Price Promotion (In)frequency and Consumers’ Brand Quality Evaluations

Previous research suggests that consumers judge the quality of a brand promoted infrequently less favorably than a brand promoted frequently, because the former promotional pattern tends to be less expected and generates negative attributions. We suggest that the opposite can also occur. Specifically, adaption level theory would suggest that frequent (vs. infrequent) promotions encourage consumers to adapt to a lower reference price for the brand. Because lower reference prices are associated with lower quality perceptions, the infrequently promoted brand’s quality is likely to be judged more positively. We also identify boundary conditions for the effect. Specifically, when price information is difficult to process or when people are anxious about math, infrequent (vs. frequent) price promotions reduce consumers’ brand quality evaluations. Three studies support these hypotheses. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.