In-store marketing of private labels: applying cue utilisation theory

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of in-store private label marketing to impact the attitude of consumers towards private label brands (PLBs) by influencing consumers' perceived quality variations between the PLBs and national brands.Design/methodology/approachThis study is based on “Cue utilisation theory” and focusses on how retailers can influence consumers' perception of quality variations by providing them in-store marketing cues. Data was collected through the mall intercept method in New Delhi, India. Data analysis was done using AMOS 25 and the PROCESS SPSS macro.FindingsThis study establishes the effect of in-store private label marketing in improving consumers' quality perception of PLBs vis-à-vis national brands and thereby leading to a positive attitude towards PLBs. Further, the national brand promotions attitude is found to moderate the relationship between private label marketing and attitude towards PLBs. However, contrary to the authors' expectations, it has a positive effect on this relationship. The study found an insignificant moderation influence of price consciousness.Originality/valueThis study complements existing literature on “Cue utilisation theory” by demonstrating the importance of in-store private label marketing in improving consumers' attitudes towards PLBs. It also extends to fill some gaps in the literature by studying the direct, mediating and moderating relationship among in-store private label marketing, perceived quality variations, price consciousness, national brand promotion attitude and attitude towards PLBs, especially in an emerging market such as India.

The effects of packaging design of private brands on consumers' responses

“…One important insight neglected in previous private brand literature is an affective mediating mechanism (i.e., packaging‐driven hedonism), as well as a cognitive mediating mechanism (i.e., packaging‐driven quality). Previous studies have explored how private brands can provide cues for quality in packaging design to enhance perceived value and attitude toward private brands over national brands (e.g., Beneke et al, 2013; Mishra et al, 2020). The current study asserts that packaging design not only gives consumers confidence in the quality of the product, but also elicits an affective response that can be a powerful mechanism to elicit positive responses to private brands.…”

Trust transfer, price fairness and brand loyalty: the moderating influence of private label product type

“…In the field of retailing and brand management, a growing number of research papers have focused on the consumer buying decisions of private labels from a consumer perspective in different research streams such as the role of brand personality on brand quality (Glyinn and Widjaja, 2015), the influence customer characteristics on choice (Bockholdt et al , 2020), the impact of private label marketing on attitudes and perceived quality perceptions (Mishra et al , 2020), gender differences (Miquel et al , 2017) and rebranding of private label (Marques et al , 2020). Another line of research has focused on private label brands mainly from the managerial perspective (Stanton et al , 2015; Chung and Lee, 2018).…”

Private‐label consumer studies: A review and future research agenda

“…For instance, following Mishra et al. (2020) and using the “cue utilization” theory, one could investigate the impact of extrinsic cues, namely the effect of in‐store PL marketing, on improving attitude toward PLBs sold in discounts, hypermarkets, temporary shops, or other store formats. This research avenue informs the following research questions:…”