Brand Personality Dimensions and Consumer Preference A Study of Sportswear Brands in two Capital Cities of Northern India

Abstract

newline ABSTRACT The focus of this study is on positioning the brands beyond their functional attributes in a manner which can best distinguish them from their competitors. This distinction can be achieved by exploiting the emotional benefits of a brand and by giving them the symbolic meaning. Within this frame the brand personality has found its way into the world of brand management. Marketers strive hard to create a brand personality which is distinct, enduring and sustainable; especially in cases where multiple brands in the same product category exists as in case of sportswear. newlineThe study focused on (i) the identification of the brand personality dimensions of sportswear brands in the study area, (ii) the examination of the influence of the brand personality dimensions on consumer preference, and (iii) the study of the influence of brand personality drivers on brand personality dimensions. This study, based on 1000 college and university students of two North Indian capital cities -Chandigarh and Shimla uses factor analysis, one way ANOVA and stepwise multiple regression as the main statistical tools to analyze the data. The brand personality scale of Aaker (1997) has been used as the main construct in this study. The results of the study revealed that in the study area for the sportswear brands, six brand personality dimensions, namely Sophistication, Sincerity, Competence, Excitement, Ruggedness and Small-town were identified. Out of these brand personality dimensions, three dimensions namely Excitement, Ruggedness and Sincerity had a significant influence on consumer preference. These dimensions also influenced the repeated purchase decisions of the consumers. It means that respondents perceived these dimensions as the ones which when associated with a sportswear brand will translate into their preference for the brand. Perusal of the results also reveals that the extracted brand personality dimensions varied across different socio-economic environments. Further, the study identifies the brand personality drivers which significantly contributed in forming the extracted brand personality dimensions. The most important brand personality dimension - Excitement was significantly influenced by the brand personality drivers- Logo, User imagery, Advertisement style, and Price. Similarly, the significant brand personality drivers for Ruggedness were Sponsorship, Advertisement style, Company image, Celebrity endorsers and Price. Lastly, Sincerity dimension was influenced by the brand personality drivers namely Sponsorship, Logo, Advertisement style and Price. The study suggests the use of brand personality drivers for creating important brand personality dimensions which can influence consumer preference of sportswear brands.