Abstract
While the effectiveness of brand linkage strategy is internationally undisputed, no studies have empirically explored and identified the effectiveness of linked brands in the South African context. Brand linkage is an often used marketing strategy to leverage brands in a contemporary, postmodern business environment cluttered with me-too non-differentiated competing brands, and it has been referred to by various scholars in one form or another for seven decades. In most cases, the nature of brand linkage affects the relationships and interaction between customers and brands. Empirical research on brand linkage is limited to relatively few studies that have typically examined brands with fictitious products rather than real instances of brand linkages. This study is a unique attempt to understand the implications of brand linkage on brand ratings and brand perceptions within the new business environment from a real-world perspective.
The present study contributes to brand linkage literature by redefining the concept brand linkage extending linkage to include co-branding, brand alliance and brand extension. Another original contribution to the field was the methodology undertaken, using a card-scoring method, which was implemented in a Pretest – Posttest Control Group Experimental Design. This research design was applied to determine how brand linkage affects the ratings and perceptions of the brands in question. Two brands namely Woolworths and Engen were selected and the linkage was examined among 250 respondents, consisting of four groups, with two groups being aware of the linkage and two groups not, some who were exposed to the intervention and some not. The study showed that there were statistically significant differences over time between pre and post intervention ratings of Engen for two groups that were exposed to a campaign depicting the Engen-Woolworths brand linkage. Furthermore, findings indicate that the group that was aware of the linkage and exposed to the intervention rated Woolworths significantly higher than the group that was unaware of the linkage and not exposed to the intervention. These findings have important implications in terms of the underlying theory and literature, as well as the development of brand linking strategies.
D.Litt. et Phil.