Susan M. Broniarczyk

Consumers' perceptions of the assortment offered in a grocery category : the impact of item reduction

Grocery retailers have been informed that, to remain competitive, they must reduce the number of stockkeeping units (SKUs) offered, in line with consumer demand, or, in other words, adopt “Efficien...

The Influence of Prior Beliefs, Frequency Cues, and Magnitude Cues on Consumers' Perceptions of Comparative Price Data

A widespread practice in grocery store advertising is to compare the advertised stores prices to a competitors prices on multiple items. An important, but largely unexplored, issue is how this information is processed and used in conjunction with prior beliefs to influence price perceptions. In our initial studies we manipulated prior beliefs and two data-based cues--frequency of price advantage and magnitude of price advantage--to determine their relative influence on consumer price perceptions. Results indicate that prior beliefs affected price perceptions but that the frequency cue exerted a dominating influence. Several follow-up studies demonstrate the robustness of this phenomenon across a variety of presentational and instructional conditions. Coauthors are Susan M. Broniarczyk, Terence A. Shimp, and Joel E. Urbany. Copyright 1994 by the University of Chicago.

Integrating Multiple Opinions: The Role of Aspiration Level on Consumer Response to Critic Consensus

Four studies examine the process by which consumers integrate critic opinions and attribute information into their product evaluations and how critic consensus affects this process. A reference-dependent model is proposed such that consumer response to consensus depends on whether the average critic rating for an alterative is above or below an aspiration level. Consensus is shown to be preferred for alternatives above an aspiration level, whereas critic disagreement is preferred for alternatives below an aspiration level. Consumers exhibited a tendency to prefer critic disagreement for high-priced products or decisions associated with high social risk because most alternatives fell below their high aspiration levels. Copyright 1998 by the University of Chicago.

Brand Equity, Consumer Learning and Choice

The aim of this paper is to explore the links between brand equity, consumer learning and consumer choice processes in general and considering two recent trends in the market place: store brands and the Internet. We first review the advances that have occurred in brand equity research in marketing in the past decade, with particular emphasis on integrating the separate streams of research emanating from cognitive psychology and information economics. Brand equity has generally been defined as the incremental utility with which a brand endows a product, compared to its non-branded counterpart. We amplify this definition: we propose that brand equity be the incremental effect of the brand on all aspects of the consumers evaluation and choice process. We propose an agenda of research based on this amplified definition.

The reciprocal effects of brand equity and trivial attributes

Brands increasingly introduce products with attributes that fail to provide consumers with meaningful benefits (i.e., trivial attributes). The authors present two experiments that examine the effect of brand equity on consumer valuation of such trivial attributes and the reciprocal effect that such a strategy may have on brand equity. The results show that both high and low equity brands benefit from offering an attractive trivial attribute in the absence of a disclosure of its true value. However, prechoice disclosure of an attributes triviality heightens the role of the brand and context cues. Competing low equity brands benefit by sharing the trivial attribute with a higher equity brand, whereas competing high equity brands benefit from uniquely offering a trivial attribute. Postchoice revelation that an attribute is trivial hurts the subsequent ability of a low but not a high equity brand to differentiate in a new product category, particularly among subjects who had previously chosen the target brand. For insights on brand dilution, the authors also examine consumer attributions regarding marketer intent for offering a trivial attribute.

It’s Not Me, It’s You: How Gift Giving Creates Giver Identity Threat as a Function of Social Closeness

Prior research has established that consumers are motivated to purchase identity-consistent products. We extend consumer identity research into an important consumer context, gift giving, in which individuals may make product choices that run counter to their own identities in order to fulfill the desires of the intended recipient. We find that purchasing an identity-contrary gift for a close (vs. distant) friend who is an integral part of the self can itself cause an identity threat to the giver. Four experiments in a gift registry context show that after making an identity-contrary gift choice for a close (vs. distant) friend, givers subsequently engage in behaviors that reestablish their identity such as indicating greater identity affiliation with the threatened identity and greater likelihood to purchase identity-expressive products. This research highlights the opposing forces that product purchase may exert on consumer identity as both a potential threat and means of self-verification.

So near and yet so far: the mental representation of goal progress.

In the present article, we explore whether peoples mental representation of progress level can function as a self-regulation mechanism that helps motivate continued effort in the pursuit. We propose that when individuals have just started pursuing a goal and have accumulated only limited progress, they exaggerate the achieved progress level in their mental representation to signal a higher chance of eventual goal attainment and thus elicit greater effort. In contrast, when people have made substantial progress and are approaching the goal attainment, they downplay the achieved progress in their mental representation to create greater perceived discrepancy, hence eliciting greater effort. Empirical evidence from 4 studies supported the hypothesis.

Retail Assortment: More ≠ Better

Product assortment strategy is a central yet complex issue for retailers. Retail product assortments have undergone drastic changes in the past decade from unparalleled large assortments in the early 1990s to the current emphasis on streamlined, efficient assortments. The purpose of this chapter is to provide guidance to retailers making these important assortment strategy decisions.

The Slippery Slope: The Impact of Feature Alignability on Search and Satisfaction

This research challenges the notion that increased search effort results in greater satisfaction with the choice by examining the impact of alignability on search quantity and search outcomes. Options that vary along comparable dimensions are alignable, whereas options that vary along unique dimensions are nonalignable. The results of three studies demonstrate greater search among nonalignable than among alignable options. Satisfaction initially increases but then declines with further search among nonalignable options. Although choice difficulty influences search and satisfaction, the primary mechanism driving the inverted U-shaped relationship of satisfaction with search among nonalignable options is feature learning. This research demonstrates a paradox: People continue searching more options precisely when their further search is detrimental to their satisfaction, falling down the slippery slope of search.

Plan Format and Participation in 401(k) Plans: The Moderating Role of Investor Knowledge

There is continuing concern that many people are not saving enough for retirement. The authors conduct three studies to determine whether simple alterations to the format of 401(k) plans can increase plan participation rates, especially among people with low levels of financial knowledge. In Study 1, offering a larger number of funds for investment reduces plan participation among low-knowledge investors, unless the plan also offers a target retirement date (i.e., life-cycle fund) option. In Study 2, the authors find those with low knowledge are more likely to participate if the funds offered for investment are grouped by asset class rather than listed alphabetically. In Study 3, the authors find that participation increases when fund descriptions include star ratings (but not fund style boxes). They also find that star ratings increase decision satisfaction among low-knowledge investors because of a reduction in perceived task difficulty. Limitations, implications, and further research are discussed.