High-involvement Product Categories Research Articles

EXPRESS: A Good Signal: How Firms Can Utilize Country of Origin as a Strategic Analytical Tool

Abundant consumer data has made decision making more complicated rather than simple for marketers. The abundance of consumer data raises an important question about which variables in the data contain reliable information for retailers to predict future consumer purchase value (CPV) to guide strategic decisions. The authors address this question by exploring the variables “distinctive choice of brand country of origin” (DBCOO) and “country of origin diversity” (COO diversity) as analytical tools to extract insights from consumer purchase data. Building on signaling theory, the authors theorize and empirically test that DBCOO and COO diversity in a consumer’s purchase history can signal, and therefore help predict CPV. Moreover, we explore high-involvement product categories and purchase frequency as boundary conditions to develop a comprehensive framework of COO signals as strategic analytical tools. We find that DBCOO in a consumer’s purchase history indeed increases CPV and that this relationship is enhanced for high-involvement product categories but moderated curvilinearly by purchase frequency. Moreover, we find that the COO diversity – CPV link is positive but depicts a negative interaction with both moderators. This allows retailers to successfully distinguish high- from low-CPV consumers and thus enables them to manage marketing mix and resources more effectively.

An analysis of the brand content characteristics across high and low involvement product categories and their influence on information diffusion on Twitter

An analysis of the brand content characteristics across high and low involvement product categories and their influence on information diffusion on Twitter

Cross-media advertising strategies and brand attitude: the role of cognitive load

In recent years, cross-media advertising has received widespread attention from researchers and practitioners seeking effective ways to communicate with their audience. Building on Kahneman’s dual-system theory, the present article proposes a model of the impact of cross-media advertising on brand attitude (Abr). An eye-tracking experiment with 60 participants indicates that simultaneous (vs. sequential) exposure to ads for the same brand on TV and the Internet increases cognitive load and, through subjective comprehension, decreases brand attitude. Two online experiments with 395 and 198 participants in a low- and high-involvement product category, respectively, validate the proposed model. Experiment 2 reveals that in sequential exposure to TV and the internet, the fit between campaign ads further decreases the cognitive load leading to improved brand attitude. Experiment 3 strongly suggests that in simultaneous exposure, synchronous (vs. asynchronous) ads reduce cognitive demands and, through subjective comprehension and TV ad engagement, improve brand attitude.

Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) As Interpersonal Communication in Persuading Consumers in the Era of Disruption

The disruption era is a phase of the marketing concept that combines online and offline interactions between companies and consumers; both have their respective roles and complement each other. PT Honda Maju Mobilindo uses offline and online methods to sell its products. Personal selling is one of PT Honda Maju Mobilindo's most dominant offline methods to support promotional activities. Honda vehicles are included in the high-involvement product category, so human-to-human contact is needed to deliver messages to potential customers. This study uses the Elaboration likelihood model (ELM) with route central and peripheral route dimensions to analyze research problems. This research uses a mixed method with a postpositivism paradigm, a type of case study research, and data collection techniques using observation, interviews, documentation, and questionnaires. Data analysis techniques use the Miles & Huberman model. The results showed: that Honda consumers took the central route when processing received messages. The novelty in this research is the Elaboration model of the central route of automotive products in the era of disruption, which is the suitable communication model for promoting automotive products by combining online and offline interactions. In the era of technology, properly implementing promotional activities is not enough to be done online. However, offline methods are needed to ensure that consumers receive satisfactory service for purchased products.

How Market Orientation Impacts Customer’s Brand Loyalty and Buying Decisions

As retail management has become increasingly demanding, it is imperative that retailers use market orientation to promote and increase loyalty to their private labels. This can be important in efforts to differentiate themselves from their competition. The focus of this study is to understand how these factors impact the loyalty of customer purchase decisions, through the link between the potential for brand risk and brand commitment, in order to facilitate customer orientation and brand loyalty. An online survey was conducted with a sample of 2900 consumers in Portugal and Spain. This study analyzed two distinct and high involvement product categories: Denomination of Origin (DOC) wine and anti-wrinkle cream. Structural equation modeling methodology was used to analyze the relationship between different constructs. It was found that there is no direct correlation between customer orientation and brand loyalty. However, this connection is critical when the two mediating variables of brand risk and brand commitment are accounted for. Another important finding relates to the values and differences identified between the two product categories. The results obtained show the importance of risk and commitment for high involvement products. In practice, this justifies brands explicitly managing these factors, because they can translate into loyalty behaviors. The results also contribute to demystifying the market for more complex products, particularly when the choice and risk process is more complex.

Impact of ethical certifications and product involvement on consumers decision to purchase ethical products at price premiums in an emerging market context

In emerging markets, instances of increasing consumers focus on ethical aspects of the product are observed. To this end, we aim to examine the influence of two ethical certifications and two product involvement types on consumers willingness to purchase ethical products at price premiums in the Indian market. No animal cruelty certification and no child labor certification are chosen as the ethical certifications, and a shirt and a bar of soap are chosen as high and low involvement product categories. Data is collected from 206 respondents for the experiment, in which consumers willingness to purchase a product is evaluated for different product scenarios. The results of the study indicate that individuals show highest willingness to purchase products (a shirt or a soap) when both certifications (no animal cruelty, no child labor) are present. However, in comparing individual certifications, individuals prefer no animal cruelty certification for a shirt and no child labor certification for a bar of soap. The study provides insights to practitioners regarding consumers present perception of ethical aspects in the product and directions to increase sales of ethical products in the Indian market.

The Impact of Digital Social Responsibility on Preference and Purchase Intentions: The Implication for Open Innovation

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed people’s life and the ways businesses implement their social responsibility initiatives. During the COVID-19 pandemic, online and digital platforms have been increasingly realized as important mechanisms for businesses undertaking and implementing socially responsible activities—digital social responsibility (DSR). The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of DSR on brand preference and consumers’ purchase intention comparing between high and low involvement product categories. The quantitative empirical research was conducted by using an online questionnaire instrument, and a Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) technique was used to test the proposed model. Based on 194 samples of Thai respondents collected in November to December 2020, the findings demonstrate that DSR initiatives are significantly and positively associated with brand preference and with consumers’ purchase intention. The moderating result reveals that product involvement plays a significant role in strengthening the association between DSR initiatives and brand preference. The effect of DSR on brand preference is stronger for low product involvement respondents than for high product involvement respondents. The research highlights the significance of DSR and extends the current knowledge about DSR and its potential impact on customers’ perception.

An analysis of the brand content characteristics across high and low involvement product categories and their influence on information diffusion on Twitter

An analysis of the brand content characteristics across high and low involvement product categories and their influence on information diffusion on Twitter

INFLUENCE OF SALES REPRESENTATIVE CHARACTERISTICS ON CUSTOMER PURCHASE BEHAVIOUR

The present study examines the influence and effectiveness of sales representative in an emerging market in enhancing retail sale in cases of a high involvement product like apparel and low involvement product like grocery. The present research examined the effect of five factors, namely, sales representative's personal characteristics, competence, sales representative's-initiated promotion, involvement and ethical behaviour on purchase behaviour of consumers. The step-wise regression method was used to support the proposed hypotheses. The results of the study concluded that in both high and low involvement product category, sales representative's-initiated promotion and involvement affect the purchase behaviour of consumers. Other than these two factors, the competence of the salesperson plays an important role in high involvement products, whereas his personal characteristics are important in case of low involvement products. The research provides a guide for sales managers for developing a training and strategy development program for their sales force.

Experiencing nostalgia through the lens of life satisfaction

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the role of life satisfaction in consumers’ reaction to nostalgic music in an advertisement in terms of attitude toward the brand and purchase intention. It suggests that life satisfaction forms the lens through which individuals interpret and reconstruct past emotional experiences evoked by nostalgia. It further investigates the role of product category involvement in the interplay between life satisfaction and nostalgic music.Design/methodology/approachTwo experiments were conducted. The first study featured a 2 (nostalgic vs non-nostalgic music) × 2 (high vs low involvement) between-subjects design and tested the research hypotheses with 208 consumers. The second study featured two involvement conditions (high vs low) and explored the underlying process behind the hypotheses. Linear regression was used to analyze the data in both studies.FindingsFor the low involvement product category, nostalgic music was more effective than non-nostalgic music for consumers with high life satisfaction, whereas non-nostalgic music was more effective for consumers with low life satisfaction levels. For the high involvement product category, life satisfaction did not moderate consumers’ reaction to nostalgic music.Research limitations/implicationsThis research suggests that past experiences evoked through nostalgic music are not static but are subject to bias and interpretation depending on an individual’s current mindset. Hence, the eventual effect of nostalgia is determined by how past events are reconstrued based on the individual’s current state.Practical implicationsThis paper warns against the blind use of nostalgic appeals in advertising, points to the need to consider the audience’s state of mind, and suggests an opportunity to leverage life satisfaction influencers in designing effective advertising campaigns.Social implicationsThe findings have strong implications for public policymakers. The results are crucial as policymakers often use public service announcement (PSA) to change the attitude of the public toward some phenomena. Knowing the current state of life satisfaction in society, they can increase the efficiency of public service announcements by including a nostalgic song in them.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is the first one in the marketing literature that looks at the efficiency of nostalgic songs in advertisements. The authors tested the conceptual framework by using two studies and offered novel implications to both marketers and scholars.

Smartphones as decision support in retail stores – The role of product category and gender

The smartphone has become an important part in the interaction with retail customers. This study investigates the use of smartphones in retail stores and how smartphone decision support differs between product categories and gender. The results of a survey (n=146) show that high involvement product categories attract a higher smartphone use for decision support inside retail stores, and that young adult men have a significantly higher tendency than young adult women to conduct smartphone searches for product information and prices of electronics in-store. Furthermore, young adult women ask for advice regarding clothing with their smartphone significantly more often than young adult men. The findings are important for retailers who seek to improve service and sales by using in-store technologies. Managerial implications and future research suggestions are provided.

A Research Paper on Digital Marketing Communication and Consumer Buying Decision Process: An Empirical Study in the Indian Passenger Car Market

ABSTRACTThe effect of digital marketing communication on product categories like books, music, fashion accessories, clothing, banking and online gaming etc. has been well researched by the researchers; but automobile industry despite being one of the largest digital spenders has faced dearth of academic studies especially in India. The present study aims to understand the effect of digital marketing communication on consumer buying decision process in Indian passenger car market. Mixed methodology was adopted for the study. Primary data was collected from 784 respondents from ‘Delhi’ using area wise proportionate sampling. One sample Wilocoxon Signed Rank, one sample binomial test and chi-sqaure tests were applied as tests of significance. The study concluded that 75% of the respondents used at least one digital channel of communication while buying a car. ‘Website’ was the most used digital channel of communication while buying a car followed by ‘social networking sites’ and ‘smartphones’. Each and every stage of car buying decision making process right from ‘need recognition’ to ‘post purchase’ was ‘significantly’ affected from digital marketing communication with ‘evaluation’ being the most affected stage. The results of the study confirmed that digital marketing communication is capable of even triggering need recognition in high involvement product category like car. The results also established that consumers feel positive towards digital communication, get affected from other customers' reviews and express their post-purchase feeling feelings over digital platforms. However, the study also confirmed that although customers appreciate the usage of digital channels throughout the decision making journey, still they don't book a car online.

Brand choice via incidental social media exposure

PurposeThe paper seeks to establish the effectiveness of social media advertising and participation by brands through incidental exposure. Using experimental design, in a social media environment, this paper aims to extend incidental exposure research in the context of social media.Design/methodology/approachThis paper uses an experimental design with controlled image durations using MediaLab and DirectRT, allowing for precise image display times and randomization of screens. Participants were split between high-involvement and low-involvement product categories, and the brand choice exercise was administered in an on-screen experiment.FindingsThe paper provides support that incidental exposure influences brand choice. Further, it indicates that for low-involvement product categories, the type of social media exposure does not influence brand choice significantly between types. For high-involvement product categories, ads perform better than sponsored story executions; consumer-generated brand messages perform better than brand-generated messages; and the influence of reference group affects brand choice.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper tests one social media environment using a desktop Web environment. Additional studies would be needed to test other social media environments and mobile technology.Practical implicationsThe paper provides evidence that brands benefit by simply participating and advertising in social media, but the execution style matters to a greater extent for high-involvement product categories in influencing brand choice.Social implicationsMere exposure to a brand message may influence consumers unknowingly. Repeated exposure as short as 5 s per viewing is related to increases in brand choice.Originality/valueThis paper extends research on incidental exposure and establishes a key positive brand outcome for practice and research, and it provides the first exploration on the outcome of incident exposure to brand messages in social media. The results suggest that social media and advertising by brands have positive impacts beyond traditional measures of success online.

Metaphor as Visual Thinking in Advertising and Its Effects: Focus on Brand Familiarity and Product Involvement

ABSTRACTOne of advertisers' favorite communication techniques is the visual metaphor. In fact, metaphor usage perennially increases in ad images. This study, which looks at consumers with varying levels of brand familiarity and product involvement, investigates how their attitudes and purchase intentions of are influenced by the persuasive effects of visual metaphors in various advertising conditions. The findings reveal that consumers' attitudes and purchase intentions are enhanced more by visual metaphor-based ads than nonmetaphor-based ads when the advertised product is in a low-involvement product category. Nonmetaphorical ads are found to have a more positive influence with high-involvement products than do metaphorical ads. The results show a significant three-way interaction effect. When the advertised product is in a low-involvement product category, visual metaphors lead to favorable brand evaluations and higher purchase intentions in the ads for a low-familiarity brand. However, nonmetaphors are more persuasive than visual metaphors only for the low familiarity brand in a high-involvement product category. Theoretical and practical implications are addressed in the discussion.

Re-branding as a marketing tool

Markets from low-involvement to high-involvement product categories have been experiencing sweeping changes in the past decade. Changing lifestyles, fragmented market segments and consumer preferences, and intense competition from the brands of multinational corporations (MNCs) have made re-branding strategies a prerequisite for marketing success

How the Citi Olympic sponsorship strategy uses the knowledge of the elaboration likelihood model

The Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) explains that the individual involvement in a product category will motivate a person to evaluate brand messages in that product category more critically. This article claims that sponsorship is the ideal promotional communication method to apply the ELM principles. Sponsors should be using the knowledge of the ELM that explains how consumers evaluate messages when developing their activation programs and television commercials. The article provides an example how Citi has developed its Olympic activation program and television commercials to appeal to both high and low involvement product category customers. Citi promoted its mobile app and the Citi Thank You Visa card brand features to try to appeal to high involvement product category consumers, while promoting its Olympic brand association and its corporate social responsibility ‘Every Step of the Way’ initiative to try to appeal to low involvement product category consumers.

A tri-component model of parental attitude: acceptance of child's role in family decision making

The present paper uses the tri-components of parental attitude to assess the role of the child in family decision making; and the moderating effects of the child's age and level of product involvement. A quota sample of 141 urban Indian parents across four child segments was collected to understand the cognitive-connative-affective components of parental attitude across selected high and low involvement product categories. The affective attitudinal components was found to be the most significant followed by the connative and cognitive. The higher was the affective component greater was the parental acceptance of the child in the purchase decision. It was also found that the acceptance of the child in the purchase decision was more for the older versus the younger children. Though there was considerable diversity in parenting attitude, by and large the Indian parent was more open to the child playing an active role - especially for low involvement products.

Impact of Brand Image on Consumer Decision-making: A Study on High-technology Products

In the field of high-technology and high-involvement products, launch of new products is seen as very high. The usage of multiple electronic gadgets in every household is an example of such growth and emphasizes the importance of responsible marketing of high-technology products to cater to such needs. Even high-tech companies that understand the importance of marketing face uncertainty and complications in making marketing decisions and also in the understanding of consumer requirements. For any high-involvement product category, the decision-making time is normally long and customers generally evaluate the information available very cautiously. They also involve in active information search process. The risk associated with such decision is very high. Here the word high technology is set to mean ‘sophisticated knowledge associated with some general field of endeavour’ and marketing of such high technology driven products is being faced by growing set of complexities. Again one of the major advantages any reputed brand enjoys compared to other non-reputed brands is the association of psychological assurance. Customers develop trust on reputed brands. This article tries to find out the influencing factors of buying high- technology and high-involvement products. The role of brand image in influencing the consumer’s decision- making of high-technology products is examined in this article. This article classifies the high-technology customers based on their decision-making styles and their acceptance of extended brands.

Does explicit comparative advertising affect Indian consumers’ attitudes towards low and high-involvement product?

Purpose – With increasing use of explicit comparative advertisement to get share of consumers’ mind and influence their purchase decision in western context, the same is now used extensively in emerging markets like India. However, there has not been sufficient research to understand the effectiveness of explicit comparative advertisement in low and high-involvement product categories. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to attempt to understand the effectiveness of explicit comparative advertising on consumers’ attitude and purchase intention (PI) towards high and low-involvement products. Design/methodology/approach – The study carried out experimental treatments with 2 × 2 factorial design among 200 Indian young consumers who were in the age group 18-25. The independent variables were product categories and type of advertising (comparative and non-comparative) and dependent variables were consumer attitude and PIs. Findings – It was found that the comparative form of advertisement developed favourable response towards the advertisement, rather than towards the brand or PI. Research limitations/implications – The study found that comparative advertising is effective for high as well as low-involvement product category in changing the consumer’s attitude towards the advertisement. The research has used print media for conducting the experiment. Practical implications – It can be inferred that comparisons should be supplemented with additional information in the form of the unique features and associated emotions and feeling of the product in order to develop favourable attitude towards the brand and PI. Originality/value – Comparative advertising is a growing domain and there has been very little contribution by the researchers specially on high and low-involvement product categories.

Innovative Marketing Strategies for the Refined Edible Oil Industry: A Multidimensional Approach

Indian markets from low-involvement to high-involvement product categories have been experiencing sweeping changes in the past decade. Changing lifestyles, fragmented market segments and consumer preferences, and intense competition from the brands of multinational corporations have made marketing strategies a prerequisite for marketing success. The aim of the study was to formulate marketing strategies for the refined edible oil market. The refined edible oil has got a higher market potential in recent years and so, many new players are entering the market. The study was conducted from three dimensions to frame the marketing strategy. The first dimension is consumers of edible oil, so the consumers' attitude towards the refined oil, their consumption pattern, factors influencing the decision making in selection of the type and brand of cooking oil, and their expectations with reference to cooking oil were studied. The second dimension is the market of refined oil and the leading players in the market. Hence, the marketing practices followed by the leading players in the market were also analyzed. The third dimension of the study is the product refined cooking oil. The features of the refined cooking oil were also scrutinized.