Customer empowerment in the face of perceived Incompetence: Effect on preference for anthropomorphized brands

Document Type

Article

Source of Publication

Journal of Business Research

Publication Date

9-1-2020

Abstract

© 2020 Elsevier Inc. Brands often tell consumers that they have power, either directly through slogans such as Burger King's famous “Have it your way” or by allowing them to exert control over the purchasing process (e.g., product and service customization). Yet, not everyone may feel competent enough to handle a sudden increase in empowerment. Would then variations in perceived competence affect how power influences social interactions in the marketplace? In this research, we address this question in relation to brand anthropomorphism given managers’ widespread practice of imbuing brands with human features. In five studies, we found evidence that customer empowerment heightened a sense of social dominance and drove preference for anthropomorphized brands when feelings of competence were high. In contrast, when feelings of competence were threatened, customer empowerment drove people away from anthropomorphized brands because resentment overcame feelings of social dominance.

ISSN

0148-2963

Publisher

Elsevier Inc.

Volume

118

First Page

1

Last Page

11

Disciplines

Business

Keywords

Brand anthropomorphism, Brand preference, Customer empowerment, Perceived competence, Power

Scopus ID

85086853745

Indexed in Scopus

yes

Open Access

yes

Open Access Type

Green: A manuscript of this publication is openly available in a repository

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