Breaking the mould on copycats:When are imitation strategies successful

Consumer product companies and retailers often imitate the appearance (or “trade-dress”) of a leader brand to profit from the positive associations attached to the leader brand. Such a copycatting strategy is deliberate and frequently used, as evidenced by the plethora of copycats one can find in the supermarket. Despite the frequent use of such product imitation strategies, it is however less clear when they are successful and why. This dissertation sheds new light on this important question and demonstrates that the effectiveness of a copycat strategy is not only determined by package similarity, but is highly dependent on where the copycat is sold (e.g., in which store) and how it is positioned on the supermarket shelf (e.g., next to the leader brand or not). Furthermore and in contrast to the current opinion, this dissertation shows that high similarity copycats can backfire and reduce consumer’s liking of copycats, whilst subtler forms of copycatting can free-ride more effectively on the leader brand’s equity. Because this dissertation examines the mechanisms underlying copycat effectiveness beyond consumer confusion (where consumers accidentally purchase the copycat instead of the leader brand) are examined, the subsequent findings are an important supplement to the existing literature.

Breaking the mould on copycats: When are imitation strategies successful.

Consumer product companies and retailers often imitate the appearance (or “trade-dress”) of a leader brand to profit from the positive associations attached to the leader brand. Such a copycatting strategy is deliberate and frequently used, as evidenced by the plethora of copycats one can find in the supermarket. Despite the frequent use of such product imitation strategies, it is however less clear when they are successful and why. This dissertation sheds new light on this important question and demonstrates that the effectiveness of a copycat strategy is not only determined by package similarity, but is highly dependent on where the copycat is sold (e.g., in which store) and how it is positioned on the supermarket shelf (e.g., next to the leader brand or not). Furthermore and in contrast to the current opinion, this dissertation shows that high similarity copycats can backfire and reduce consumer’s liking of copycats, whilst subtler forms of copycatting can free-ride more effectively on the leader brand’s equity. Because this dissertation examines the mechanisms underlying copycat effectiveness beyond consumer confusion (where consumers accidentally purchase the copycat instead of the leader brand) are examined, the subsequent findings are an important supplement to the existing literature.

When it pays to be clear: the appeal of concrete communication under uncertainty

This research demonstrates that the persuasiveness of concrete versus abstract communication in advertisers’ promotional messages depends on how (un)certain people feel. Three lab experiments and one study conducted in a natural setting provide converging evidence that uncertainty (versus certainty) increases the appeal of products advertised concretely (i.e., more specific, tangible, less open to interpretation) rather than abstractly, while keeping content similar. We demonstrate the effect across different types of uncertainty, product ads and slogans, three different languages, and a range of products, increasing the external validity of the findings. The results indicate that the effectiveness of concrete communication is critically determined by the level of (un)certainty people experience, which provides important insights for advertisers and communication officers

Adverse Drug Reactions in Children—A Systematic Review

Adverse drug reactions in children are an important public health problem. We have undertaken a systematic review of observational studies in children in three settings: causing admission to hospital, occurring during hospital stay and occurring in the community. We were particularly interested in understanding how ADRs might be better detected, assessed and avoided

Breaking the mould on copycats: When are imitation strategies successful

Consumer product companies and retailers often imitate the appearance (or “trade-dress”) of a leader brand to profit from the positive associations attached to the leader brand. Such a copycatting strategy is deliberate and frequently used, as evidenced by the plethora of copycats one can find in the supermarket. Despite the frequent use of such product imitation strategies, it is however less clear when they are successful and why. This dissertation sheds new light on this important question and demonstrates that the effectiveness of a copycat strategy is not only determined by package similarity, but is highly dependent on where the copycat is sold (e.g., in which store) and how it is positioned on the supermarket shelf (e.g., next to the leader brand or not). Furthermore and in contrast to the current opinion, this dissertation shows that high similarity copycats can backfire and reduce consumer’s liking of copycats, whilst subtler forms of copycatting can free-ride more effectively on the leader brand’s equity. Because this dissertation examines the mechanisms underlying copycat effectiveness beyond consumer confusion (where consumers accidentally purchase the copycat instead of the leader brand) are examined, the subsequent findings are an important supplement to the existing literature