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This article reports the results of an experimental study in which four factors were manipulated in the context of an evaluation of two sports garments by 172 consumers: t-shirts and athletic shoes. These factors were intended usage situation (sport versus pleasure), brand name (national versus private brand), price (discount versus no discount), and store name (sports shop versus department store). Some significant interactions were obtained between some of the manipulated factors suggesting the necessity of qualifying the brand name, store name, and price discount effects on consumer perceptions. The results of the study are discussed in light of the existing marketing literature and the implications for sports marketing practice.

Investigates the effects of three countries of origin, three brand names and three levels of price and service on consumers′ perceptions of the purchase value of an automobile. Based on data collected from a random sample of 179 Canadians and 197 Belgians, the results indicate that the effects of price are not very important. Brand name is a more important cue than made‐in for Belgian consumers, but not for Canadian consumers. Concludes that modifications to marketing strategies for global products may be needed from one consuming country to another.

The purpose of this paper is to examine factors that explain cross-national differences in country-of-origin consumer perceptions.

This is a study using a drop-off and pick-up survey among male responders. The final sample size comprised 202 consumers in Canada and 153 in Taiwan. The data were analyzed using t tests and Spearman non-parametric correlations.

The results indicate that product complexity and manufacturing process moderate country-of-origin perceptions. In addition, differences in product-country familiarity, travel distance and national consumer characteristics like ethnocentrism, patriotism, animosity and cultural/linguistic affinity are significantly associated with cross-national differences in country-of-origin perceptions. Cultural distance was not related to cross-national differences.

Because this study was based on consumer perceptions of a limited number of countries, carried out in only two country locations using a product-based-only evaluation of country of origin, firm conclusions cannot be drawn. Additional studies should be conducted with a larger number of stimulus countries and include macro, attitudinal evaluations of country of origin.

The results show that manufacturing process and product technological complexity factors may be used globally in promotion and location decisions. It seems important to increase consumers’ familiarity with a country of origin and its products to improve its overall perception.

This study contributes to the marketing and international business literature and provides insights to international marketers at understanding the reasons why countries may hold different perceptions of a country of origin.

Presents the results of a survey conducted among 194 retail salesmen of electronic equipment and 190 male consumers. According to salesmen, country of origin is a much less important attribute for shoppers of video‐cassette recorders and themselves than brand reputation. For the purpose of comparison, both salesmen and consumers provided direct evaluative judgements of 13 countries on their design and assembly capabilities, of three VCR brands and of the quality and purchase value of nine VCR conjoint profiles varying systematically with respect to country of design, country of assembly, brand, price and warranty. Salesmen’s direct importance weights were found to differ greatly from conjoint derived weights in that, in the latter case, country of origin cues had a significant and, with regard to quality perceptions, greater impact than the other attributes. Multiple regression models relating the direct perceptions of the countries of origin to brand evaluations indicate that the nesting of country perceptions in brand evaluation may partly explain this apparent inconsistency.

Reports the results of an experimental study that examines the impact of different strategies of product placement on consumer reactions in the context of television sponsorship. Four factors were manipulated: type of placement, sponsor’s image, type of television program and sponsor‐program congruity. Uses a factorial design comprising these four factors, which was operationalised by means of 12 brief written vignettes. Indicates that strategies of product placement impact differently on consumers’ evaluative and ethical judgements and that their effects interact with the type of television program. Suggests that evaluations of product placement are most negative in the context of mini‐series/drama television programs. Furthermore, product placements that play a passive role and are not clearly expressed within the program are generally perceived as less ethical, especially when they appear in information/services magazines. Also determines that sponsor‐program congruity leads to better ethical and evaluative consumer reactions for all types of television program considered except mini‐series/dramas. Implications for research and practice are derived from these results.

This article reports the results of a survey of 151 Canadian male consumers. In this study, consumer judgements of products varying in their level of technological complexity made in both highly and newly industrialised countries (NICs) were obtained in a multi‐attribute and multi‐dimensional context. The results show that the country‐of‐origin image of NICs is less negative for technologically simpler products (i.e. television) than for technologically complex products (i.e. computers). In addition, NICs are perceived more negatively as countries of design than as countries of assembly, especially for technologically complex products, but their negative image may be attenuated by making consumers more familiar with products made in these countries and/or by providing them with other product‐related information such as brand name and warranty. Three personal variables namely, computer involvement, technological sophistication and technological innovativeness were found to moderate the perceptions of countries of origin. The more technologically sophisticated a consumer was, the more favourable he/she was towards products made in more technologically advanced NICs.

The study reported in this article aims to examine the effects of national versus store brands on consumer evaluation of a garment, taking into account the intended product usage situation (for everyday use versus for a special occasion) as well as price (regular versus discount), type of store (department versus boutique), and store image (lower‐class versus upper‐class).

An experiment was conducted with 127 Canadian adult consumers where the above variables were manipulated by means of short vignettes presenting a to‐be‐evaluated branded shirt.

The results of the experimental study showed that consumer evaluations of store brands and national brands were influenced by the joint effects of store image and intended usage situation.

Retailers in upper‐class retail clothing stores willing to promote their store brands should emphasize in their communication programs buying contexts in which an item is needed for some special event (e.g. a wedding anniversary) because this appears to correspond to situations where store brands are best valued. Retailers in lower‐class stores should rather promote their store brands by stressing the good quality of their clothes in day‐to‐day usage situations. As for national brands of clothing, emphasizing the satisfaction guarantee that comes automatically with well‐established brands would seem to be the best communication strategy.

The paper shows the influence of store image on consumer evaluations of garments.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the effectiveness of field sponsorship through sponsor recall and recognition across two environments that differ on the degree of felt presence they trigger among viewers: on-site and television. A series of research hypotheses concerning the interaction effects of viewing environment, event – sponsor congruence and arousal intensity were developed.

To test the effect of the viewing environment, a field experiment was conducted where 44 ice hockey fans attended a professional ice hockey game in the local team’s arena, whereas 44 others saw the same game, at the same time, on television. The participants were randomly assigned to one of the two game viewing conditions.

A higher level of arousal was detrimental to sponsor identification in a manner consistent with the intensity of the processing principle according to which arousal polarizes attention resources on the arousing stimulus (the event) while diverting resources away from the peripheral stimuli (the sponsors). In addition, because the event congruent sponsors are more superficially processed in comparison with the incongruent ones, this negative impact was more pronounced in the former group. This was qualified by a three-way interaction with the type of environment; the on-site, direct, audience was less affected by the processing intensity principle and exhibited better recall and recognition than the television audience as arousal and congruency increased, whereas, at lower levels of arousal, higher event – sponsor congruence hampered on-site sponsor identification in comparison with television.

The findings were obtained in the context of a single sports event; additional studies need to be conducted using different sports. In addition, the comparison of on-site audience with other types of media audiences (e.g. on-line broadcasting) is warranted.

Arousal intensity results from the game’s drama, which is a function of game importance and game outcome uncertainty. Hence, except for low-stakes games (e.g. pre-season matches, exhibitions), initiatives that promote a leveled playing field such as salary cap, financial fair play and open leagues are likely to jeopardize sponsor identification, particularly for congruent sponsors. With respect to the impact of the viewing environment, congruent sponsors should reap superior benefits from the television audience when the stakes are low. However, when the stakes are high, their benefits will accrue to a greater extent from on-site spectators.

This is the first study to offer a rigorous comparison of sponsorship’s impact on direct (on-site) versus indirect (television) audiences through a field experiment. This is also the first research to provide a framework based on the processing intensity principle that encompasses predictions related to arousal and its interaction with event – sponsor congruence and the viewing environment. Within this perspective, the degree of sponsor integration in the viewing environment is instrumental in predicting sponsorship outcomes.

Reports the results of a three‐study research program whose purpose is to gain a better understanding of consumer reactions to premium‐based promotional offers. In the first study, elaborates and evaluates a comprehensive typology of premium‐based promotional offers with respect to its content and predictive validity. In the next study, explores the semantics that are used by consumers when they are presented with premium promotions and develops a series of research hypotheses from qualitative interviews with 12 consumers. In the final study, conducts a survey of 182 adult consumers to test these research hypotheses. The results reveal that consumer appreciation of premium‐based promotional offers is more positive when the premium is direct than when it is delayed, when there is a relatively lower quantity of product to purchase, when the value of the premium is mentioned, when brand attitude is positive, when interest in the premium is great, and when consumers are characterized by deal‐proneness and compulsive buying tendencies. Consumers’ perception of manipulation intent is affected mainly by directness of the premium, mention of the value of the premium, interest in the premium, and deal‐proneness.

The country‐of‐origin literature has focused mainly on tangible products and has neglected largely intangible services and products such as the arts. The objective of this study is to examine the impact that country of origin may have on consumer perceptions of artistic and cultural products and to explore the variables that explain how consumers form their perceptions of countries as producers of cultural products.

A survey was conducted among adult consumers in Australia, Canada, Italy, Switzerland, and the USA that assessed participants' perceptions of 16 countries with respect to their reputation for nine cultural products.

The results indicate that product‐country images in the arts are affected by country and product familiarity as well as consumers' openness to foreign cultures and home country bias. Countries more proximate to the participants' home country were also better evaluated, especially when the proximity factor played a significant role in the consumption of cultural products.

While almost all of the hypotheses were supported, additional research is needed to examine the cultural products of non‐Western and emerging markets as well as product‐country perceptions in these markets.

This study extends our understanding of country‐of‐origin effects in the context of aesthetic, intangible, and complex products that elicit both cognitive and affective responses. It demonstrates that familiarity with a country of origin has a stronger association with positive perceptions of product‐country reputation than does product familiarity, and that openness to foreign cultures, home country bias, and proximity have a positive effect on product‐country evaluations.