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Smartphones, whose product lifespan is relatively short, still call for a better understanding of the role played by the brands when it comes to the customer's buying decision. The objective of the present investigation is to test, in terms of validity, an extension of the Brand Love Model by Caroll and Ahuvia (2006); more specifically for the smartphone category, with the inclusion of the constructs Brand Switching Cost and Operational System Switching costs. In this direction, a survey was carried out and 453 users of smartphones responded. The analysis or the result was done by means of structural equation modeling and the results indicated that most of the relations predicted in the model proposed were confirmed, with an emphasis placed on significant influences of Brand Switching Cost on Loyalty. Other findings and their theoretical and general contributions of the investigation were discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marketers use sales promotions to boost sales. Sales promotion tools vary in their effectiveness to elicit different sales responses. Companies have a specific goal when they choose to use any promotional tool. Many researchers believe that sales promotions are zero sum game. Unlike in the West, in India brand loyalists outnumber price buyers by 200%. This paper investigates the effectiveness of select sales promotional tools in generating different buying behaviors. The study reveals that sales promotions, in India, do not help in category expansion. They are effective measures for inducing brand switching, stock piling, and purchase acceleration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]