Brand Gender (eBook)

Theo Lieven is Adjunct Professor of Marketing at the Institute for Customer Insight, University Of St. Gallen, Switzerland. Previously, he founded a computer company which grew to be one of the largest European retailers in 1996, and has studied management and economics.​

Preface 6
Acknowledgements 9
Contents 10
Abbreviations 12
List of Figures 14
List of Tables 16
1 A Brand as a Person 18
Anthropomorphism and Animism 18
Brand Personality 20
A Brand as a Friend 22
Brand Equity 23
The Intangible Sum of a Product’s Attributes 24
Brand Gender 24
Beauty and Excellence 26
References 27
2 Gender and Ease of Categorization 32
Gender as a Component of Human Personality 32
Positive Associations Formed by Sex-Typed Stimuli 33
Classification of Brands Using Brand Gender 38
The Gender Concept: Bipolar, Orthogonal, or Categorical 42
References 46
3 Global Branding with Brand Gender and Brand Equity 50
Branding in Times of Globalization 50
The Universality of Gender 51
Four Genders Instead of Two 53
Empirical Study: 20 Brands in 10 Countries on Four Continents 53
SEM and Scale Characteristics 62
Brand Gender Differences Across Brands and Countries 63
Equity Differences Across Brands and Countries 66
Conclusion 68
References 75
4 Androgyny, Consumers’ Biological Sex, and Cultural Differences 79
Global Assumptions on the Effects of Brand Gender on Brand Equity 79
Androgyny 82
Biological Sex Versus Gender Roles 84
Collectivism Versus Individualism 85
Empirical Study 86
General Discussion 93
References 97
5 Brand Gender and Equity Through Brand Design 100
A Brand Is More Than a Name 100
Conceptual Background 102
Brand Name 104
Type Font 105
Color 105
Logo Shape 107
Impact of Brand Design-Based Masculinity and Femininity Perceptions on Brand Preferences and Equity 108
Empirical Studies 109
Study 1: Logo Shapes and Brand Masculinity/Femininity 109
Study 2: Type Font, Brand Name, Brand Masculinity/Femininity, and Brand Preferences 111
Study 3: Type Font, Color, Brand Femininity/Masculinity, and Brand Preference 114
Study 4: Modification of Brand Communication for Existing Brands and Brand Equity 121
Conclusion 123
References 128
6 Creating a Strong Sports Shoe Brand 135
A Brand Is More Than a Name 135
References 141
7 The Independent Gender Effects of Logo, Product, and Brand 142
Isn’t It Obvious? 142
Gendered Brand Names 143
Gendered Brands 144
Empirical Studies 144
The Power of Androgyny 150
Logo and Product Gender Aid One Another to Build Strong Brands 151
References 153
8 Product Gender and Product Evaluation 155
Feminine Cars and Masculine Fragrances 155
Product Gender Deriving from Product Aesthetics 157
Product Value Deriving from Product Gender 163
Study 1: Product Gender Affected Through Product Characteristics 166
Study 2: Increasing Perceived Product Value Through Product Gender 177
Product Value Increases Through Product Gender 181
References 182
9 Salesperson Gender Follows Brand Gender 189
Behavioral Branding 189
From Humans to Brands and Back 190
Laboratory Choice Experiment 192
Choosing Portraits of Salespersons for Brands 194
Which Salespersons Fit Androgynous Brands? 198
The Particular Role of Female Salespersons 202
Conclusions 202
References 203
10 Brand Gender and Brand Alliances 207
Birds of a Feather Flock Together 207
Brand Fit 208
Brand Gender 209
Congruence and Fluency Theories 210
Pre-Tests 211
Matching of Brand Gender 215
Brand Gender Similarity and Its Effects 217
Discussion 220
References 221
11 How to Create a Personality Scale 225
The Missing Generalizability of Brand Personality Scales 225
How It Proceeds Today 227
The Extension of the Psycho-Lexical Approach 229
Theoretical Study 230
Empirical Study 233
Discussion 236
References 237
12 The Effect of Brand Gender on Brand Equity—A Simple Fallacy? 241
The Perils of Statistic Procedures 241
Cross-Border/Cross-Cultural Measurement Invariances 242
Common Method Variance 244
Appropriateness of Assigning of Human Personality Traits to Brands 246
Conclusion 249
References 250
13 Summary, Discussion, and Conclusion 252
Summary 252
Discussion 261
Conclusion 262
References 262
Index 264