Suchergebnisse

Abstract
Recent research has highlighted a difference in the way consumers approach choice sets. Some consumers focus on products' quality benefits (vertical differentiation): their selections are driven by the level of quality obtained relative to the price paid. Other consumers focus on products' taste benefits (horizontal differentiation): their selections are driven by acquiring personal tastes at favorable prices. This article aims to investigate how consumers' benefit focus, a continuum anchored by quality and taste, drives their preferences between retailers differing in pricing strategies. All else equal, consumers who focus on taste benefits will prefer EDLP stores (infrequent discounters), while consumers who focus on quality benefits will prefer Hi-Lo stores (frequent discounters). Findings from our experiments and an analysis of consumer panel data corroborate this relationship. This work also shows the mediating role of perceived value and the effect of several moderators: the strength of the price–quality relationship, the pattern of discounts, and cherry-picking costs.

Political polarization is a marked political division in the population, characterized by multiple manifestations. The authors argue that it can affect consumer psychology, which in turn influences marketers, policy makers, and consumer welfare. The present work introduces the construct of political polarization to the marketing literature and shows how it serves as a novel challenge for various marketing stakeholders. For consumers, the authors propose that political polarization increases the salience of political identities, alters inter- and intragroup dynamics, and amplifies cognitive biases. These effects negatively affect consumer welfare, including financial welfare, relationships, mental and physical health, and societal interests. For marketers, polarization introduces a challenge to both be more sociopolitically engaged while also navigating competing political interests. Polarization also creates new opportunities and challenges for segmentation, targeting, loyalty, and product offerings. For policy makers, political polarization creates policy gaps, impedes the implementation of policy, and obstructs governance. Building from these insights, the authors consider the drawbacks and overlooked benefits of political polarization, potential remedies, and directions for future research.