IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/pal/jobman/v23y2016i2d10.1057_bm.2016.2.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The magic of ‘great’ linked to product names

Author

Listed:
  • Jose A Martínez

    (Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena)

Abstract

‘Great’ is an adjective that is differently employed by organizations for naming products, as a kind of magical word that adds value to products. However, little is known about this supposed effect. This research analyses the power of ‘great’ when linked to product names under different settings. The aim of this research was to determine whether the word ‘great’ and some of its synonyms, such as ‘grand’, are magical words that add value to a product. A series of empirical studies were carried out, employing both random and convenience samples, and using face-to-face interviews, web and telephone surveys. Results show that when consumers know that ‘great’ means truly superior, they overestimate some of the main attributes of ‘great’ products. In this sense, ‘great’ serves as a powerful tool to increase expectations about a specific product. There is also weak evidence that, for new or unknown products, ‘great’ provides small added value. However, when there is no way to know if ‘great’ truly means superior but the evaluated product is well-known, consumers generally react with indifference. Finally, if ‘great’ is artificially added to the name of a product, there is no effect on consumer perceptions with respect to the product. This research clarifies the conditions where ‘great’ has a positive impact on the bottom line for some companies. Consequently, it is a term that marketers should consider when seeking to persuade consumers.

Suggested Citation

  • Jose A Martínez, 2016. "The magic of ‘great’ linked to product names," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 23(2), pages 179-196, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:jobman:v:23:y:2016:i:2:d:10.1057_bm.2016.2
    DOI: 10.1057/bm.2016.2
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1057/bm.2016.2
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1057/bm.2016.2?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Yan, Dengfeng & Duclos, Rod, 2013. "Making sense of numbers: Effects of alphanumeric brands on consumer inference," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 179-184.
    2. Eugene W. Anderson & Mary W. Sullivan, 1993. "The Antecedents and Consequences of Customer Satisfaction for Firms," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 12(2), pages 125-143.
    3. James W. Hardin & Joseph W. Hilbe, 2012. "Generalized Linear Models and Extensions, 3rd Edition," Stata Press books, StataCorp LP, edition 3, number glmext, March.
    4. Johnson, Michael D. & Fornell, Claes, 1991. "A framework for comparing customer satisfaction across individuals and product categories," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 12(2), pages 267-286, June.
    5. Kover, Arthur J, 1995. "Copywriters' Implicit Theories of Communication: An Exploration," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 21(4), pages 596-611, March.
    6. Mousavi, Shabnam & Gigerenzer, Gerd, 2014. "Risk, uncertainty, and heuristics," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(8), pages 1671-1678.
    7. Nİlüfer Z. Aydinoğlu & Aradhna Krishna, 2011. "Guiltless Gluttony: The Asymmetric Effect of Size Labels on Size Perceptions and Consumption," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 37(6), pages 1095-1112.
    8. Hutter, Katharina & Hoffmann, Stefan, 2014. "Surprise, Surprise. Ambient Media as Promotion Tool for Retailers," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 90(1), pages 93-110.
    9. Sitzia, Stefania & Zizzo, Daniel John, 2012. "Price lower and then higher or price higher and then lower?," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 1084-1099.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mujahid Mohiuddin Babu & Panuel Rozario Prince, 2011. "Factors Influencing the Overall Customer Satisfaction of the Wireless Internet Service Users: An Empirical Study in Bangladesh," Indian Journal of Commerce and Management Studies, Educational Research Multimedia & Publications,India, vol. 2(6), pages 14-24, September.
    2. Stefan Meinzer & Johann Prenninger & Patrick Vesel & Johannes Kornhuber & Judith Volmer & Joachim Hornegger & Björn M. Eskofier, 2016. "Translating satisfaction determination from health care to the automotive industry," Service Business, Springer;Pan-Pacific Business Association, vol. 10(4), pages 651-685, December.
    3. Ajimon George & Jobin Sahadevan, 2019. "A Conceptual Framework of Antecedents of Service Loyalty in Health Care: Patients’ Perspective," IIM Kozhikode Society & Management Review, , vol. 8(1), pages 50-59, January.
    4. Tournois, Laurent, 2015. "Does the value manufacturers (brands) create translate into enhanced reputation? A multi-sector examination of the value–satisfaction–loyalty–reputation chain," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 83-96.
    5. Khondker Mohammad Zobair & Louis Sanzogni & Luke Houghton & Md Zahidul Islam, 2021. "Forecasting care seekers satisfaction with telemedicine using machine learning and structural equation modeling," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(9), pages 1-31, September.
    6. Joy Lynn R. Legaspi, 2021. "Quality as Antecedent of Customer Satisfaction," International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), vol. 0(2), pages 220-230.
    7. Birgit Burböck, 2014. "Prospect Theory and SERVQUAL," Management, University of Primorska, Faculty of Management Koper, vol. 9(2), pages 155-168.
    8. Sunil Mithas & M. S. Krishnan & Claes Fornell, 2016. "Research Note—Information Technology, Customer Satisfaction, and Profit: Theory and Evidence," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 27(1), pages 166-181, March.
    9. M. F. Mpwanya, 2022. "An Empirical Examination of the Overall Customer Satisfaction with the Service Delivery of Mobile Network Operators in South Africa," Global Business Review, International Management Institute, vol. 23(1), pages 20-36, February.
    10. Johnson, Michael D. & Nader, Georg & Fornell, Claes, 1996. "Expectations, perceived performance, and customer satisfaction for a complex service: The case of bank loans," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 17(2), pages 163-182, April.
    11. Richard Adam & Andreas Herrmann & Frank Huber & Martin Wricke, 2002. "Kundenzufriedenheit und Preisbereitschaft — Empirische Erkenntnisse aus der Hotelbranche," Schmalenbach Journal of Business Research, Springer, vol. 54(8), pages 762-778, December.
    12. Andreas Herrmann & Frank Huber & Martin Wricke, 1999. "Die Herausbildung von Zufriedenheits-urteilen bei Alternativenbetrachtung," Schmalenbach Journal of Business Research, Springer, vol. 51(7), pages 677-692, July.
    13. Wentao Wu & Ran Hu & Ruxuan Tan & Hehai Liu, 2022. "Exploring Factors of Middle School Teachers’ Satisfaction with Online Training for Sustainable Professional Development under the Impact of COVID-19," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-18, October.
    14. Hartmann, Patrick & Apaolaza Ibanez, Vanessa, 2007. "Managing customer loyalty in liberalized residential energy markets: The impact of energy branding," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(4), pages 2661-2672, April.
    15. Birgelen, M. van & Ruyter, K. de & Jong, de A. & Wetzels, M., 2001. "Customer evaluations of after-sales service contact modes: An empirical analysis of national culture�s consequences," Working Papers 01.17, Eindhoven Center for Innovation Studies.
    16. Bhardwaj, Pradeep & Chatterjee, Prabirendra & Demir, Kivilcim Dogerlioglu & Turut, Ozge, 2018. "When and how is corporate social responsibility profitable?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 206-219.
    17. Benyamin Moghaddasi & Amir Salar Ghafari Majid & Zahra Mohammadnazari & Amir Aghsami & Masoud Rabbani, 2023. "A green routing-location problem in a cold chain logistics network design within the Balanced Score Card pillars in fuzzy environment," Journal of Combinatorial Optimization, Springer, vol. 45(5), pages 1-33, July.
    18. Philipp Afèche & Mojtaba Araghi & Opher Baron, 2017. "Customer Acquisition, Retention, and Service Access Quality: Optimal Advertising, Capacity Level, and Capacity Allocation," Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, INFORMS, vol. 19(4), pages 674-691, October.
    19. Hui, Xiang & Klein, Tobias & Stahl, Konrad, 2022. "Learning from Online Ratings," CEPR Discussion Papers 17006, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    20. Angulo-Ruiz, Fernando & Pergelova, Albena & Cheben, Juraj & Angulo-Altamirano, Eladio, 2016. "A cross-country study of marketing effectiveness in high-credence services," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(9), pages 3636-3644.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pal:jobman:v:23:y:2016:i:2:d:10.1057_bm.2016.2. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.palgrave.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.