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We examined consumer reactions to new products introduced under four different brand naming scenarios. The results suggest that when consumers see a high degree of fit between the new product and the existing brand, brand extensions, sub‐brands, and nested brands are about equally preferred. But when consumers perceive little fit, a new brand name is the most preferred, followed by nested brands, sub‐brands, and extensions, in that order.

The purpose of this paper is to empirically assess the impact of branding strategies on horizontal and downward line extensions of French luxury brands in a cross-national context (France vs USA).

This study is based on a two line extensions (horizontal/downward) × three branding strategies (direct brand/sub-brand/standalone brand) x two country (France/USA) between-subjects ANOVA design.

The study shows that the subtyping effect created by a sub-branded luxury downward line extension tends to be rated similarly to a direct branded extension which oppose previous beliefs put forward in non-luxury settings. In contrast, a new independent/standalone extension fully uses the subtyping effect which helps attenuate this risk related to luxury downward stretches. The study also found that the effect of gender in cross-national settings must always be taken into consideration as significant variations occur in the process.

The study covers two countries but should be replicated in other cross-national contexts.

This study helps marketing managers of luxury brands make a better decision when it comes to launching vertical line extensions (upscale/downward) by carefully using types of branding strategies and relevant communications whether women and/or men are targeted in cross-national contexts.

This study breaks new ground in the international luxury literature by providing key theoretical and managerial insights in terms of launching new downward line extensions with the proper use of branding strategies when targeting specific genders.

This research aims to investigate effect of consumer creativity on their evaluations of brands. Consumers’ creative participation is often used by online retailers as a promotional tool nowadays. The authors propose that consumer creativity exerts a positive impact on brand attitudes by affecting their attitudes toward the creative activity itself. Furthermore, consumer creativity moderates the effect of consumers’ perceived level of fit on their acceptance of brand extensions, such that creative consumers will show a higher level of acceptance of distant brand extensions.

The authors test their hypotheses in three laboratory experiments. Study 1 examines the effect of consumer creativity on brand evaluations. Study 2 explores the moderating effect of consumer creativity on perceived level of fit on acceptance of brand extensions. Study 3 replicates the authors findings in Studies 1 and 2 using a better representative sample and a different type of creative task.

Study 1 finds that consumer creativity results in a positive attitude toward brand; this effect is mediated by attitude toward the creative activity. Study 2 shows that creativity leads to a greater level of brand acceptance when the brand extension has a low fit with the focal brand. Study 3 further provides evidence of proposed effects using a different type of creative task with a more representative sample.

In the experiments, this study examined three types of online creative marketing communication activities. Future research could examine other types of consumer creative activities so as to enhance the generalizability of the findings.

Our results provide important implications for firms that intend to exploit the promises of online creativity-themed marketing communications. First, because consumers’ attitudes toward the focal brand hinge on their attitudes toward the creative activity, it is important that firms design their creativity-themed activities carefully, so that they are attractive to the users. Second, firms can exploit the creativity edge by launching new brand extensions that target creative consumers. This effect is even more pronounced when the brand extension exhibits a low fit with the focal brand. These guidelines suggest that firms’ investments in online creativity-themed marketing communications can pay off in terms of improved consumers’ attitudes toward the firms’ brands and brand extensions.

This research makes several theoretical contributions. First, the authors explore the important role of creativity in the context of brand attitudes and brand extensions. This study adds to extant consumer creativity literature by documenting the consequences of consumer creativity in terms of positive outcomes for firms. Second, by examining the mediating effect of attitude toward the creativity task, the authors broaden the scope of attitude-toward-the-site and attitude-toward-the-sponsorship-event research to the online marketing communications setting. Third, by showing that consumer creativity can facilitate the acceptance of distant brand extensions, this study also enriches extant brand extension literature.

Brand managers must decide between extension and alliance strategies to grow their brands. This paper aims to describe testing of consumers' responses to two alternative brand growth strategies: an extension strategy whereby a brand moves into a new category alone, and an alliance strategy whereby the same brand moves into the new category as a branded ingredient in a brand already established in that category. How far to stretch a brand is yet another strategic choice facing the brand manager, and the current research tests, under short and long category‐stretch conditions, the attitudinal responses to extension and alliance strategies.

The paper builds on the categorisation and incongruence literature. An experiment was employed to test the main hypotheses in the study.

Extensions outperform alliances, especially when the brand undertakes a long stretch, and short‐stretch strategies outperform long‐stretch strategies.

An extension strategy may be preferred to an alliance strategy, especially in situations in which the new growth opportunity requires a long stretch.

The paper compares, in the same study, the attitudinal effects of two important growth strategies widely employed by companies. Previous studies have assessed the performance of these two strategic options only separately.

The evidence for the reciprocal effects of a brand extension on its parent brand is unclear. An experiment was conducted to investigate the impact of an extension's quality, its fit with the parent brand, and parent brand dominance, on parent brand evaluation. The paper finds that extension quality and fit did not dilute parent brand attitude; in other words, an extension either left parent brand attitude unchanged or enhanced it moderately. The only effect of brand dominance was that it enhanced parent brand attitude when the extension was a good fit. Further, the introduction of an extension, regardless of its fit or quality, enhanced parent brand attitude for a durable product relative to a control group. It seems that parent brand attitudes are held strongly enough to resist the new information that is associated with a newly introduced brand extension.

Brand extension strategies have become widespread since the early 1980s. However, a large proportion of brand extensions still fail, suggesting the need for methodologies that produce better predictions of success or failure of new products launched with a well‐known brand name. Although the symbolic fit between established brand names and brand extensions is considered as one of the most important determinants of brand extension success or failure, managers need more accurate tools to determine, from a symbolic point‐of‐view, which brand extensions are consistent with their brand. This paper proposes to use Kapferer's brand identity prism to define more acceptable brand extensions.

Two studies were conducted. A first study aimed at developing a brand identity inventory (BII). In a second study, the BII's ability to predict brand extensions' success or failure was tested.

The second order structure of Kapferer's brand identity prism is confirmed. The paper then demonstrates that brand identity is useful to better predict acceptance of brand extensions.

In prior research, perceived fit was estimated by mono‐item measures or by few brand associations. Brand identity provides a more accurate estimation of the fit that can rely on attributes related to brand personality and brand values – the personal dimension of brand identity – or associations related to relationships and users' image – the social dimension of brand identity.

The findings can help managers to determine more consistent brand extensions when brands are already stretched.

The purpose of this study is to find out how electronic word of mouth (eWOM) may affect evaluations of products with different brand images. In particular, the study explores differential eWOM impacts across several brand types and extension categories.

An experiment with 2 (brand image: prestige/function) × 2 (category similarity: low/high) × 2 (eWOM message type: positive/negative) between-subjects design was used to examine the impacts of eWOM on different types of brand extensions. A total of 268 subjects from a public university in the Southwest participated in the study. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used in analyzing the data.

The findings highlight the differential impact of eWOM on brand extension evaluations with different brand images. First, eWOM is more effective in influencing evaluations of functional brand extensions than prestige brand extensions. Second, whereas negative eWOM does equally bad on both high- and low-similarity brand extensions, positive eWOM is more effective in improving evaluations of high-similarity extensions than low-similarity extensions.

This study is the first to examine the impact of eWOM on products with different brand images. This is a critical issue for brand managers who allocate limited marketing resources to monitoring and managing vast amounts of eWOM activities. The findings provide important guidance for managing social media marketing communications.

In recent years, companies have been using brand extensions as a strategy for launching new products. The reason why this strategy has been popular is the fact that it decreases the risk of failure of new products, because consumers initially are more willing to accept products marketed under known brands. Nevertheless, this strategy is not free from risks, since it is not convenient for all the brands, and moreover it may have negative effects on the image of the extended brand. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to analyse the influence that brand extensions have on brand image. For this analysis, an experiment is performed that examines the most important variables to consider in using the brand extension strategy. After analysing the information obtained, reaches the conclusion that brand extension strategies may influence the brand image after the extension and that variables such as the brand image prior to the extension, the perceived quality of the extension and the fit between the parent brand and the new product also affect the image.

Since publication, Aaker and Keller's seminal paper on brand extensions has received acclaimed support and criticism. This paper aims to return to the original work and extend the frameworks presented to brand alliances. The study seeks to examine the dimensions used in the original model and attempt to identify whether the brand extension dimensions can be applied to brand alliances.

Using quantitative research techniques through a structured study using 11 real brands in eight hypothetical alliances over 260 respondents, the study examines the reapplication of the brand extension framework to brand alliances.

The study has found that, though some extension elements apply to alliances, the role of fit takes on particular importance, whereas difficulty of making assumes a minor role, and that the basic extension framework can be applied to brand alliances.

The study used real consumer brands in hypothetical extensions and alliances with student samples from the UK. Different results may be found using alternative samples and with real brands.

The paper adds value to the literature and to practitioners' understanding of brand leverage by identifying that, though Aaker and Keller's study framework is applicable to brand alliances, the role of fit between partners takes on a central role to the detriment of difficulty of making.

The growing market for organic products presents a tremendous opportunity for marketers to extend their existing brands. However, there is hardly any research that investigates the factors extension from an organic parent brand is preferred over extension into same product category for success of such brand extensions. This paper investigates the role of two different bases consumers may use to evaluate the extension into organic product – organic status of the parent brand and its similarity to the extended product category.

The study involved a 2 × 2 (organic versus regular parent brand and same versus different product category) between-subjects factorial design. Data collected from 164 postgraduate students presented with one of the four scenarios were analysed using ANOVA.

The results reveal that extensions from organic parent brand versus regular brand, and in the same product category versus different category, are evaluated more favourably. Moreover, extension from an organic parent brand is preferred over extension into same product category.

The research contributes to the extant literature on branding and retailing by building on categorisation theory to explain consumer preference for brand extension when launching a new organic product. The findings provide valuable insights to practitioners to launch a new organic product using brand extension.