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This paper aims to explore brand sexual associations and to understand the antecedents of these associations by drawing from an anthropomorphic view of consumption and a socio-psychological perspective.

An exploratory qualitative analysis based on 18 semi-structured interviews was conducted. Following symbolic interactionism and inter-subjectively reflective approaches, three main methods were used: interviews, projective drawings and a pen-and-paper exercise.

The results of this paper strongly confirm that a brand is perceived by consumers as having a sex, a gender and a sexual orientation. These findings point toward a crucial distinction between these three constructs. Construct conceptualizations are developed and definitions are suggested. Nine antecedents for brand sexual associations are studied.

French subjects constitute the sample. Future studies might investigate the transferability of our results to other cultures. The three constructs broadens the existing brand-as-a-person metaphor and brand gender literature.

Managers need to consider the construction of their brands’ sexual identities, namely, the sexual associations that brand strategists desire to create and maintain. The study of the antecedents of brand sexual associations provides brand managers the opportunity to manage actively those specific types of associations.

This research contributes to the brand-as-a-person metaphor and to the brand gender literature with new insights about the nature and structure of brand sexual associations. This paper moves the conceptualization of these constructs forward.

Gendering a product or brand means associating its image with a sex role stereotype in the minds of consumers. Examines, using research, the requirements and prohibitions of contemporary masculine and feminine sex roles and the kinds of consumers who do and do not adhere to them. Provides ten specific recommendations for choosing a product or brand gendering strategy, based on target market demographics and the tendency for different groups to prefer gendered products or brands over those that are ungendered.

This study aims to examine how brand gender (masculine/feminine brand personality [FBP] traits) stimulates brand engagement (cognitive processing, affection and activation) inside online brand communities (OBCs). The authors also explore the mediation of this effect through brand identification and brand personality appeal (BPA). The moderating role of consumers’ biological sex is also investigated.

The theoretical model has been tested with the data collected from OBC members through the structural equation modelling technique. Bootstrapping is used for mediation analysis and multiple group analysis for testing the moderating effects.

Results show that masculine brand personality (MBP) influences brand engagement directly, as well as through brand identification and BPA. However, FBP elicits brand engagement only through the mediation of brand identification and BPA. Consumers’ biological sex moderates the effect of FBP on brand engagement, but no moderation was traced for the effect of MBP on brand engagement.

The context of the research poses a limitation on the broader replication of study findings. Other limitations include the absence of community-based variables and the focused use of gender centric brands in this study. This research will help researchers to understand the nuances in the underlying relationship between brand gender and brand engagement inside OBCs.

The managers can emphasize MBP but should not downplay the importance of FBP inside OBCs. To achieve brand engagement, the marketers should curate FBP in a way to affecting consumers’ brand identification and brand appeal. To achieve consumer brand engagement, MBP can be targeted at both male and female consumers, whereas FBP holds more importance among female consumers. Therefore, classifying members as per their biological sex is recommended for better brand engagement from brand gender inside OBCs.

This study explores finer mechanisms in the relationship between brand gender and brand engagement inside OBCs by charting out the powerful mediating role played by brand identification and BPA. The moderating role of consumers’ biological sex is an important dimension to these relationships, not explored hitherto.

This empirical research conceptualises the impact of celebrity effectiveness on consumer purchase intention, with customer perception and attitude as mediators. A cross-cultural approach is adopted to analyse consumer response to celebrity branding across Britain and Pakistan containing non-explicit and explicit sex appeals.

A within-subject experimental design (2 countries × 2 ad designs) is employed to test the research model across Western and South Asian cultures. Structural equation modelling (SEM) and multi-group analysis (MGA) are used to test proposed hypotheses.

SEM results confirm the theoretical model: perception and attitude towards the advert and brand mediate the impact of celebrity effectiveness on purchase intention. Celebrity-endorsed advertising without explicit sex appeals elicited an overall favourable response across markets. British consumers respond to both adverts similarly. Yet, Pakistani consumers filter advert themes through salient cultural values and respond negatively to explicit sex appeals whilst, interestingly, accepting sexuality in associations of a celebrity endorser.

International celebrities can have cross-cultural appeal, and commonalities exist between the markets. A global or domestic marketing strategy can be utilised across the cultures based upon the environmental conditions and the themes and appeals incorporated within advert design.

The conceptual model is developed by consolidating existing models within celebrity endorsement and considering the mediating influence of both the advert and brand. The model is validated across theoretically different cultures. The comparative approach and selection of an underrepresented market provide novel insight into international branding strategies and global consumer culture.

This research seeks to explore the nature and the structure of brands' masculine dimensions; to develop a reliable and a valid scale to measure brand masculinity and to explore the different brand masculine patterns.

A series of four studies developed and validated a two-factor, five-item measurement scale for brand masculinity using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Content and face validities; reliability and internal validity; convergent and discriminant validities were established. Generalisability of the two dimensions across the gendering of product categories was assessed. A cluster analysis was used to explore brand masculine patterns.

The results indicate that brand masculinity is a bi-dimensional construct (i.e. “Male chauvinism” and “Heroic” dimensions). A cluster analysis performed on 45 brands revealed four brand masculine patterns: hegemonic, emerging, chivalrous and subaltern.

French student subjects constitute the sample. Future studies might investigate the transferability of the results to other cultures. The classification scheme broadens the existing brand personality and brand gender literature and its derived brand taxonomies.

The results provide brand managers with a marketing tool to measure their brands' masculinity and allow them to adapt specific, previously developed gendered marketing strategies.

This research contributes to the brand personality and brand gender literature with new insights about the nature and structure of brands' masculine dimensions. The study moves the conceptualisation of this construct forward rejecting thus previous monolithic approaches to brand masculinity.

This paper aims to investigate how product positioning affects the influence of product gender on consumers’ product evaluations.

Using experimental designs, this research investigates how hedonic versus functional consumption goals affect consumers’ choice between feminine and masculine products (Study 1) and how positioning products as either hedonic or functional influences consumers’ evaluations of feminine and masculine products (Studies 2 and 3).

When pursuing hedonic consumption goals, consumers are more likely to choose feminine (vs masculine) products, whereas when pursuing functional consumption goals, consumers are more likely to choose masculine (vs feminine) products. Further, consumers evaluate feminine products more favorably when the products are hedonically (vs functionally) positioned, whereas they evaluate masculine products more favorably when the products are functionally (vs hedonically) positioned. Perceptions of product credibility mediate this effect.

Connecting theories of gender identity, product positioning and congruity, this study extends previous literature by demonstrating that the effects of product gender are context-dependent.

Many companies use visual design cues (e.g. shape, color) to promote their products’ gender. The findings of this study suggest that companies promoting their products as feminine should highlight the products’ hedonic benefits, whereas companies promoting their products as masculine should highlight the products’ functional benefits.

Applying a conceptual congruity approach, this research is the first to demonstrate that the effects of product gender on consumers’ product evaluations depend on the product’s positioning.

The purpose of this paper is to report the results of two experiments designed to examine the effect on consumers of the way in which price discount messages are expressed, or “framed”.

Both studies involved stated‐preference choice modelling experiments. The aim of the first experiment was to test the hypothesis that a price reduction framed in dollar terms is more effective for high‐priced items, whereas a price reduction framed as a percent discount is more effective for lower‐priced items. The aim of the second experiment was to determine which of four alternative ways of expressing the same 33 per cent price discount – cents off, percent discount, or one of two volume discounts – is most effective.

For two “low‐priced” items, potato chips and cola drinks, the framing of a price discount had little or no effect. However, for two ”high‐priced” items, stereos and computers, framing a discount in dollar terms was significantly more effective than expressing it as a percent off discount. For three fast moving consumer goods the most effective framing of the same price discount depended on whether the product concerned was amenable to stockpiling. For tinned spaghetti, which is relatively cheap and easy to store, volume discounting was more attractive than a monetary discount, whereas for bottled water and semi‐soft butter, which are more expensive and bulkier, the opposite was true.

For high‐priced products, it is better to express price discounts as dollars or cents off than as a percentage off; the opposite may be true for low‐priced products, but this is much less certain. However, if using a volume promotion, “buy x get one free” is likely to be more effective than “y for the price of x”.

In the context of a corporate case study, this paper aims to propose and test a talent analytics model that enables organisations to optimise their employer value propositions and branding strategies in a comparative manner.

After the conceptual framework was translated into a quantitative model, data were collected via online self-completed questionnaires and analysed with statistical techniques.

Revealing misalignments with the employment preferences of Gen Z, the model’s capability to optimise employer value propositions and branding strategies is effectively demonstrated.

Providing an actionable framework for corporate and academic readers, this paper has scope to serve as a guide for scholarly or practitioner talent analytics projects focused on attraction.

Focused exclusively on attraction, to the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first paper to apply an in-depth talent analytics model which prescribes employer branding as a mediator variable.

Sex appeal has been widely used in most countries. However, little is known about consumers' responses to sex appeal advertising in different cultures. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of sex appeal on ad and brand evaluation among Australian, Chinese and US consumers.

The paper adopted a three (Australia, China and the USA) × two (male or female model) × two (low or high level of sex appeal) between‐group factorial design.

Australian, Chinese and US consumers have significantly different attitudes when exposed to the same ad. However, consumer buying intentions towards the advertised brand are not significantly different. Despite the general assumption that Chinese consumers might react least favourably to sex appeal ads, this paper finds that they hold similar attitudes towards sex appeal ads as US consumers and even more favourable attitudes than Australian consumers. Product involvement is found to be a significant covariate.

The sample includes young consumers, who may be more tolerant to sex appeal advertising than older generations in China. A similar situation may exist in Australia and the USA.

Understanding how consumers in different cultures respond to different advertising appeal strategies is important for international advertisers.

This is the first reported empirical study that compares Chinese consumers' responses to sex appeal advertising with those in Western countries. Findings add to the understanding of the standardisation‐localisation debate.