Oem’s value through ingredient co-branding strategy: a case in the energy industry
Keywords:
ingredient co-branding;, business-to-business markets;, customer loyalty;, co-branding value;Abstract
Purpose of the paper: despite the increasing popularity of ingredient branding strategies, little is known about the industrial customers’ perception of ingredient co-branding strategies in industrial contexts. The purpose of this study is to investigate this issue, which together with brand image and responsiveness can be considered antecedents of industrial customers’ loyalty.
Methodology: the results are drawn from an e-mail survey sent by the authors to a sample of Italian customers of a multinational ingredient supplier in the electric-energy industry. A factorial analysis and a linear regression are implemented to isolate the perceived co-branding value and to identify its impact on the customers’ loyalty.
Findings: the perceived co-branding value is a unique construct that - together with brand image and responsiveness - strongly predicts the loyalty for all of the ingredient supplier’s customers.
Originality and limits: this paper contributes to the understanding of the role of ingredient co-branding in the buyer-seller relationship in an industrial context. Nevertheless, the research presents some limits: it is conducted in one industry and in one country only. Thus, caution is required before generalizing the results.
Practical implications: the findings suggest that co-branding strategies are effective in reinforcing buyer-seller relationships.
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ALEXANDER N.S., BICK G., ABRATT R., BENDIXEN M. (2009), “Impact of branding and product augmentation on decision making in the B2B market”, South African Journal of Business Management, vol. 40, n. 1, pp. 1-20.
BALDINGER A.L., RUBINSON J. (1996), “Brand loyalty: the link between attitude and behaviour”, Journal of Advertising Research, vol. 36, n. 6, pp. 22-35.
BENGTSSON A., SERVAIS P. (2005), “Co-branding on industrial markets”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 34, n. 7. pp. 706-713.
BENDIXEN M., BUKASA K.A., ABRATT R. (2004), “Brand equity in the business-to-business market”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 33, n. 5, pp. 371-380.
BERTOLI G., BUSACCA B. (2004), “L’analisi delle interazioni fra marche negli accordi di co-branding”, Micro & Macro Marketing, n. 3.
BESHARAT A. (2010), “How co-branding versus brand extensions drive consumers’ evaluations of new products: A brand equity approach”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 39, n. 8, pp. 1240-1249.
BOES D.C., GRAYBILL F.A., MOOD A.M. (1974), Introduction to the Theory of Statistics, 3rd ed. McGraw-Hill, New York.
BUSACCA B., CASTALDO S. (2002) “Trust in market relationships: an interpretative model”, Sinergie, n. 58.
CHAUDHURI A., HOLBROOK M. B. (2001), “The Chain of Effects from Brand Trust and Brand Affect to Brand Performance: The Role of Brand Loyalty”, Journal of Marketing, vol. 65, n. 2, pp. 81-93.
CHURCHILL G.A.J. (1979), “A paradigm for developing better measures of marketing constructs”, Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 16 n. 1, pp. 64-73.
COLLESEI U., CECCHINATO F. (2007), “Le alleanze di marketing nelle imprese italiane” Micro & Macro Marketing, n.2
CRETU A.E., BRODIE R.J. (2007), “The Influence of Brand Image and Company Reputation where Manufacturers Market to Small Firms: A Customers Value Perspective”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 36, n. 2, pp. 230-240.
DAVIS D.F., GOLICIC S.L., MARQUARDT A.J. (2008), “Branding a B2B service: does a brand differentiate a logistics service provider?”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 37, n. 2, pp. 218-227.
DICK A.S., BASU K. (1994), “Customer loyalty: toward an integrated conceptual framework”, Journal of Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 22, n. 2, pp. 99-113.
EISENHARDT K.M. (1989), “Agency Theory: An Assessment and Review”, Academy of Management Review, n. 14, pp. 57-74.
EL-ANSARY A., STERN L.W. (1972), “Power Measurement in the Distribution Channel”, Journal of Marketing Research, n. 9, pp.47-52.
EMERSON R.M. (1962), “Power Dependence Relations”, American Sociological Review, vol. 27, n.1, pp. 31- 41.
EREVELLES S., STEVENSON T.H., SRINIVASAN S., FUKAWA N. (2008), “An analysis of B2B ingredient co-branding relationships”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 37, n. 8, pp. 940-952.
GHOSH M., JOHN G. (2009), “When should original equipment manufacturers use branded component contracts with suppliers?”, Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 46, n. 5, pp. 597-611.
GOLINELLI G.M., (2000) L’approccio sistemico al governo dell’impresa, Cedam, Padova.
HAN S.L., SUNG H.S. (2008), “Industrial brand value and relationship performance in business markets - A general structural equation model”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 37, n. 7, pp. 807-818.
HAUSMAN A., STOCK J. R. (2003), “Adoption and implementation of technological innovation within long-term relationships”, Journal of Business Research, vol. 56, n. 8, pp. 681-686.
HAUSMAN A., JOHNSTON W.J. (2010), “The impact of coercive and non-coercive forms of influence on trust, commitment, and compliance in supply chains”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 39, n. 3, pp. 519-526.
IASEVOLI G. (2004), “La valutazione della coerenza tra I brand partners nelle alleanze di marketing” Micro & Macro Marketing, n. 3.
JACOBY J., CHESTNUT R.W. (1978), Brand Loyalty Measurement and Management, John Wiley, New York.
KIM K. (2000), “On Interfirm Power, Channel Climate, and Solidarity in Industrial Distributor-Supplier Dyads”, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 28, n. 3, pp. 65-89.
MACNEIL I.R. (1980), The New Social Contract, Yale University Press, New Haven.
MUDAMBI S., DOYLE P., WONG V. (1997), “An exploration of branding in industrial markets”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 26, n. 5, pp. 433-446.
MUDAMBI S. (2002), “Branding importance in business-to-business markets. Three buyer clusters”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 31, n. 6, pp. 525-533.
NORRIS D.G. (1993), “«Intel Inside». Branding a component in a business market”, Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing, vol. 8, n. 1, pp. 14-24.
PRESUTTI JR. W. D. (2003), “Supply management and e-procurement: creating value added in the supply chain”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 32, n. 3, pp. 219-226.
QUESTER P., LIM A.L. (2003), “Product Involvement/brand loyalty: is there a link?,” Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 12, n. 1, pp. 22-38.
RAUYRUEN P., MILLER K.E., GROTH M. (2009), “B2B services: linking service loyalty and brand equity”, Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 23, n. 3, pp. 175-186.
ROBERTS J., MERRILEES B. (2007), “Multiple roles of brand in business-to-business services”, Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing, vol. 22, n. 6, pp. 410-417.
ROUSSEAU D.M., SITKIN S.B., BURT R.S., CAMERER C. (1998), “Not So Different After All: A Cross-Dicipline View of Trust,” Academy of Management Review, vol. 23, n. 3, pp. 393-404.
SAUNDERS J.A., WATT F.A.W. (1979), “Do brand names differentiate identical industrial products?”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 8, n. 2, pp. 114-123.
SIMPSON J.T., MAYO D.T. (1997), “Relationship management: A call for fewer influence attempts”, Journal of Business Research, vol. 39, n. 3, pp. 209-218.
TANG Y.C., LIOU F.M., PENG S.Y. (2008), “B2B brand extension to the B2C market - The case of the ICT industry in Taiwan”, Journal of Brand Management, vol. 15, n. 6, pp. 399-411.
TAYLOR S.A., HUNTER G., (2003), “An exploratory investigation into the antecedents of satisfaction, brand attitude, and loyalty within the (B2B) eCRM industry”, Journal of Consumer Satisfaction, Dissatisfaction and Complaining Behavior, n. 16, pp. 19-35.
VALDANI E., ANCARANI F. (2009), Marketing Strategico, EGEA, Milano.
VAN DE VEN A.H. (1976), “On the Nature, Formation and Maintenance of Relations Among Organizations”, Academy of Management Review, vol. 1, pp. 24-36.
VAN RIEL A.C.R., DE MORTANGES C.P., STREUKENS S. (2005), “Marketing antecedents of industrial brand equity: an empirical investigation in specialty chemicals”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 34, n. 8, pp. 841-847.
VARALDO R., DALLI D. (2011), “Le relazioni strategiche tra industria e distribuzione” Sinergie, vol. 3, n. 61-62.
VESCOVI T., CECCHINATO F. (2005), “Opportunità e problemi nello sviluppo di una strategia di co-branding”, Mercati e Competitività, n. 1.
WILLIAMSON O. E. (1979), “Transaction-Cost Economics: The Governance of Contractual Relations”, Journal of Law and Economics, vol. 22, n. 2, pp. 233-261.
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Published
2020-03-26
