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Evaluating co-branded products: the socioeconomic strata effect

Rafaela Almeida Cordeiro (Postgraduate Program in International Management, Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing, São Paulo, Brazil)
Mateus Canniatti Ponchio (Postgraduate Program in International Management, Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing, São Paulo, Brazil)
José Afonso Mazzon (Faculdade de Economia, Administração e Contabilidade, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil)

Marketing Intelligence & Planning

ISSN: 0263-4503

Article publication date: 5 September 2016

1550

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify whether consumer evaluations of products are influenced by the presence of co-branding with a well-known reputable ingredient brand and whether differences in evaluations are related to the socioeconomic stratum of the consumer.

Design/methodology/approach

These questions were investigated by way of two experiments: the first, using a between-subjects approach that was carried out with 210 subjects and the second, using between- and within-subjects approaches that were carried out with 305 subjects.

Findings

The results show that: products produced by both little-known and well-known brands are evaluated more favourably when they are co-branded with a well-known ingredient brand; there is no evidence that the co-branding effect on product evaluation is stronger for little-known brand products than for well-known brand products; and there is weak evidence that the co-branding effect on product evaluation is stronger among subjects from lower socioeconomic strata than among subjects from the upper stratum.

Research limitations/implications

The theory of anchoring alone is insufficient for explaining differences in product evaluations when the co-branding strategy is adopted. It is believed that positive effects can be also interpreted by the assimilation and signalling theories.

Practical implications

As for the managerial implications, the authors offer insights into the impacts of using a strategic co-branding alliance on the products of little-known brands among consumers from lower and upper strata.

Originality/value

The study contributes to consumer behaviour literature, specifically with regard to ingredient-brand effects in co-branding strategies from the perspective of the end consumer.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors thank FAPESP − São Paulo Research Foundation − for the financial support to conduct this research.

Citation

Cordeiro, R.A., Ponchio, M.C. and Mazzon, J.A. (2016), "Evaluating co-branded products: the socioeconomic strata effect", Marketing Intelligence & Planning, Vol. 34 No. 6, pp. 795-809. https://doi.org/10.1108/MIP-01-2015-0008

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2016, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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