva and Alwi empirically test a model of antecedents and consequences of corporate brand image as it concerns an online and traditional “bricks and mortar” book retailer. The authors found an empirical relationship between the brand attributes and the corporate brand image (the emotional values). In turn, this relationship influences the customer’s responses (loyalty). This information offers practitioners a research framework aimed at guiding them as to how they could understand their defined or desired brand values (i.e. the corporate core values) among their consumers.
Hayes, Alford, Silver and York introduce attractiveness as a moderator of the relationship between the perceived brand personality and evaluations of the brand as a relationship partner in a product-marketing context. The authors’findings reveal that perceived attractiveness significantly influences the consumer-based relationship development in meaningful and predictable ways. Furthermore, the specific role attractiveness plays in the relationship appears to vary across individual brand personality dimensions.
Nowak, Thach and Olsen examine the attitudes of Millenial wine consumers and determine if positive affect in testing room situations leads to higher levels of brand equity for the winery. Positive emotions associated with the (wine)tasting room experience can cultivate relationships that may lead to long-term,profitable relationships through continued patronage and brand loyalty.
Katsanis presents a study that identifies how and where product managers in the pharmaceutical industry receive the training required to undertake their job tasks, and whether or not there is a relationship between the tasks they perform and the training they receive. Product managers do not appear to receive company training in proportion to the frequency with which particular tasks are performed, which could, in the long run, diminish their efficacy in terms of doing their jobs properly.
Also, in our section on pricing you will find specific articles of interest.
Richard C. Leventhal
