Journal of Consumer Marketing

Khan, Huda; Lockshin, Larry; Lee, Richard; Corsi, Armando

doi: 10.1108/JCM-06-2016-1846pmid: N/A

PurposeThe common market practice by global consumer brands to create localised packaging for foreign markets conflicts with findings that cast doubt on this strategy. By examining the differential influence of standard (Western) and local (Chinese) packaging on Chinese consumers’ perceptions and choice behaviour, this study aims to examine whether this strategy is effective or even necessary.Design/methodology/approachA pre-test first identified suitable products and brands. Using a multiple methods approach, online participants in China first rated the brands and packaging of hedonic and utilitarian products. The ratings were then validated by triangulating with the results of a discrete choice experiment that captured participants’ choice behaviour.FindingsFor hedonic products, standard packaging is rated more positively and chosen more often than local packaging. For utilitarian products, there are no differences in ratings and choice. For hedonic products, brand likeability is higher for standard packaging than for local packaging. For utilitarian products, brand likeability does not differ between the two packaging types.Research limitations/implicationsThese findings cast doubt on the effectiveness of indiscriminate packaging localisation. International marketers need to rethink their approach, particularly in non-Western markets. Interviews with five brand managers in charge of major consumer brands in China revealed their actual market practice and further illuminate this study’s findings.Originality/valueThis is first study to question the common market practice of packaging localisation and investigate the differential effects of standard versus local packaging of foreign products on consumers’ perceptions and choice behaviour.

Shirai, Miyuri

doi: 10.1108/JCM-07-2016-1872pmid: N/A

PurposeWhen communicating with consumers, firms frequently highlight their underdog status to evoke a favorable attitude. Previous research has confirmed consumer preference for underdogs over top dogs in various domains. However, very little research has been conducted on the business types and decision contexts in which underdog effects produce the most impact. This paper aims to investigate some of the unexplored boundary conditions of underdog effects and addresses two issues: consumption domain and retail crowding.Design/methodology/approachTwo experiments with a 2 (biography: underdog or top dog) × 2 (consumption domain: hedonic or utilitarian) × 2 (retail crowding: adequately crowded or uncrowded) factorial between-subjects design were conducted to test hypotheses. The two experiments differ in the consumption domains and the approaches used to depict crowding conditions. Furthermore, the first experiment targeted college students and the second experiment targeted online consumer panels across various age groups.FindingsUnderdog effects were more easily evoked when the consumption domain was more hedonic than utilitarian. In addition, retail crowding was an informational cue for judging acceptance of underdog businesses and enhanced the evaluation when the retail environment was adequately crowded rather than uncrowded. This role of crowding was also evident for top-dog businesses when consumers perceived high risk in the businesses.Originality/valueThis is the first study to distinguish between hedonic and utilitarian consumption domains with underdog effects and to demonstrate a positive effect of crowding as an informational cue, indicating acceptance by other consumers.

Engeset, Marit Gundersen; Opstad, Birger

doi: 10.1108/JCM-02-2015-1320pmid: N/A

PurposeMarketers often combine products in bundles to increase demand. Research has shown that itemizing the prices of the individual products in the bundle raises evaluations in some situations. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how bundle size influences the effect itemizing prices have on bundle evaluation.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conduct two experiments. In the first, they test the effects of price presentation formats (itemized vs consolidated) and bundle size on consumers’ evaluations of product bundles. In the second experiment, they test the proposed mechanism that itemizing the price leads to a more realistic price expectation which in turn enhances evaluation. The authors also test whether this effect is stronger for larger bundles.FindingsIn Study 1, the authors find that large, but not small, bundles are evaluated more positive when presented with itemized prices. In Study 2, mediated moderation analysis supports the prediction that price expectation mediates the effect of the price presentation × bundle size interaction on bundle evaluations. The findings show that itemizing prices results in more realistic price expectations and that this effect is stronger for larger bundles. In turn, more realistic price expectations lead to higher evaluation.Research limitations/implicationsThe implication of this research is that by directing attention to individual items in the bundle, consumers are better able to assess bundle benefits. More research is needed to investigate other potential explanations for the findings in Study 1. Further research should also investigate whether the findings reported here holds in other settings, with other products and with other types and size of bundles.Practical implicationsManagers are recommended to itemize the prices of product bundles, particularly when bundles are large.Originality/valueThis paper extends our knowledge about the effect itemizing the prices of individual items in a bundle has on consumer evaluation by demonstrating the moderating effect of bundle size and showing that more realistic price expectation explains these effects.

Duan, Jingyi; Dholakia, Ruby Roy

doi: 10.1108/JCM-07-2016-1871pmid: N/A

PurposeThe purpose of the present research is to investigate how consumers’ purchase posting behavior on social media influences their own happiness.Design/methodology/approachThe paper presents three studies. Study 1 was an experiment that manipulated purchase and posting behavior. Studies 2 and 3 utilized surveys which asked participants to report their actual purchases and posting behaviors. Data were examined using regression and bootstrap mediation analysis.FindingsPosting purchases on social media has a positive influence on consumers’ happiness through the mediating roles of perceived impact of purchases on self and interpersonal relationships.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper contributes to the research on social media by demonstrating that because of its remarkable characteristics, posting purchases on social media significantly increases consumers’ happiness. It fills the research gap of how word-of-mouth and conspicuous consumption influences the storyteller’s happiness. It is also the first research which suggests that user-generated content of purchases actually can be a new carrier of conspicuous consumption. The findings shed light on the substantial influences of posting purchases on the use/consumption stage of consumer behavior.Practical implicationsBecause posting purchases on social media increases consumers’ happiness, marketers can develop strategies to encourage consumers to post about their purchases more.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is the first to demonstrate the positive effect of social media purchase posting on consumers’ happiness and identify the mechanism under which this effect occurs.

Paswan, Audhesh; Guzmán, Francisco; Lewin, Jeffrey

doi: 10.1108/JCM-02-2016-1706pmid: N/A

PurposeThis study aims to focus on people’s pro-environmental behavior and investigates its dimensions and determinants. As environmental sustainability attracts increased scrutiny, understanding end consumers’ pro-environmental behavior becomes imperative for various stakeholders in our highly networked marketplace – e.g. policymakers, businesses, consumers, the public and society at large.Design/methodology/approachUsing data from the general public in the USA, the hypothesized relationships are tested using structural equation modeling (SEM).FindingsThe results indicate that if people find enjoyment in nature, believe in achieving a balance between “mankind” and nature, and believe that the benefits of conservation activities are going to accrue in the near term (present), they are more likely to engage in pro-environmental behavior at all levels – supportive, active and lifestyle.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough only one aspect of environmental sustainability – environmental conservation – is analyzed, these findings support assertions set forth in the theory of environmentally significant behavior (Stern, 1999), the norm-activation theory of altruism (Schwartz, 1973), the theory of reasoned action (Fishbein, 1979) and the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1985).Practical implicationsMessages about sustainability, environmental conservation and pro-environmental behavior should be framed using people’s fondness for and enjoyment of nature; should focus on present benefits of conservation; and should be targeted and differentiated for men, women and older people to encourage conservation behaviors among these differing demographic groups.Originality/valueThis study identifies three different levels of intensity of pro-environmental behavior – supportive, active and lifestyle – and empirically examines the relationships between these behavior types and the attitudinal antecedents revolving around time when the benefits of environmental conservation accrue, nature and human–nature interaction.

Bullock, Graham; Johnson, Christopher; Southwell, Brian

doi: 10.1108/JCM-12-2015-1643pmid: N/A

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine different strategies for an increasing adoption of “environmentally friendly” products. Scholars have consistently shown that consumers with strong biospheric and altruistic beliefs are more likely to purchase these products, while marketers are increasingly appealing to consumers’ self-interest in their efforts to sell their “green” products. This paper explores this divide and offers a potential explanation for it, using the concept of value activation.Design/methodology/approachThe paper presents results of two survey experiments that test this explanation in the context of organic food advertisements. In a simulated trip to a grocery store, participants were exposed to advertisements designed to activate the six different values in Schwartz’s framework. After viewing the advertisements, participants were asked to select among organic and non-organic options in six product categories – milk, bread, eggs, spinach, potatoes and chocolate.FindingsThe study’s results suggest that while advertisements designed to activate values may have limited effect on consumer intentions, those that relate to protecting the health of oneself and one’s family are most likely to increase organic purchases.Originality/valueThis paper is one of the first of its kind to explicitly test whether advertisements designed to activate a range of human values can increase consumers’ intention to engage in pro-environmental behaviors. The two studies reveal that value-based advertisements may have a stronger effect on the organic purchasing intentions of specific demographic groups (e.g. consumers who are aged under 40, lack a college degree and do not identify as liberal).

Liu, Yu; Segev, Sigal; Villar, Maria Elena

doi: 10.1108/JCM-01-2016-1688pmid: N/A

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to compare the effectiveness of the cognitive-affect behavior (CAB) model and the theory of reasoned action (TRA) model as well as their extended forms (with product knowledge) in predicting everyday green consumption among non-Hispanic White and Hispanic consumers.Design/methodology/approachSurvey data from a convenience sample of 249 non-Hispanic Whites and 425 Hispanic adults were used to test the two models through structural equation modeling analyses.FindingsWhile all tested models explained green consumption in both samples adequately, the basic TRA and the TPB (extended TRA) models were superior to the basic and extended CAB models. Including product knowledge further enhanced the predictive power of the two basic models.Research limitations/implicationsSelf-reported surveys are subject to social desirability bias in the reporting of intentions and actual purchases of green products. Future research may attempt to collect data on actual green purchases. The selection of a general consumption context is limited in distinguishing between high- and low-involvement products. Future research should test the relative effectiveness of these models among specific green products with different levels of involvement.Practical implicationsMarketing and strategic communication programs should focus on increasing consumers’ positive attitudes about purchasing green products and promote green purchase intentions using intention-generating promotional tactics. This paper also stresses the need to increase consumers’ concrete knowledge about green products to drive actual purchase behavior.Social implicationsThis paper can help communicators to further promote green consumption for routinely purchased consumer goods, which will ultimately enhance a healthier and more sustainable environment.Originality/valueThis paper extends the literature about green consumption, providing insights about the relative effectiveness of two widely accepted consumer behavior models. It implies that some models excel over others in terms of their explanatory power across consumer populations regardless of socio-demographic differences. It also stresses the importance of specifying explicitly behavioral control variables in green consumption research and provides a viable basis for the development of strategic marketing.

Le Serre, Delphine; Weber, Karin; Legohérel, Patrick; Errajaa, Karim

doi: 10.1108/JCM-02-2014-0869pmid: N/A

PurposeThis study contributes to greater understanding of the senior market and the cultural differences regarding aging in Western and Asian cultures. The review of the literature highlights the cultural differences toward the concept of aging in Asian and Western countries and describes a useful age concept for investigating senior consumers, namely, that of subjective age. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of subjective age dimensions on seniors’ behavior and to assess the role of culture as a moderator of this influence.Design/methodology/approachData were collected in France and Mainland China and consisted of answers to 300 questionnaires for the French seniors and 264 questionnaires for the Chinese seniors. Two dimensions of subjective age were measured: cognitive age and ideal age, along with travel motivations and travel perceived risk.FindingsThe study provides valuable information regarding the Western and Asian senior markets. Subjective age dimensions prove to be related with seniors’ behaviors (perceived travel risks). The present study also demonstrates that nationality has a moderating role on this relation. This theoretical contribution will have to be confirmed by other studies in Asian and Western countries; it opens the door to new research on Chinese/Asian seniors involving these age variables.Originality/valueThe study gives academics and managers insights on the influence of subjective age on seniors’ behaviors in European and Asian cultural contexts.