Finding a Home for Products We Love: How Buyer Usage Intent Affects the Pricing of Used Goods

Abstract

Consumers often dispose of used products by selling them in a secondary market (e.g., classified advertisements, Craigslist, eBay). When consumers must dispose of products to which they feel emotionally attached, they often expect to sell the product at a price in excess of its market value. However, the authors identify a condition in which product attachment can decrease rather than increase the minimum price sellers are willing to accept. Specifically, they propose that due to concern for how products are used following a transaction, strongly attached sellers may be more willing than weakly attached sellers to provide discounts to potential buyers whose usage intentions are deemed appropriate. Whereas prior research has focused primarily on one particular consequence of attachment, namely, the intensified reluctance of consumers to part with their possessions, this research identifies a novel consequence of attachment: a heightened sensitivity to the manner in which the product will be used following a transaction. Four empirical studies provide converging evidence that sellers' product attachment determines the extent to which their minimum acceptable sales price is influenced by buyer usage intent. the three anonymous JM reviewers for their helpful comments and suggestions. Stephen Nowlis served as area editor for this article.

Consumer motivation for product disposal and its role in acquiring products for reuse

“…Product attachment occurs where consumers feel a strong sense of ownership for a possession (Belk, ; Haws et al, ; Kleine & Baker, ). Attachment is understood as a: “psychological or emotional connection between [consumer] self‐concept and a tangible product” (Brough & Isaac, :p.79). Attachment arises where consumers form associations with possessions, fusing their personal goals and beliefs to products and elevating a product's noneconomic values.…”

“…Offering an additional, “emotional” reward with a trade‐in may act to further increase the perceived benefits of trade‐ins. Sellers able to identify buyers they like, for example, such as a parent giving their child's old toys to a new parent, can encourage lower resale prices (Brough & Isaac, ; Lastovicka & Fernandez, ). In Study 1, an opportunity to help or give to others was a popular reason for consumers to dispose of a personal computer.…”

“…Their capacity for use over a long period of time may increase a consumer's dependence on the product (Chandler & Schwarz, ). In addition, that a product “still works” increases tensions for a consumer given that disposal, regardless of when, suggests that something will be wasted (Arkes, ; Brough & Isaac, ).…”

Prediction of Consumer Behavior Regarding Purchasing Remanufactured Products: A Logistics Regression Model

“…Several studies focus on topics related with used products in marketing area. Some examples are the connection between used and new product markets (Thomas, 2003), consumer behavior in used products trade (Hickey and Fitzpatrick, 2008), the pricing issue of used products (Brough and Isaac, 2012).…”

Prolonging Life: Appreciations of a Secondhand ‘Capital’ Machine

“…Antique traders base their judgements on 'discursive' and 'performative' practices -'the look' of the object and the 'eye' of the dealer decides (see Parsons, 2010). Elsewhere, Epp and Price (2010) consider the sentimental value of a family table; here value is calculated to include the table's history within the family (Brough and Isaac, 2012). The cultural biographies of things help to conceptualize the consumers' identities and the relations that drive behaviours and processes.…”