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How competitor brand names affect within-brand choices

Author

Listed:
  • Kunter Gunasti

    (University of Connecticut)

  • Berna Devezer

    (University of Idaho)

Abstract

This research shows that consumers’ intra-brand choices (e.g., Mercedes C330 vs. C340) can be affected by exposure to a competitor alphanumeric brand name that forms an incidental trend with the numbers in the focal brand names (e.g., BMW320i or BMW350i). We propose and test two mechanisms. First, when no attribute information is available, the competitor brand can make the numerical trends formed by brand names salient and meaningful, and increase the preference for higher brands (e.g., Mercedes C340). Second, when attribute values are negatively correlated with brands, exposure to the competitor brand name can trigger brand-attribute magnitude tradeoffs. In five experiments, we demonstrate that our predictions hold when there are no intrinsic brand-attribute associations, and even when the competitor brand is not available for choice. We identify competitive categorization as a boundary condition and demonstrate that the effect diminishes when consumers do not categorize the nonfocal option as a competitor.

Suggested Citation

  • Kunter Gunasti & Berna Devezer, 2016. "How competitor brand names affect within-brand choices," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 27(4), pages 715-727, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:kap:mktlet:v:27:y:2016:i:4:d:10.1007_s11002-015-9374-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s11002-015-9374-x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    3. Simonson, Itamar & Kivetz, Ran, 2000. "The Effects of Incomplete Information on Consumer Choice," Research Papers 1609, Stanford University, Graduate School of Business.
    4. Johnson, Michael D, 1988. "Comparability and Hierarchical Processing in Multialternative Choice," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 15(3), pages 303-314, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ozcan, Timucin & Hair, Michael & Gunasti, Kunter, 2024. "How reaching numerical roundness on subgoals affects the completion of superordinate goals," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).

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