Reza Chowdhury, Wootae Chun, Sungchul Choi and Kurtis Friend
The objective of this article is to investigate the moderating role of national cultures in the relationship between brand value and firm value.
Abstract
Purpose
The objective of this article is to investigate the moderating role of national cultures in the relationship between brand value and firm value.
Design/methodology/approach
This article examines the topic in the context of different national cultural attributes, including individualism, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity, power distance, and long-term orientation. We use brand values of the Financial Times Global 500 companies and national cultural values reported by Hofstede, GLOBE, and Schwartz.
Findings
Results exhibit that brands are more value-additive to companies in highly individualistic cultures. Furthermore, a valuable brand contributes more to firm value in countries with low uncertainty avoidance, high masculine, low power distance, and short-term oriented cultures.
Originality/value
The evidence suggests that while a valuable brand contributes to firm value, the level of its effect on firm value varies by national cultures.
Details
Keywords
The paper seeks to examine cross‐cultural differences in how consumers evaluate “scratch and save” (SAS) promotions (which are characterized by uncertainty of savings outcomes…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper seeks to examine cross‐cultural differences in how consumers evaluate “scratch and save” (SAS) promotions (which are characterized by uncertainty of savings outcomes) between Canada and Korea, where the promotion tool is widely used but the countries have different cultural values.
Design/methodology/approach
An experiment was conducted to examine cross‐cultural differences in SAS promotion evaluations between Canada (n=77) and Korea (n=78).
Findings
SAS promotions effectively stimulate favorable shopping intentions in Canada, a country with a low uncertainty avoidance culture, more so than in Korea, a country with a high uncertainty avoidance culture. However, subjects in Korea show consistently higher savings expectations from SAS promotions than subjects in Canada. Thus, the results report that consumers with the highest savings expectations do not necessarily have the highest intention to shop. In addition, in Korea, a SAS promotion with guaranteed minimum savings is found to be very effective due to reduced ambiguity about its outcome.
Research limitations/implications
The study suggests cross‐cultural differences in the applicability of the disjunction effect.
Practical implications
The findings suggest that when SAS promotions are presented in a country with high uncertainty avoidance, retailers should explicitly indicate the value of the guaranteed minimum savings. By promising guaranteed savings, retailers can reduce consumers' relatively high concerns about unknown SAS outcomes, which results in a greater advantage in building favorable perceptions.
Originality/value
Very little work has been undertaken into SAS promotions and no known empirical research has been undertaken into cross‐cultural differences. This paper fills some of the gaps.
Details
Keywords
Sungchul Choi, Xin Ge and Paul R. Messinger
The purpose of this paper is to examine how consumers respond differently to “scratch and save (SAS)” promotions versus “tensile price claims (TPC).” SAS promotions provide a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how consumers respond differently to “scratch and save (SAS)” promotions versus “tensile price claims (TPC).” SAS promotions provide a possible discount (determined probabilistically) but conceal the exact amount until purchase. Tensile price claims (e.g. “up to 25 percent off on items marked with a red tag”) make imprecise price promotional claims. In addition to making indefinite price claims, SAS promotions (e.g. scratch and save up to 25 percent off) include gambling elements; the exact discount is determined randomly for individual consumers by a scratch‐off card.
Design/methodology/approach
Two experimental studies are conducted.
Findings
Evidence from two experiments indicates that consumers perceive SAS promotions to be more ambiguous than tensile price claims. In addition, the results demonstrate consumer uncertainty towards SAS promotions but also consumer willingness to gamble: deep discount SAS promotions are perceived as more attractive than limited‐scope tensile price claims.
Practical implications
The findings suggest that consumers perceive SAS offers more enticing than limited tensile price claims as the proposed discount increases. Furthermore, establishing a minimum savings offer could be used to encourage consumers to shop at retailers offering SAS promotions.
Originality/value
Limited work has focused on examining how consumers respond to SAS promotions because SAS promotions are a relatively new store‐level promotional tool. Furthermore, no research effort has been extended to directly compare consumers' perceptions of SAS promotions with tensile price claims.
Details
Keywords
The main purpose of this paper is to examine consumer perceptions of “scratch and save” (SAS) promotions, which are popular store‐level promotional tools. This paper particularly…
Abstract
Purpose
The main purpose of this paper is to examine consumer perceptions of “scratch and save” (SAS) promotions, which are popular store‐level promotional tools. This paper particularly focuses on investigating the moderating effects of consumers' price consciousness and savings expectations.
Design/methodology/approach
Two laboratory experimental studies were employed to examine consumer responses to SAS promotions.
Findings
The results of two experiments show that SAS promotions positively affect consumer perceptions of offer value and store prices, and consumers' intentions to shop and spread positive word‐of‐mouth. In particular, the effects of SAS promotions are moderated by consumer price consciousness and expected savings. Furthermore, the first study shows that the level of claimed savings of SAS promotions does not favorably affect consumer reactions. The second study also shows that consumers' discounting of expected savings increases as the level of claimed savings of SAS promotions increases.
Research limitations/implications
Although SAS promotions are widely used by various types of retailers, there really is little known as to how consumers respond to SAS promotions. By providing evidence of the effectiveness of SAS promotions, this paper enables pricing researchers to extend issues related to such promotional tools.
Practical implications
For retailers, the most distinctive finding of this paper is that the level of claimed savings may not significantly affect consumer perceptions and shopping intentions, although an SAS promotion would be an effective promotional tool.
Originality/value
As a preliminary effort to examine the effects of SAS promotions, this paper offers a discussion of the future research opportunities.