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As sport league brands have increasingly extended their marketing activities into foreign countries, international brand positioning has become a relevant research topic. In this research, we introduce and examine the concept of bicultural brand positioning, an approach that combines a sport league's connection to its home country with target-country associations. We integrate bicultural identity theory with the literature on brand benefits to propose two types of bicultural brand positioning: functional versus symbolic. Three experiments, using the National Football League and German satellite fans as the empirical context, provide evidence that bicultural brand positioning incorporating functional (vs. symbolic) benefits for the satellite fans increases bicultural brand image integration, defined as the perceived compatibility of combining the two country cultures, and has positive indirect effects on intentions to use the brand and positive word of mouth. These effects are driven by increased perceptions of cultural authenticity of the brand and brand convenience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human-robot collaborative disassembly lines are widely used by remanufacturing companies to disassemble end-of-life (EOL) products. When disassembling large-sized EOL products, each workstation on a disassembly line is generally divided into multiple operating positions, so that different operators can disassemble the same product at their respective positions at the same time, thereby greatly improving efficiency. This paper focuses on a position-constrained human-robot collaborative disassembly planning (PC-HRCDP) problem for the above-mentioned lines, including three subproblems of disassembly sequence planning, disassembly line balancing and robot path planning. A multi-objective mixed integer programming model for PC-HRCDP is developed to solve smallscale instances. Furthermore, a multi-objective multi-fidelity optimisation (MO-MFO) algorithm is proposed to solve large-scale instances. Comprehensive experiments are conducted based on 10 problem instances generated in this study. Experimental results show that the proposed MO-MFO is better than a high-fidelity optimisation algorithm in terms of running time. In addition, benefiting from the strategy of MO-MFO to allocate the limited high-fidelity computational budget to solutions in the two stages of multi-objective optimisation and optimal sampling, MO-MFO is significantly better than the existing representative multi-fidelity optimisation algorithms in terms of the hyper-volume and the inverted generational distance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In realizing that consumers regularly straddle the work–life interface, some companies position their products according to their ability to address work and life needs together, then communicate this offering to consumers. Whether using a work–life positioning strategy is effective remains unclear , however. If this strategy signals work–life enrichment, it should increase consumers' interest, but only if the product demands few resources from consumers. If the product instead demands substantial resources, a work–life positioning might inadvertently trigger perceptions of work–life conflict and lower consumers' interest. To test these predictions, the authors partnered with three businesses to advertise their products, which impose varying resource demands, on social media using content that highlights the work–life interface or not. Analyses of ad click data support the predictions: Work–life ads are less effective than single-domain (work or life) ads if the advertising involves resource-demanding products, but they are more effective if it pertains to resource-undemanding products. Furthermore, the effects are stronger among consumer segments that experience more work–life conflict in general. With this initial application of work–life theory to a marketing context, this article offers relevant insights for both research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research provides evidence that globally positioned food brands face an inherent trade-off: the advantages of wide global availability and global sourcing can be outweighed by unfavorable perceptions related to freshness. Through five experiments, with participants from developed and emerging markets, the authors demonstrate that global (vs. local) brand positioning cues dampen product purchase intentions; this happens because globally (vs. locally) positioned brands evoke lower freshness perceptions. This effect is particularly pronounced for minimally or moderately (vs. highly) processed product categories, for which freshness considerations are more important. In addition, the negative effects of globally positioned brands can be reduced with secondary freshness cues, such as freshness seals or guarantees, and such a strategy is particularly effective for individuals high in perceived vulnerability to disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visual marketing communications consist of two components: (1) semantic content (e.g., headings, images, copy) that communicates a brand's positioning, benefits, and personality and (2) visual design (e.g., font selection, image size, the organization of the content) that encourages inferences about brand claims. The authors investigate how visual design can be used to encourage inferences that support brand claims and improve brand performance. They find that brands with a utilitarian positioning perform better when the visual design of their marketing communications encourages structured perceptions, whereas brands with a hedonic positioning perform better when the visual design of their marketing communications encourages unstructured perceptions. In both cases, (un)structured perceptions encourage inferences that reinforce brand claims and, consequently, improve brand performance. This research offers actionable insights into how marketing communication specialists can coordinate logo design, product design, package design, visual merchandising, and retail environments to reinforce brand claims. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Art has been successfully positioned as a promotional tool inside marketing settings. This research examines various relationships between vintage products and art. Three studies investigated whether (a) consumers perceived vintage products as more art‐like than modern versions of the same products; (b) vintage products positively affected consumers' evaluations of nearby products by inducing art‐infusion‐like spillover effects; and (c) the observed effects emerged from the ability of vintage products to engage consumers' social‐self perceptions. This research extended the theoretical and practical utility of art‐infusion effects to a new product type (vintage) and marketing function (promotions). Consumers were more likely to view vintage products, as opposed to contemporary goods, as works of art. This research was the first to position vintage products as art, to elicit art‐like infusion effects from vintage products, and to reveal positional consequences ensuing from art‐infusion effects without utilizing art as a promotional tool. Positioning value instead emerged from placing contemporary offerings physically near vintage products in promotional contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Building on the justice theory, managerial responses (MRs) to negative online reviews are investigated for their service recovery efficacy. MRs (>2,000) for 106 hotels were analyzed for interactional, procedural, and distributive justice and matched with their property-level room revenue, total revenue, and gross operating profit. Service recovery’s importance was empirically demonstrated via a negative association between negative reviews and performance outcomes and a positive association between MRs and performance outcomes. Justice-based MRs revealed differential impacts on performance outcomes: those with interactional justice were most effective in improving profitability. Findings further highlighted product positioning as a moderator. On one hand, interactional justice worked for lower-positioned hotels by being positively associated with total revenue. On the other hand, distributive justice backfired by being negatively associated with total revenue, suggesting that compensation in service recovery does not necessarily add value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study draws on relevant literature, observations, and interviews, revealing that efforts focused on positioning and customer engagement are often misunderstood as branding. UNIQLO, one of the world’s largest fashion apparel companies, integrates the entire process of clothing production, from planning and design to manufacturing, distribution, and retail. UNIQLO expanded its operations in Indonesia on February 13, 2013, and currently operates 65 stores across 25 cities in the country. This paper aims to explore how UNIQLO, a global fast-fashion retailer from Japan, drives its organizational success. UNIQLO is known for its high product quality, particularly through the introduction of its Heat Tech cold-weather underwear line, which is both affordable and suitable for warm climates. The company also continues to innovate through research and development to meet customer needs. UNIQLO's stores have a distinctive presence and strong market positioning. In 2014, the brand launched its mobile online store via a smartphone app, emphasizing customer satisfaction. This paper examines the key factors behind UNIQLO's organizational success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PeeBuddy, the first portable urination device for Indian women, has been around for close to seven years; still, it is struggling to break the taboo of serving as a portable urination device for Indian women treated as a taboo product in India. It has been hard to convince the Indian populous at large. Although Bajaj had done tremendous work over the years, much remained to be done. The critical task is to position PeeBuddy, such that Indian women should understand the purpose of the product, a brand, without hurting their sentiments. Bajaj knows that convincing Indian women and shifting them to any urination device required a shift in their mindset, which was hard to achieve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper develops a brand positioning strategy based on consumer-based brand equity for football team brands. The study is designed and validated in three separate empirical phases. In Study 1, the authors interviewed experts in the tie/d using a qualitative research design and identified the football team brands with the highest consumer-based brand equity./n Study 2, the authors opp/ied explanatory factor analysis to the spectator-based brand equity sco/e to tind the appropriate factors for evaluating the identifted team brands. In Study 3, the authors used multidimensional scaling and evaluated and discussed team brands based on the identified factors. As a result of the research, an 'ideal brand' had to be designed, taking into account the ten football team brands identified in Study I and the six factors identified in Study 2. This brand was rated'best' across all factors and compared with other brands. The authors recommend this new brand positioning strategy to practitioners and emphosise that future studies should be conducted in other countries and for other sports discip/ines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brands' positions on sociopolitical issues have a digital impact on their social media presence. While previous studies concentrated on text-based platforms to unravel the digital impact, less attention was given to video-based platforms. This research explores whether brand-activistic videos are more popular than nonactivistic videos on YouTube. Furthermore, this research examines which facial emotions increase a video's popularity, a topic limitedly addressed in the prior literature. Compiling two data sets of YouTube videos (NStudy1 = 174 videos; NStudy2 = 666 videos), this research finds that activistic video ads are more popular than nonactivistic video ads on YouTube. Activistic video ads with higher amounts of sadness, anger, and fear expressed as facial emotions have greater popularity. This finding may be because activistic videos are created around social issues, and when actors convey these issues empathically these videos stimulate actionable behaviors. Moreover, the results show that videos focused on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) issues are more popular than non-LGBTQ video ads. The implications of these findings are discussed in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the social media websites decreased the firms' control over their brand personalities, there is little research on the incongruence between communicated and perceived brand personality of Indian service brands. The impact of bots and suspicious accounts on the online brand personalities also remained unexplored. We analyzed 58,024 tweets of nine Indian service brands using machine learning. Some of the newer brands are savvier in managing their brand personalities. The public sector brands have poorer alignment between communicated and perceived brand personalities. A counterintuitive finding is that the brand sentiment changes in value, but not in category, after removing the suspicious accounts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper postulates that consumers' desire for doing-luxury – pursuing luxury with the intention of acquiring a life experience (vs. having-luxury) – pursuing luxury with the intention of acquiring a material good reduces counterfeiting schadenfreude – consumers' feelings of pleasure from the losses of luxury brands due to counterfeiting. Two experiments employed various methods of invoking doing-luxury (vs. having-luxury) – actual product exposure and brand positioning to test the predicted framework. The results demonstrate that doing-luxury (vs. having-luxury) leads to a lower counterfeiting schadenfreude; an effect explained by the lower perceived similarity. This research makes an important contribution to the counterfeiting and experiential marketing literature by demonstrating the role of brand positioning in reducing a critical counterfeit-related social emotion. The results also validate the relevance of the intentions-based distinction of experiential versus material purchases in predicting counterfeiting schadenfreude. To reduce counterfeiting schadenfreude, luxury brands must signal an ephemeral image focusing on moments of luxury rather than functions of luxury. In addition, ad appeals must invoke sensory elements, feelings, emotions, imagination, and mental stimulation rather than the hard facts about the products per se. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brands regularly express gratitude to groups such as first responders, medical personnel, and teachers (i.e., third-party others). However, research investigating the effectiveness of these acknowledgments is lacking. Drawing from the gratitude, branding, and persuasion knowledge literature, we theorize that consumer reactions to advertised gratitude expressions to third-party others depend upon brand positioning, operationalized through brand personality. We empirically demonstrate that when exciting brands express gratitude to third-party others, such expressions reduce purchase intentions relative to advertisements not conveying gratitude or conveying gratitude to customers. As sincere brands are aligned with gratitude, gratitude expressions do not negatively affect purchase intentions. Consumer inferences of manipulative intent explain why gratitude expressions to third-party others lead to adverse effects for exciting but not sincere brands. Our findings signify that advertised gratitude expressions to third-party others need to be managed carefully, as brand personality plays a significant role in consumers' interpretations of such acknowledgments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to find out how to increase product competitiveness in the global market through the analysis of market segmentation and positioning. The study employs a qualitative approach, utilizing a systematic literature review (SLR) design. The data is analyzed through identification, classification, conclusion drawing, and verification. The research contribution lies in its focus on enhancing the competitiveness of products in a highly competitive global environment by analyzing market segments and positioning strategies. This study provides valuable insights and practical guidelines for businesses seeking to optimize their market presence and differentiate their products in an ever-evolving era of globalization. In addition, the study explores the impact of cultural and local adaptation on the success of positioning strategies in diverse markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Precise point positioning (PPP) is a prevalent, high-precision spatial absolution positioning method, and its performance can be enhanced by ambiguity resolution (AR). To fulfill the growing need for high-precision positioning, we developed an open-source GNSS data processing package based on the decoupled clock model called Cube, which integrates decoupled clock offset estimation and precise point positioning with ambiguity resolution (PPP-AR). Cube is a secondary development based on RTKLIB. Besides the decoupled clock model, Cube can also estimate legacy clocks for the International GNSS Service (IGS), as well as clocks with satellite code bias extraction, and perform PPP-AR using the integer-recovered clock model. In this work, we designed satellite clock estimation and PPP-AR experiments with one week of GPS data to validate Cube's performance. Results show that the software can produce high-precision satellite clock products and positioning results that are adequate for daily scientific study. With Cube, researchers do not need to rely on public PPP-AR products, and they can estimate decoupled clock products and implement PPP-AR anytime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Selecting suitable trading partners in the globalized trade landscape remains critical. Traditional selection processes driven by factors like comparative advantage and trade costs are cumbersome and incomplete. Economic complexity offers a more precise measure of a country's economic development and product capacity, facilitating future-oriented choices. Leveraging international trade data from 2001 to 2015, this paper employs economic complexity theories to analyze Chinese and the US' trade networks in the global market. It explores multi-level considerations for exporting countries' partner selection, revealing varying product diversification challenges and market clustering tendencies. China shows increasing overall product proximity relationships, specifically notable in textile-related products, while the US exhibits decreasing product proximities. Additionally, trading positions and product dependencies vary across markets. Some countries, like Japan and Germany, maintain stable positions, while others fluctuate. Notably, countries like Nigeria, Bangladesh, and Cambodia have higher positions in the Chinese market, suggesting promising long-term trade partnerships. Conversely, countries like Yemen, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, and Sudan have higher positions in the US market, indicating significant disparities. Products that are needed in the Chinese market and occupy higher complexity positions are primarily concentrated in the field of non-ferrous metals, while the US market relies more on raw materials. This highlights distinct market dynamics, particularly pronounced in the US market. Hence, there is a greater likelihood of obtaining better economic benefits by trading these products in their respective markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most traditional rigid grippers can cause damage to the surface of objects in actual production processes and are susceptible to factors such as different shapes, sizes, materials, and positions of the product. This article studies a flexible finger for flexible grippers, more commonly described as PneuNet, designs the structure of the finger, discusses the processing and manufacturing methods of the flexible finger, and prepares a physical model. The influence of structural parameters such as the thickness of the flexible finger and the angle of the air chamber on the bending performance of the finger was analyzed using the Abaqus simulation tool. An RBF-PID control algorithm was used to stabilize the internal air pressure of the flexible fingers. A flexible finger stabilization experimental platform was built to test the ultimate pressure, ultimate bending angle, and end contact force of the fingers, and the simulation results were experimentally verified. The results show that when the thickness of the flexible finger is 2 mm and the air chamber angle is 0 deg, the maximum bending angle of the flexible finger can reach about 136.3°. Under the same air pressure, the bending angle is inversely correlated with the air chamber angle and finger thickness. The experimental error of the bending angle does not exceed 3%, which is consistent with the simulation results as a whole. When the thickness is 2 mm, the maximum end contact force can reach about 1.32 N, and the end contact force decreases with the increase in the air chamber angle. The RBF-PID control algorithm used has improved response speed and a better control effect compared to traditional PID control algorithms. This article provides a clear reference for the application of flexible fingers and flexible grippers, and this research method can be applied to the analysis and design optimization of other soft brakes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Cuadernos del Centro de Estudios de Diseño y Comunicación is the property of Cuadernos del Centro de Estudios de Diseno y Comunicacion and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Brand experience, critical to the success of businesses, is well studied in marketing research. However, little is known about its effect on building advantages of competitive differentiation and brand positioning, especially in the tourism field. This study investigated the applicability of a well-established brand experience model from marketing research through a comparative study across multiple destinations. Factor analysis and cluster analysis were utilized to examine the effect of destination brand experience on tourist perception of destinations and regression analysis was utilized to examine the effect of four dimensions of destination brand experience on tourists' visit intention. Results showed that tourists perceived differently on all four dimensions of their brand experiences across different destinations. The sensory and affective dimensions of destination brand experience have positive effects on tourists' visit intention. This study provides marketing intelligence for destinations to create strong differentiated advantages and achieve precise brand positioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study focused on product positioning and exploitation of Nigerian solid mineral resources towards transforming third world countries. The specific objectives of the study were to examine the effect of product price, product quality and product differentiation on Nigerian solid mineral resources; Data were collected through a primary source. The population of the study was 218 which consisted of final year students of Marketing from University of Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria. These respondents were used due to their background knowledge in Marketing. The study utilized simple random sampling technique to select sample of 80 respondents for the study. 5-point likert scale option of structured questionnaire was used in the study to obtain respondents' response. Content validity was used to determine the validity of the instrument by giving to research experts who modified and made the necessary correction to measure the instrument. Simple linear regression analysis was used to test the hypothesis. Three hypotheses were tested in line with the objectives of the study and it was revealed that there was a significant relationship between product price, product quality and product differentiation, and Nigerian solid mineral resources. The study suggested some recommendations as follows: Government agencies and major stakeholders affiliated with solid mineral resources in Nigeria should imbibe product price strategy in order to encourage high patronage for Nigerian solid mineral resources. Product quality should be embraced because it attracts foreign buyers to patronise Nigerian solid mineral resources. Government agencies and major stakeholders in charge of solid minerals in Nigeria should embark on product differentiation among mineral resources in Nigeria to command high patronage from foreign buyers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The solutions to the radial Schrödinger equation for a pseudoharmonic potential and Kratzer potential have been studied separately in the past. Despite different reports on the Kratzer potential, the fundamental theoretical quantities such as Fisher information have not been reported. In this study, we obtain the solution to the radial Schrödinger equation for the combination of the pseudoharmonic and Kratzer potentials in the presence of a constant-dependent potential, utilizing the concepts and formalism of the supersymmetric and shape invariance approach. The position expectation value and momentum expectation value are calculated employing the Hellmann–Feynman Theory. These expectation values are then used to calculate the Fisher information for both position and momentum spaces in both the absence and presence of the constant-dependent potential. The results obtained revealed that the presence of the constant-dependent potential leads to an increase in the energy eigenvalue, as well as in the position and momentum expectation values. Additionally, the constant-dependent potential increases the Fisher information for both position and momentum spaces. Furthermore, the product of the position expectation value and the momentum expectation value, along with the product of the Fisher information, satisfies both Fisher's inequality and Cramer–Rao's inequality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasingly dynamic and uncertain environment in which firms operate has strengthened the need to understand how firms react to changing conditions and unpredicted events. Using the information on business model innovation collected through a unique survey on Italian manufacturing companies, we study if and how variations in the firm's competitive position in the product market, proxied by the corporate markup, prompt proactive or reactive changes in the firms' business model. Drawing upon the performance feedback approach, we find that markup variations foster business model innovation, and that the degree of family involvement shapes this influence. In particular, family firms turn out to be significantly more proactive (they react proactively to both negative and positive performance feedback) than family firms with lower family involvement and non-family firms. Interestingly, positive performance feedback encourages family firms to invest and strengthen those areas of the business model that are often considered weak in this type of company. Plain English Summary: In recent years, firms have been faced with unprecedented challenges, prompted, for instance, by increasing competition end globalization, but also by particularly adverse and unpredicted events, including the well-known COVID-19 pandemic. This strengthened the importance of understanding how companies react to unexpected changes. To tackle this issue, in this study, we assess whether firms reduce or increase the extent of innovation in their business models as a response to both positive and negative variations in their market power (proxied by their price–cost margin, or markup). Using a sample of Italian manufacturing companies and unique survey data, we show that markup variations foster business model innovation, but that this link significantly changes with the degree of family involvement. In particular, family firms stand out for their proactive response to both increases and decreases in their market power, and seem to view the improvement in their competitive position in the product market as an incentive to strengthen those areas of the business model that are often considered weak in this type of company. Hence, our study portraits a favourable account of (virtuous) family businesses which should prompt policymakers to provide adequate support to these companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of digital technology in brand management is a focus of interest for research on the scientific public because communication and information technology in competitive economies generate the need to create a new paradigm of global branding that enables the availability and sharing of information in the business community for the exchange of business practices in function on the improvement of the processes with target competitive positioning of the brand. In business, the branding industry is also expanding because it realizes the importance of innovative creation and positioning of brands to improve profitability. Digital branding became dominant with the frequent use of the Internet and social media. The analysis of statistics researching this industry globally predicts that by the end of 2024, over 75% of businesses will increase investments in creating digital branding strategies. This paper researches the relationship between information and communication technology and branding, ie the level of application of digital technology and investment in branding and the impact on competitiveness. Relevant data for the period from 2023 to 2024 were used for the analysis. Based on the obtained indicators, it was proven that corporations invest insufficiently in digital branding, which results in weak brand positioning and competitiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chen and Kanai (2021) raise debates about a privileged subset of gay men occupying the beauty space as equal, if not more compelling, in fulfilling contradictory postfeminist demands of authenticity and femininity. The suggestion is that queer beauty influencers can embody idealistic postfeminist traits without the stigma a woman may face for doing the same. This paper explores a counterargument for this performance of hybridised gender and sexuality, in that the repetition of gender performatives through the queer body is an attempt to 're-present' the social media beauty sphere through a queer lens where wearing makeup is an act of resistance. Using the influencer and makeup brand owner Jeffree Star as a case study, I argue that the queer beauty influencer exists as a body for fantasy projection, with makeup acting as the mediator for affective transference to bestow the audience with the transformative effect of queer resistance. However, the influencer and audience become bound back to the neoliberal ideals from which they attempt to break free. In positioning their own brand of cosmetics as a conduit through which their audience can obtain a sense of queer resistance, it ties the influencers and their audiences back to a capitalist framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how consumers' relative spatial location influences their preferences and choices. Drawing on the conceptual metaphor literature, the author proposes that people interpret the abstract concept of risk using a more tangible concept: their location relative to the center or edge of a space. Five main studies (and a pilot) reveal the existence of a metaphorical association between risk and spatial location and show how this association systematically affects consumer risk-taking behavior. Specifically, people positioned closer to the edges (vs. center) of space are disproportionately more likely to seek (vs. avoid) risky choices. This phenomenon is demonstrated across various decision-making scenarios in the laboratory and field, using both physical and virtual manipulations of space. This effect occurs because being located closer to the edges (vs. center) evokes concepts related to risk (vs. safety), making risky (vs. safe) products easier to process and, as a result, more desirable. Moreover, this research sheds light on the effect characteristics and boundary conditions. The author concludes with a discussion of the implications of these findings for consumers and businesses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluates the impact of sales promotions that are featured in store flyers distributed by prominent retailers and their capacity to attract consumers to their establishments. A distinctive conceptual framework is introduced that scrutinizes the influence of ethically-minded consumer behavior, digital citizenship/literacy, and a retailer's orientation toward environmental sustainability and explicit ecological concerns. A quasi-experimental design was used to formulate four distinct scenarios from a possible set of eight, stemming from the combinations of three variables: 2 Retailer Positioning (green vs. without explicit ecological claims) × 2 Flyer Mediums (paper vs. digital) × 2 Discount Levels (5% discount vs. 30% discount). Through an online survey, a sample of 269 responses was garnered to gauge consumer reactions to these store flyers, evaluating their attitudes and receptiveness. The findings suggest that attitudes toward paper flyers were more favorable when presented by non-green retailers compared to their green counterparts. This can be attributed to a perceived inconsistency between a green brand positioning and the use of paper flyers. Furthermore, the propensity to transition to digital flyers was notably stronger for green retailers compared to non-green retailers, but this inclination was most pronounced when higher discounts were offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Perpectivas is the property of Revista Perspectivas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose: This research examines the effects of physical proximity (close vs distant) of retailers' private label brands (PLBs) relative to national brands (NBs) and brand display orientation (horizontal [brands occupy the same shelf] vs vertical [brands occupy different shelves]) on consumers' PLB quality perceptions and PLB evaluations. Design/methodology/approach: Two experiments involving real brands in different product categories tested the hypotheses. Findings: A PLB positioned close (vs distant) to a NB is evaluated more favorably and this effect is mediated by increased PLB quality perceptions, but only in a horizontal brand display. In a vertical brand display, a PLB positioned close (vs distant) to a NB is evaluated less favorably and this effect is mediated by decreased PLB quality perceptions. Research limitations/implications: The findings suggest that to enhance consumers' PLB quality perceptions and evaluations, PLBs be positioned next to (rather than on separate shelves) and close to (rather than distant from) NBs in the same product category. Originality/value: Although the literature suggests that the best shelf position for PLBs is close to NBs, there is a lack of empirical research on the effects of relative shelf positioning on consumers' quality perceptions and subsequent PLB evaluations. This research finds that both physical proximity and brand display orientation play an important role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rebranding of Fair & Lovely (F&L), one of Hindustan Unilever Limited's (HUL) flagship brands, to Glow & Lovely (G&L) in 2020 had hogged the limelight. HUL termed the rebranding as an important evolutionary step that moved away from the "regressive idea of beauty" and banished an undesirable social stereotype. Stakeholders had divergent opinions with the rebranding effort being termed from "path-breaking" to "too little". Likewise, there was a divided house on the future sales of the repositioned brand. However, G&L, akin to its predecessor, maintained traction in the marketplace. The case provides an opportunity to understand the concepts of brand positioning and brand repositioning. It highlights how a corporate citizen can engage in responsible advertising and break an undesirable social stereotype. Attributes associated with fairness were identified to capture the extent of brand repositioning. Attributes associated with fairness were identified to capture the extent of brand repositioning. The primary data collected on such attributes was analysed with the help of Multi-Dimensional Scaling using alternating least-squares (ALSCAL) method. Discriminant analysis was used to understand which attributes differentiated various brands of fairness creams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the impact of brand transgression in a hedonic and utilitarian service industry context. I used expectancy violation theory to show how expectation of brands shift depending on the service context and type of transgression. A total of 483 respondents were recruited from Amazon MTurk. The data was analyzed through MANOVA and ANCOVA. Through 4 studies the results show that niche brands in the hedonic scenario are evaluated negatively following both the communal and agentic transgression. For utilitarian services, the niche brand is evaluated lower following a communal but not an agentic transgression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Professional team sport brands are increasingly striving to conquer markets abroad. However, little is known about promising brand positioning strategies in international markets. In the context of U.S. team sport brands' efforts to attract satellite fans in two different target markets (i.e., Germany and China), this research uses three experimental online studies to test the relative effects of two foreign brand positioning strategies (purely foreign vs. locally integrated foreign) on satellite fans' attitudes toward the strategy and brand interaction intentions. Findings suggest that fans' responses depend on the target market. While German fans respond more favorably to purely foreign brand positioning, Chinese fans prefer local adaptations of the U.S. brands to Chinese customs. These diverse effects can be explained by different underlying mechanisms: purely foreign brand positioning increases perceptions of authenticity among German fans, while locally integrated foreign brand positioning increases perceived customer orientation and pride among Chinese fans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to: (a) investigate the actual positions in digital communications; (b) assess the relationship between position-congruity among intended positions (i.e., how a firm desires to be perceived by consumers), actual brand positions, and perceived brand positions (i.e., the perceptions that customers have in their minds); and (c) understand the role of actual positioning (AP) in the positioning process. Multiple methods (one-on-one and focus group interviews, content analysis) were applied to analyze positions. Brand managers, golf consumers, and digital advertisements in Golf Digest magazine were sampled. Content analysis, frequencies and percentages, percentage difference, and regression analysis were performed for all positions for each research brand. The results revealed that: (a) tangibility-based positions (88.5%: great quality, innovation) outnumbered intangibility-based ones (11.5%: tour performance, tradition) in digital AP, (b) there was no positive correlation between the degree of congruence between intended and AP and the degree of congruence between intended and perceived positioning, and (c) the AP mediated between intended and perceived positioning in the brand positioning model. The study provides empirical evidence for the mediating role of AP and suggests modifications to the previous positioning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are few attempts at empirically validating the effectiveness of brand differentiation, leading to a long-lived debate regarding whether it is a necessary condition for brand success. Drawing from metacognition and decision process theory, the current research suggests that the relationship between perceived differentiation and purchase is stronger when there is a weaker match between the brand's perceived position and consumers' purchase goal (i.e. between what the brand stands for and what consumers are seeking). In addition to the condition of purchase goal, consumers' confidence in their judgement of the brand's position acts as an additional contingency factor in the relationship between differentiation and purchase. The hypotheses were supported by two studies across common consumer purchase goals: 'value for money' and 'top of the range' and two product categories, with different adult samples (n1 = 291 and n2 = 283 for the respective studies). Implications for brand communication strategy are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A strong brand image and brand positioning are necessary to grow and lead market share, particularly for the smartphone market in Indonesia due to the intense rivalry caused by the huge smartphone market size in Indonesia. This study uses text mining to evaluate online expert reviews to identify the brand positioning and image of the existing smartphone brands and series in Indonesia. The lexicon-based approach text mining, LIWC tool are used in the analysis. The result from LIWC was then processed using principal component analysis and clustering to map and classify smartphone brands and series. The result show that Apple and Samsung set their self apart from 4 other brands thanks to their distinctive proposition. The analysis on smartphone series shows that 7 out of 24 series from 6 smartphone brands have their own segment. All Apple series have their own segments. For Samsung, Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy Z have their own segment compared to other Samsung series. Vivo Y are the only series from non-Samsung Android brand that have its own segment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of the noise induced by gravitons in the case of a freely falling particle from the viewpoint of an external observer has been recently calculated in Phys. Rev. D 107, 066024 (2023). There the authors have calculated the quantum gravity modified Newton's law of free fall where the spacetime has been considered to be weakly curved. In our work, we extend this work by calculating the variance in the velocity and eventually the momentum of the freely falling massive particle. From this simple calculation, we observe that the product of the standard deviation in the position with that of the standard deviation in momentum picks up a higher order correction which is proportional to the square of the standard deviation in momentum. We also find out that in the Planck limit (both Planck length and Planck mass), this uncertainty product gives the well-known form of the generalized uncertainty principle. We then calculate a similar uncertainty product when the graviton is in a squeezed state, and eventually, we get back the same uncertainty product. Finally, we extend our analysis for the gravitons being in a thermal state and obtain a temperature-dependent uncertainty product. If one replaces this temperature with the Planck temperature and the mass of the particle by the Planck mass, the usual uncertainty product appears once again. We also obtain an upper bound of the uncertainty product thereby giving a range of the product of the variances in position and momentum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the dynamic landscape of modern marketing, innovative strategies are essential for businesses to thrive. This article delves into the intricate interplay between brand positioning, market segmentation, and consumer engagement within the realm of marketing management. Brand positioning forms the cornerstone of effective marketing, defining how a brand is perceived in the minds of consumers relative to competitors. Market segmentation further refines this process by dividing heterogeneous markets into distinct groups with similar needs and preferences. By understanding these segments, marketers can tailor their strategies to resonate with specific consumer demographics. However, in the digital age, consumer engagement has emerged as a critical factor driving marketing success. Engaging consumers goes beyond traditional advertising; it involves creating meaningful interactions and fostering relationships through various channels, including social media, content marketing, and experiential events. The synergy among brand positioning, market segmentation, and consumer engagement is paramount for achieving sustainable competitive advantage and fostering brand loyalty in today's hypercompetitive markets. This article explores how innovative approaches in marketing management leverage the intricate connections between brand positioning, market segmentation, and consumer engagement to drive business growth and cultivate enduring relationships with consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the product positioning decisions of two firms that enter a market sequentially under a duopoly competition. Two important assumptions are made: differential marginal production costs between the two firms, and endogenous entry timing of a follower in a continuous-time setting. We analyze a standard location-pricing Hotelling game with quadratic transportation costs with the points of departure being that the two firms (i) are allowed to have different (constant) marginal costs; (ii) enter sequentially in a pre-determined order in a market in which the consumers are growing over time; and (iii) are not restricted to choosing positions inside the interval in which consumer preferences are located. For the first mover, the dynamic market growth can give rise to a trade-off between exploiting short-run monopoly and long-run duopoly profits. This trade-off affects the equilibrium positions when the first mover has a larger marginal cost as well as a larger discount rate, in which case the first mover chooses its position at the center of the interval along which consumers are located. We also introduce uncertainty regarding entry and marginal costs to examine their effects on positioning and entry timing. If the entry cost of the follower firm is uncertain for the leader firm, then the leader firm is likely to choose its position farther away from the most attractive point. Moreover, we show that the follower firm enters the market earlier if the leader firm faces such uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The platform owner promotes the transaction between independent sellers and consumers, while entering the marketplace of independent sellers to compete with them for consumers. Faced with the threat of platform encroachment, independent sellers establish their own competitive advantages through ex ante category quality selection and ex post product differentiation. This study discusses how independent sellers should determine product positioning (including vertical and horizontal dimensions) in the face of platform category encroachment. We establish a game model and determine the best strategy. In addition, we develop a multi-agent model to reach conclusions for more complex market situations. We show that when the consumer's platform preference is low, the independent seller is willing to locate in the high-end product market; otherwise, the independent seller is willing to locate in the low-end product market. In a competitive environment, when consumers' ideal preferences are concentrated, the independent seller vertically positions in the low-end product market and horizontally positions close to the concentrated area of consumers' ideal preferences. Similarly, the platform owner is more likely to encroach on the low-end product market. However, the independent seller positions in the high-end product market with greater horizontal differentiation, and the platform owner's motivation to encroach is weakened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]