Analysis of Sales Promotion Effects on Household Purchase Behavior

4.2.1 Brand Switching
Brand switching means that a consumer is induced to purchase a brand other than the one that
would have been purchased had the promotion not been available.
A simple theoretical explanation <strong>of</strong> why promotions induce brand switching is based
on the theory <strong>of</strong> reasoned action as developed by Fishbein and Ajzen (1975, 1980). This
theory places behavior, behavioral intentions, attitude and subjective norm in one framework,
where behavior is a function <strong>of</strong> behavioral intention, which in turn is a function <strong>of</strong> attitude and
subjective norm. The attitude component consists <strong>of</strong> a weighted linear summation <strong>of</strong> beliefs
about a product. Attitude is also considered as a predisposition to buy. A sales promotion
(price cut, display, premium, etc.) could lead to a positive change in predisposition to buy the
product, resulting for example in a brand switch. This theory provides an explanation for
heterogeneity among households with respect to the concept <strong>of</strong> deal proneness. Some
consumers attach great importance to price cuts, others to coupons. A third group might relate
sales promotions to inferior products. This leads to different attitudes, different
predispositions to buy, and ultimately different buying behavior due to the presence or
absence <strong>of</strong> sales promotions.
Another theoretical explanation for brand switching is <strong>of</strong>fered by the theory <strong>of</strong>
involvement. Low-involvement consumer decision-making models especially provide
explanations for why non-price promotions may induce brand switching. Consumers may
simply buy the brand most readily available, the displayed brand. A feature may remind the
consumer that he or she needs chips, and since the brand name is attached to the feature, the
consumer goes to the store thinking, “I need brand X chips.”
One <strong>of</strong> the most striking findings in empirical research is that the brand switching
effects are asymmetric (e.g., Kumar and Leone 1988, Blattberg and Wisniewski 1988). That
is, the cross-effect <strong>of</strong> a promotion for brand A on the sales <strong>of</strong> brand B may differ from the
cross-effect <strong>of</strong> a promotion for B on the sales <strong>of</strong> brand A. For example, consumers generally
preferring brands with low regular prices (e.g., store brands) may switch over whenever a
temporary price cut is <strong>of</strong>fered for a (national) brand with a high regular price. However,
consumers preferring the national brands may be insensitive to the price for the store brand.
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