earticle

영어

A brand extension is very important and effective marketing strategy to apply consumer’s knowledge with existing brand to new product. Similarity is key element in brand extension. There are feature similarity, image similarity, usage similarity, and goal similarity. Though research on brand extension suggested several moderating factors, little research considered evaluation mode as a moderator. The present research is to examine the effect of attraction effect on similarity judgment in the evaluation of brand extension. Attraction effects is a kind of phenomenon in which choice probability of existing alternative increases when asymmetrically dominated alternative such as absolutely inferior alternative (referred to as AIA) or relatively inferior alternative (referred to as RIA) is added to the existing alternative group. That is. attraction effect increases the share of a target brand, relative to a competitor, when a third alternative is added to the choice set. Asymmetrically dominated alternative is an alternative that the target dominates the third alternative completely but the competitor does not. Advertising with attraction effect is a kind of comparative advertising Advertising with attraction has the attribute of two-sided message comparative advertising because it shows the facts that it is faster but more expensive, compared to competing alternative, and has the attribute of one-sided message comparative advertising at the same time which shows absolute dominance over decoy alternative. The present research looked into whether attraction effect influenced similarity evaluation and purchase intention of extended brand. For this purpose, experiment was conducted with two conditions. One condition was the separate evaluation mode that showed only extended brand advertising in similar extension and dissimilar extension situation. The other condition was the attraction effect mode that showed both extended brand and competitive brands in similar extension and dissimilar extension. The present research found that when parent brand(Google) extended a product in similar category(Google electronic dictionary), The judgment of similarity between the parent brand and extended product is same in the separate evaluation mode versus in the attraction effect mode. However, when parent brand extended a product in dissimilar category(Google ink-jet printer), The judgment of similarity between the parent brand and extended brand are different in the separate evaluation mode versus in the attraction effect mode. That is, participants evaluated the extended product more similarly and favorably in the attraction effect mode than in the separate evaluation mode. Therefore, attraction effect should be considered to be a successful extension. According to the results, the comparative advertising with attraction increases the success probability and decreases marketing cost of extended brand in dissimilar extension. That is, company can makes new products focusing on features that shows attraction effect and new compromising products in dissimilar brand extension. But, in dissimilar brand extension, company have to communicate new product in not separate evaluation mode but attraction effect mode. However, the present research has several limitations. first, the results is hard to generalize because the experiment was conducted with small sample size. Second, Google electronic dictionary and ink-jet printer had a little difference in similarity evaluation. So. Further study is needed to replicate in more dissimilar product category. Third, purchase intension in dissimilar extension was evaluated more positively than purchase intension in similar extension. This result showed because participants’ interest and purchase intention was different according to product category. Further study is needed to conduct with product category that participants’ interest and purchase intention is not different. Finally, purchase intention in attraction effect mode was higher than purchase intention in separate evaluation mode. But, the result did not show that the result was occurred by either only attraction effect or the combination effect of attraction effect and similarity effect. Further study is needed.

한국어

기존 브랜드 확장 연구는 모 브랜드와 확장 제품간 유사성(적합성)이 높은 경우 확장 브랜드에 대한 평가가 호의적이라는 연구에 국한될 뿐 모 브랜드와 확장 제품간 유사성을 높일 수 있는 방법에 대한 연구는 거의 없는 실정이다. 한편 유인효과는 기존 선택 집합(경쟁브랜드와 자사브랜드)에 자사브랜드에는 절대적으로 열등하거나 상대적으로 열등하지만 경쟁브랜드에 대해서는 열등하지 않은 비대칭적으로 열등한 새로운 브랜드가 선택 집합에 추가되었을 때 이와 비슷한 자사 브랜드의 선택확률이 증가되는 현상으로 수많은 연구에서 검증되었다. 이에 본 연구는 유인효과가 브랜드 확장 평가에 어떠한 영향을 미치는지를 유사성 평가와 구매의도 측면에서 살펴보았다. 이를 위해 유사, 비유사 확장 상황에서 확장 제품만 제시한 경우(단독 평가조건)와 유인효과가 나타날 수 있도록 경쟁 제품과 함께 제시한 경우(유인효과조건)로 나누어 실험을 실시하였다. 실험결과 유사성 평가에 있어 유사 확장의 경우에는 제시방법에 따라 차이가 없지만, 비유사 확장의 경우에는 단독평가 조건보다 유인효과 조건에서 모브랜드와 확장 제품을 더 유사하게 평가하는 것으로 나타났다. 나아가 구매의도에 있어서는 유사, 비유사 확장 모두 단독평가 조건보다 유인효과 조건에서 더 호의적인 것으로 나타나 유인효과가 유사성평가와 관계없이 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 이러한 결과는 기업이 브랜드 확장 제품 광고를 할 경우 확장제품만 보여주는 것보다는 유인효과를 이용한 비교 광고를 하는 것이 확장 제품의 성공 확률을 높이고, 마케팅 비용을 절감하는 효과적인 광고 전략이라는 시사점을 주고 있다.