UNIVERSITY OF AMSTERDAM
Is green the new red?
Experimental research to investigate changes in brand color and its influence on brand CSR associations, consumer brand responses, purchase intention, brand
attitude and brand evaluation. Emilie Christine Louise Duijvestijn
6/24/2015 Supervisor: L. Moratis
E.C.L. Duijvestijn Kinkerstraat 8 3 1083 DT Amsterdam T +31650246569
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 2
Preface
Amsterdam, June 24th, 2014
As part of my Master Business Administration at the Amsterdam Business School of the University of Amsterdam, I am conducting a research for my master thesis related to my marketing specialization. Since both brand management in consumer behaviour and Corporate social responsibility has taken my interest, I decided to do a research on a recent branding trend: Well-known brands changing their brand color to green to convey more CSR related associations. Translating practise to theory and theory to practice leads to interesting consumer psychology and business findings for academics and marketers. I was privileged with the supervision of Lars Moratis who is an expert in Corporate social responsibility and helped me to reach this final result.
At last, I would like to thank all the respondents for their effort and time to fill in my questionnaire. Their help and additional responses by mail gave me the opportunity to work with valuable data. The result is a very interesting thesis on an understudied topic but nonetheless important area of Marketing & Advertising.
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 3
Statement of originality
This document is written by Emilie Duijvestijn who declares to take full
responsibility for the contents of this document.
I declare that the text and the work presented in this document is original and
that no sources other than those mentioned in the text and its references have
been used in creating it.
The Faculty of Economics and Business is responsible solely for the supervision
of completion of the work, not for the contents.
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 4
Abstract
Purpose – Nowadays, organizations do not distinguish themselves through their individual CSR activities. Instead, CSR initiatives are increasingly becoming a point of parity. Organizations are even making changes to their primary brand elements, by changing their brand color to green in order to convey a more desirable corporate identity. McDonald’s began this color transition for their logo and were followed soon after by Coca-Cola and Pepsi. This thesis aims to investigate the influence that a brand color has when it is changed to green. The purpose of this research is threefold; first (a) to examine whether a brand color change to green will add CSR associations, second (b) to investigate the influence of brand color change on consumer brand responses, purchase intention, attitude to the brand (brand attitude) and brand evaluation, and third (c) the moderating role of brand commitment and CSR-mindedness in these relationships.
Design/methodology/approach – The methodology aims to evaluate consumer responses, from their intent to buy, their attitude towards the brand, to their evaluation of the brand itself. In order to attain those goals, a questionnaire has been stated and held under 242 respondents. Respondents to the study were randomly assigned to one of the six conditions in the given parameters; three different brands (Shell, Esso and Hema) and the two conditions of change in their brand color (present/absent).
Findings – Results were found by applying mixed ANOVAs and regression analyses. The key finding implies that a brand color change to green evokes a greater number of CSR associations than when a brand color change is absent. Furthermore, this research asked the question whether a brand color change to green would positively affect responses of consumers. A positive significant result was found for the relationship between brand color change and brand evaluation. In addition, the results show that brand committed consumers have a more negative brand attitude when brand color change takes place compared to consumers who are less committed towards the brand.
Practical implications – This research demonstrates that a brand color change into green evokes more consumer CSR associations. This is important for marketers who are considering a CSR-related campaign, or for companies that are considering a clear CSR strategy. In addition, managers should keep their target group in mind as age and brand commitment influence the responses of consumers when brand color change takes place. Furthermore, consumers are generally skeptical and expect more than a logo color change to sway their opinions about the brand. Therefore this thesis recommends companies to combine brand color change with transparent and clear marketing communication explaining the purpose of the brand color change.
Future research – Future research may examine brand color change in relationship with marketing communication as this might decreases consumer skepticism.
Originality/value – Existing literature analyzing color in marketing has been largely understudied and especially when it comes to the influences of brand color change on consumers.
Key words – Corporate Social Responsibility, branding, Green marketing, Green washing, purchase intention, brand attitude, brand evaluation, CSR association, brand commitment, CSR-mindedness, Customer-based brand equity.
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Table of content
Preface 2 Statement of originality 3 Abstract 4 1. Introduction 81.1 Primary brand element strategies in a CSR context 8
1.2 Research question 10
1.3 Sub-questions 10
1.4 Delimitations of the study 11
1.5 Relevance 11
1.5.1 Theoretical contributions 11
1.5.2 Managerial contributions 12
1.6 Thesis structure 12
2. Literature review 14
2.1 Building customer based brand equity 14
2.2 Brand building with the brand element strategy 16
2.3 The role of Brand Color in customer based brand equity 18
2.4 The inherent meaning of color 19
2.5 Consumer responses 20
3. The role of CSR in building customer brand equity 22
3.1 Defining Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) 22
3.2 Brand color change and Corporate Social Responsibility associations 23
3.3 Brand color change and consumer responses 24
3.4 The mediating role of corporate social responsibility associations 25 4. The influence of CSR mindedness and brand commitment 27 4.1 Different types of consumers respond differently towards brand color change 27
4.2 The role of brand commitment 28
5. Research framework 30
5.1 Conceptual model of the research study 30
6. Methodology 31
6.1 Stimuli development 31
6.2 Pilot test 31
6.3 Research sample 32
6.4 Procedure and respondents 33
6.5 Measurements 33 6.6 Control variables 37 6.7 Analyses 37 7. Results 38 7.1 Descriptive statistics 38 7.2 Hypothesis testing 41
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7.2.1 Brand color change and CSR associations 41
7.2.2 Brand color change and consumer responses 43
7.3 Mediation effect of CSR associations 46
7.4.1 Interaction effect of CSR mindedness 48
7.4.2 Interaction effect of brand commitment 50
7.5 Overview of the hypotheses 51
7.6 Additional analyses 52
8. Discussion 53
8.1 Summary of the findings 53
8.1.1 The relationship between brand color change and CSR associations 53 8.1.2 The relationship between brand color change and consumer responses 54
8.1.3 The mediating role of CSR associations 56
8.1.4 The moderating effect of CSR mindedness 57
8.1.5 The moderating effect of brand commitment 58
8.2 Theoretical implication 59
8.3 Managerial implications 60
8.4 Limitations and future research 62
8.5 Conclusion 65
9. References 66
10. Appendices 74
Appendix A- Pilot test 74
Appendix B-Results pilot test 78
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List of figures and tables
List of figures
Figure 1. Customer-based brand equity model pyramid 16
Figure 2. Conceptual framework 30
Figure 3. A significant increase of CSR associations in the treatment condition; 41 brand color change present.
Figure 4. An increase in CSR associations for the three different brands in 42 pre, post measurements
Figure 5. Significant increase of CSR associations for the three different brands 43 Figure 6. Purchase intention decreases when brand color change is present 43 Figure 7. Differences of the change in purchase intention for the three brands 44
before and after brand color change happened.
Figure 8. Brand attitude increases slightly when brand color change is present 44 Figure 9. Differences of the change in Brand attitude for the three brands before 45
and after brand color change happened
Figure 10. A significant increase of brand evaluation when brand color change is present 45 Figure 11. Differences of the change in brand evaluation for the three brands before 46
and after brand color change happened
Figure 12. Schematic of simple mediation model, one mediator CSR associations. 47
Figure 13. Interaction effect of CSR mindedness on purchase intention, brand 49 evaluation and brand attitude.
Figure 14. Significant interaction effect of brand commitment on the relation; 51 condition, pre-post and brand attitude
List of tables
Table 1. Six different conditions 2x3 32
Table 2. Distribution of the participants 38
Table 3. Descriptive statistics 39
Table 4. Descriptive statistics 39
Table 5. Mean, standard deviation, internal consistencies and Pearson’r of the variables 40 Table 6. Mean scores and Standard deviations, of the different brands 42
with dependent variable CSR associations
Table 7. Mixed ANOVA results, hypotheses 1 – 4 46
Table 8. Results of mediation model: Effects of brand color change on 48 purchase intention brand attitude and brand evaluation, via CSR associations. Table 9. Mixed ANOVA results with the moderator CSR mindedness (low/high) 49 Table 10. Mixed ANOVA results with the moderator brand commitment (low/high) 50
Table 11. Overview of the hypotheses 51
Table 12. Fit brand color change into and brand, N=123 52
Table 13. Attitude towards the brand color change, N=123 52
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1. Introduction
1.1 Primary brand elements in a corporate social responsibility context
Since the mid-1980s, the effects of global warming and the exhaustion of natural resources have become increasingly important environmental concerns. Many consumers have come to realize that their purchasing behavior has a direct impact on the environment. As a result, consumers have started to change their habits by considering environmental issues while shopping (e.g., checking if the product is wrapped in recycled material). In addition,
consumers have become increasingly attentive to matters of health and nutrition. This trend for consumers with an interest in healthy products and a feeling of social responsibility has led to a remarkable growth for environmentally friendly and healthy products in the global market (Hunt & Dorfman, 2009). In response to an increasing demand for so called‘green’ products, and concerns for product impact on society, organizations now engage themselves in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities (Dawkins, 2004). They conduct campaign projects on societal commitment and communicate sustainable performance options to
stakeholders in order to create additional CSR associations on top of existing brand associations.
There are three marketing building blocks through which organizations can add or create additional CSR associations: (1) applying marketing communication, (2) using secondary brand associations and (3) communicating primary brand elements (Keller, 2013, p. 550). This thesis focuses on the primary brand element strategy. Primary brand elements are owned by the brand itself and consist of logos, names, slogans, jingles, designs and packaging (Keller, 1993). The brand element strategy is a strategy to create brand awareness and a desired CSR brand image in consumers’ minds. For instance, the logo and slogan of a brand are two primary brand elements that are easily recognizable and associated with the brand. The primary brand element strategy is considered to be a powerful tool in positioning a brand due to the full control the organization has over its own brand elements.
Organizations make changes to primary brand elements in order to convey a desirable corporate identity. This corporate image can be described as “the totality of a stakeholder’s perceptions of the way an organizations presents itself, either deliberately by changes in brand elements or accidentally” (Markwick and Fill, 1997, p. 396).
In particular, companies with bad reputations (e.g., companies in the tobacco and oil industries) seem to be interested in changing their negative image through marketing CSR
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 9 activities (Palazzo & Richter, 2005). For example, in order to reposition itself as caring for
the environment and distinguish itself from other oil companies, British Petroleum (BP) used lower-case “bp” letters in a “smoother, more childlike” font in its logo, to stand for “beyond petroleum” rather than BP, made tonal changes to the green and yellow colors used, and made a “greater use of yellow by the incorporation of a sun-like image to convey a sense of solar rather than oil power” (Wells et al., 2008, p. 481). Another example is McDonald’s, a well-known brand for its golden arches and sparkling red logo, who recently decided to change its core brand color from red to green. The reason for this color transition was to improve marketing performance and contribute to the brand’s image by enhancing the company’s reputation as a healthy and environmentally friendly brand in the eyes of the consumer. Brands such as Coca-Cola and Pepsi followed this ‘color strategy’ for their new products – Coca-Cola Life and Pepsi Next – both of which contain stevia, a natural
sweetener, healthier than regular sugar. They changed their iconic red logos to green on their bottles, cans, labels and any other advertisements, to create a so-called ‘green’ brand image for a natural and healthier soda product.
This thesis investigates the influence of primary brand elements and, in particular, the effect of brand color change on CSR-related associations and consumer responses towards the brand. Changes in a brand element such as color give brand managers full control of repositioning a brand as more CSR-related. In addition, are changes in brand elements an effective tool to elicit other consumer responses (Singh, 2006). However, research about consumer responses to colors in marketing fall short into evidence linking specific colors to specific responses (Kaiser, 1984). Therefore, marketing managers should be aware of their color choices and the fact that consumers might not experience brand color choices in the same manner as it was intended by the marketing team (Singh, 2006). Empirical research on the question as to whether brand color change evokes a positive consumer evaluation on the brand and the CSR-related associations has been lacking. Hence, an important question to ask is: Do consumers also perceive the brand as more CSR related when the brands color is changed to green?
Following this question also many other questions about a rebranding color strategy remain unanswered, such as: would it be smart if a strong brand that is already strongly associated with a certain color in consumers’ minds (for example, Coca-Cola and the color red), should experiment with color changes? Will change of the brand’s ‘color’ for such
well-Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 10 known brands positively influence consumer responses? Or will color change create
confusion and negative attitudes towards the brand? Does color change add CSR-related associations in consumers’ minds and is the color green the appropriate color to create these CSR-related associations?
These questions illustrate that particular attention is needed to investigate the influence of brand color change of well-known brands on consumer responses. 1.2 Research question
The purpose of this research is threefold: first (a) to examine whether brand color change into green will add CSR associations, second (b) to investigate the influence of brand color
change on consumer brand responses such as their intent to buy, attitude towards the brand and evaluation of the brand, and third (c) the moderating roles that brand commitment and CSR-mindedness have in these relationships. By analyzing and comparing two different brand groups: brands that remain unchanged (original brand color) and brands that change their house style brand color from red to green, the following research question is formulated: To what extent are brands able to add CSR associations by changing their core ‘brand color’ and does this change influence consumer responses positively for their attitude to the brand, their intent to buy and their evaluation of the brand?
By investigating this question, this study aims to find an answer to whether it is possible to create CSR associations by changing a brand’s core color to green and the necessity of CSR associations in rebranding and its influence on consumer responses.
1.3 Sub questions
In order to answer the research question, a description of building customer-based brand equity, the importance of the brand element strategy, and the inherent meaning of ‘color’ is provided. Furthermore, a description of what CSR associations are, and their impact on consumer brand responses, is given. This information will give insight into the role of CSR associations between brand color change and consumer responses. In order to answer the research question, several sub questions are formulated:
What is the role of the brand element strategy in building customer-based brand equity?
What is the influence of color on consumer brand responses? How do consumers respond to changes in brand color?
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 11 What are CSR associations?
Can you create CSR associations by changes in brand color? How important is CSR in consumers’ brand responses?
What is the role of brand commitment in the relationship between brand color change and consumer brand evaluations?
1.4 Delimitations of the study
There are many brand strategies that can be applied on top of existing brand associations to create a desired brand image and additional CSR associations. However, this thesis focuses on the primary brand element strategy. Brands’ color changes will be investigated with regard to brands’ logos and their ‘packaging’. Brand ‘packaging’ means the look and feel of a brand and is not product packaging. These two brand elements are investigated because color plays a dominant role in both brand elements and not in many others, such as naming, URLs, slogans, characters and jingles. While brands’ core colors seek to influence a variety of stakeholders, this thesis focuses on consumers, a key audience of stakeholders with the power to shape the destiny of individual firms and economies (Hansen and Schrader, 1997).
Furthermore, this thesis will examine only well-known services brands. There are too many factors that influence the dependent variables of new or innovative brand logos to take into account (Petkova & Rindova, 2006). Two brands in the petroleum sector (a secondary and leading brand) and one brand in the retail sector are selected, to ensure that the results can neither solely be ascribed to one particular brand, nor one particular industry.
Brands both strongly and weakly known for CSR are used in this research. By examining these two opposites, this research is able to investigate the differences between them and whether it makes sense for a well-known CSR brand to change its brand to a ‘sustainable’ color such as green.
1.5 Relevance
The findings of this research are expected to have relevance from both an academic and a practitioner perspective.
1.5.1 Academic relevance
Currently marketing communications fall short in changing brands or creating additional CSR associations. This research examines whether color as an antecedent of the primary
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 12 brand element strategy is able to add CSR associations and influence consumer brand
responses. This research will add knowledge to the existing literature in this field regarding the scope of corporate social responsibility and consumers ‘ behavior and attitude
(Bhattacharya and Sen, 2001; Du, Bhattacharya, & Sen, 2010),relating to branding and several theories within this research field such as, associative learning theory, and classical conditioning (McSweeney & Bierley, 1984; Shimp, 1991; Till, 1998).
In addition, this thesis links and combines literature from different research disciplines such as cognitive psychology, business sustainability, branding, marketing strategy and color studies. It explores within these disciplines several well-known theories and models, such as the elaboration likelihood model, information process theory, classical conditioning and perceptual fluency in order to develop hypotheses or clarify results. Therefore this research can add value both as a supplement to existing literature about consumer reactions to Corporate Social responsibility (e.g. Sen and Bhattacharya, 2001; Du, Bhattacharya and Sen, 2010) and adjustments to brand logo’s (e.g Walsch, Winterich, & Mittal, (2010); Henderson & Cote, (1998). However, the thesis could also be a starting point for the development of new theories about brand color change. Nevertheless, this study aims to provide valuable information for both academics and brand managers interested in
consumer responses to a specific color positioning strategy. 1.5.2 Managerial relevance
Heightened interest in environmentally friendly and healthy products over the past couple of years has led to increasing demand for CSR-marketing communication, to allow consumers to choose between sustainable options (Horne, 2009). For brand managers, this research provides valuable insight into how a primary brand element strategy can be used as an external stimulus from which the brand can evoke positive (or negative) consumer brand responses. In this way, not only could color serve as a tool to communicate CSR associations, but also it could function as a strategic marketing tool for brand managers and subsequently influence evaluations a consumer makes on the brand. Not only will the results lead to well-defined guidelines for brand color design, It will also provide information about responses to the brand color change of different consumers. This research will thus provide brand
managers with strategic insights into the short-term impact of brand color change on consumer responses to well-known brands.
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 13 1.6 Thesis structure
The thesis is divided into the following key areas:
A discussion about building customer-based brand equity as a tool to create a brand image, leading to a discourse on brand element strategy.
A focus on colors for brand elements and a rationale that color in brand logos and packaging likely provoke brand meaning. This section asks whether brand color could elicit consumer brand responses.
The role of CSR in building customer-based brand equity. Questioning if CSR stimulates brand equity and consumer responses.
An investigation into the role of CSR mindedness brand commitment. In addition, the information-processing perspective (Ahluwalia et al., 2000) will be explained and used in developing the hypotheses for brand commitment.
Subsequent sections present the research methodology and the findings of the empirical research experiment. In the conclusion, this thesis critically discusses the main findings obtained from the experiment and links them to the theories in social sciences outlined in the paragraph 1.5.1 theoretical contributions. In addition, the limitations on the chosen methodology and recommendations for future research in the area of brand color and CSR positioning are provided. The thesis’ appendices give results from the pilot-tests and online questionnaires that were consulted for the experiment.
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2. Literature Review
2.1 Building customer-based brand equity
In order to study brand color change, it is important to understand what a brand is, what brand equity is, and how brand equity can be measured. In this research, a brand is defined as “a name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or combination of them which is intended to identify the goods and services of on seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors” (Kotler, 1991, p. 442). Brand equity is generally defined in terms of the
marketing effects that are uniquely attributable to a brand.
However, brand equity has been viewed from a variety of perspectives and defined differently by researchers (e.g., Keller, 1993; Aaker, 1991; Wood, 2000). Through the years, different models were developed to address brand equity, of which Aaker’s (1991) brand equity model is a good example. He claims that brand associations, which form a foundation for both purchase decisions and brand loyalty, represent the underlying value of a brand. This model consists of five components: brand loyalty, brand awareness, perceived quality, brand association and other proprietary brand assets. An example of a second model that
conceptualizes brand equity is the Customer-Based Brand Equity model (CBBE), developed by Keller (1993). This model takes brand equity from the perspective of the consumer and provides a conceptual framework of what consumers know about a brand (Keller, 1993). Customer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE) can thus be defined as the differential effect that brand knowledge has on a consumer’s response to a brand’s marketing ventures. Here, ‘differential effect’ refers to how a brand needs to make a difference in order to become a well-known brand. This thesis has chosen to define brand equity based on the definition of Keller’s (1993) Customer-Based Brand Equity model (CBBE), since this research aims to investigate consumers’ responses towards brands.
The CBBE model takes the consumer as a starting point. This model states that brand value ultimately resides in the mind of the consumer. Conceptualizing brand equity from this perspective is simple because the model provides specific guidelines for marketing tactics, strategies, and areas where research can assist in managerial decision making. The model suggests that brands will have positive customer-based brand equity when customers respond more favorably to an element of the marketing mix (such as advertisements), than they would if that element were to be linked to an unbranded version of the product or service (Keller,
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 15 1993). The CBBE model views brand building as a long-term process. Potential dilution of
impact along the chain of command makes this model an interesting one to investigate. The objective of the CBBE model is to build a strong brand. Recognizing some of the marketplace benefits from having a strong brand can be seen as the value of a brand for the organization. Hoeffler and Keller (2003) give some possible benefits of brand
equity: improved perceptions of product performance; greater customer loyalty; less vulnerability to competitive marketing actions and marketing crises; larger margins; more elastic customer response to price decreases and inelastic customer response to price increases; greater trade or intermediary cooperation and support; increased marketing communication effectiveness and additional licensing and brand extension opportunities. Organizations will vary in their ability to realize these benefits, depending on their own strategy, marketing skills, resources, and the marketplace circumstances and context in which they operate. These benefits, however, only arise as the result of having a strong brand. Building a strong brand should thus be a management priority (Aaker 1991, 1996; Kapferer 2005).
The CBBE model visualizes building a strong brand as a sequence of steps, each of which is contingent on successfully achieving the objectives of the previous step. Kotler and Keller (2009) have named these steps the brand resonance pyramid. The steps are as follows:
1) Brand identity: ensuring identification of the brand with consumers and associating the brand with a specific product class or customer need in the eyes of the consumers 2) Brand meaning: strategically linking tangible and intangible brand associations 3) Brand responses: formed by consumers from putting together all the different brand
performances and visual associations
4) Brand resonance: an intense, active, loyal relationship between consumers and the brand.
According to this model, six building blocks establish a pyramid of ‘five A’s’: awareness, associations, attitudes and activity and attachment. The creation of significant brand equity requires reaching the top of the pyramid, which consists of brand resonance and only occurs if the right building blocks have been put into place beneath it. Figure 1. below represents the CBBE pyramid.
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 16 An interesting question to ask here might be, “By which marketing tools can you
build Customer-Based Brand Equity?” According to Keller, there are three marketing building blocks in building customer-based brand equity (CBBE). The first building block consists of marketing programs, such as price, distribution channels and marketing
communication. The second building block comprises leveraging secondary associations. These secondary associations could be the use of the company’s country of origin, such as Switzerland, for promoting luxury products, or the usage of popular celebrity endorsers (George Clooney and Nespresso) in promoting products or sponsoring events. The third building block consists of choosing the right brand elements. Brand elements are the elements directly associated with the brand and owned by the organization. According to Keller (1993; 2013) there are six core brand elements: brand names & URLs, logos & symbols, characters, slogans, jingles, and design & packaging.
This research focuses on this third building block: brand elements in building Customer-Based Brand Equity. In what follows, the different stages of brand development and the role of color in brand elements will be discussed for the following stages defined by Kotler & Keller (2009): brand salience, brand imagery, brand judgments and brand
resonance.
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 17 2.2 Brand building with the brand element strategy
Brand elements, such as the brand name, logo and slogan, have two main functions:
identification (a marker for consumers to find a specific offer or product) and differentiation (the ability to single that offering out from the others) (Kotler, 1991, p. 442). Brand elements are the elements that are directly associated to the brand and are also called identities of the brand (Keller, 1998). Together, they form the primary knowledge stored in a consumers’ brand associative network. The brand elements are under the full control of the organization and could therefore form a competitive tool to create a desirable brand image.
According to Keller (1993), the brand name is the most important brand element that is owned by an organization. However, a brand is more than a name (or ‘mark’). Other brand elements, such as logos and symbols (Ola’s red heart logo and McDonald’s golden arches), packaging (Coca-Cola’s bottle and Kodak’s yellow and black film box), and slogans
(Volkswagen “Wir leben das auto”) play an important role in building CBBE as well (Keller & Lehmann, 2006). This thesis focuses on the antecedent color in brands, which consist of the following two brand elements: the logo and the ‘packaging’ of service brands.
The logos and packaging of the brand are visual elements that play a critical role in building brand equity. In this research, the packaging of service brands is defined as the look and feel one gets when using or entering a store or service. Both of these brand elements contribute to visual equity, which is the value derived from ‘visual form’, that is the ‘look and feel’ of the brand. Visual equity contributes towards brand recognition, enabling a brand to stand out in the crowd and communicate a brand’s desired image. Visual equity is known to speed up the recognition of a brand. The rationale behind this is that the brain is able to process pictures faster than words (Edell and Stealin, 1983).
In this research, package color design does not mean the physical packaging of a product, as this has been understood to influence the flavor of the product (Speece & Silayoi, 2007). Brand packaging is here defined as the core color that the service brand uses in its advertising, signs, and store design. Color is an important determinant of package design.
Logos are important assets that organizations spend an enormous amount of time and money promoting (Rubel 1994). They appear on television, packaging, letterheads, business cards and signs, and in print advertisements, annual reports and product designs. Logos can have added value if two preconditions are fulfilled: first, stakeholders must remember having seen the logo (correct recognition); second, logos must remind stakeholder of the brand or
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 18 organization (recall). Ultimately, organizations want a fit between the desired meaning of a
logo as intended by the organization and the way the consumer perceives the logo’s meaning. Logos range from corporate names or trademarks written in a distinctive font to entirely abstract designs that may be completely unrelated to the company’s name or its corporate activities. The logo and name could be a single brand element, as found in the brands Kit Kat and Coca-Cola. However, non-word logos also exist, such as the Mercedes star, Rolex crown and Nike swoosh. An advantage of logos is that they are easily
recognizable and can be valuable in quickly identifying products. In addition, logos are versatile and can easily be subsumed into various cultures. Thus, if managed correctly, a logo can serve as a competitive advantage and be a way to increase a company’s reputation (Baker and Balmer, 1997; Olins, 1989).
2.3 The role of color in customer-based brand equity
The first stage of developing the customer-based brand equity pyramid is ‘brand salience’, which consists of both the depth and breadth of brand awareness. Brand awareness refers to the customer’s ability to recall or recognize a brand. Brand recognition relates to consumers’ ability to confirm prior exposure to the brand, when given the brand as a cue. Brand recall relates to consumers’ ability to retrieve the brand from memory when given the product category, the needs fulfilled by the product category, or another cue. Brand breadth is the range of situations (namely purchase and consumption) where the brand comes to mind. Brand awareness thus relates to the strength of the brand node, or ‘trace’ in memory, as reflected by consumers’ abilities to identify the brand under different conditions in specific situations (Rossiter and Percy, 1987). In other words, how well do the brand elements serve their purpose? Research into color use in marketing shows that a brand’s color is central to its identity and contributes to brand awareness, recall and recognition (Gorn, G. J.,
Chattopadhyay, A., Yi, T., & Dahl, D. W. 1997). Color is, according to Keller (1998), a trademark that is able to quickly identify the brand and differentiate it from its competitors. In 2000, for example, T-Mobile trademarked its logo’s pinkish hue, known as RAL 4010, for its advertising campaigns in order to keep a differentiated position from its competitors.
Research into branding has shown that advertisements in color are read up to 42% more than the same advertisements in black and white. Furthermore, when people buy a product, 93% look at its visual appearance and 84.7 % cite color as the primary reason why they buy a particular product. Similarly, Elliot Young, chairman of Perception Research
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 19 Services, found in his research that consumers recall the color of a package first, the shape of
a package second (if you have a proprietary or distinctive package structure), and the style or color of a brand logo third (Young in Wallace, 2001). In addition, a brand’s color provides a valuable memory retrieval cue for adults and children when they are learning about or
interacting with brands (Tutssel, 2000; Tavassoli, 2001; Macklin, 1996). Hence, color plays a dominant role in creating brand awareness and thus the first level of the pyramid, ‘brand salience’.
The second level of the pyramid consists of the brand’s meaning and is divided into brand performance and imagery. Brand performance describes how well the product and service meets customers’ more functional needs, such as its primary ingredients and supplementary features, or its style, design and price. The brand image is defined as a perception about a brand as gathered from brand associations in consumer memory (Keller, 1993). The brand associations are informational nodes linked to the brand node in a
consumer’s memory and contain the image of the brand for consumers.
Brand elements can initiate brand performance by giving information about sustainability, health (such as providing calories or ingredients), choosing logos for CSR labels (fair trade), or wrapping products in a specific package. In addition, brand elements also elicit different brand associations, which can be favorable, unique and strong (Keller, 2001, 2003). For instance, Coca-Cola’s jingle and slogan provokes happiness, joy, and pleasure, and Christmas and Santa Claus can be said to be brand associations. These associations are strong, favorable and typical for the Coca-Cola brand, which makes the associations unique in the product category.
2.4 The inherent meaning of color
Within branding, the inherent meaning of color has been examined using ad hoc collections of words used to describe a range of emotions, personality traits, and salient qualities for marketers (Grimes and Doole, 1998). In the literature of color psychology, comprehensive frameworks have been utilized. For instance, Adams and Osgood (1973) surveyed people in twenty-three countries using three defined dimensions of connotative meaning (evaluation, potency and activity) from Osgood et al., (1957). They found that blue, green and white were the most highly evaluated colors, while red and black were the most potent. Colors thus evoke a variety of associations that, without prior conditioning, can be used to communicate a brand’s desired image in the consumer’s mind (Madden et al., 2000).
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 20 Whether it is Heineken’s distinct green label, Coca-Cola’s red logo, Shell’s yellow
logo, all these colors provoke different inherent meanings and could therefore have an impact on the consumer’s perceptions and responses (Sen & Bhattacharya, 2001; Gorn, et al. 1997). Perceptions of color are generally subjective, although some colors have been studied to exhibit universal meanings. Research into color psychology has identified different
associations of how various colors are perceived. Red, for instance, is a bold color associated with energy, passion, love and aggression. Restaurants often use this color to stimulate appetite. Yellow represents optimism, youthfulness and increases warmth and cheerfulness. This color is mainly used to grab the attention of window shoppers. Blue creates a sense of security and trust in a brand. It is often associated with coldness, calmness, serenity, water and peace. Social network logos are often blue. Orange signals excitement, enthusiasm and warmth. It represents a friendly, cheerful and confident brand. Green is connected with health, nature, money and the environment. It is used in stores to create a relaxed atmosphere or to depict environmental or health awareness and understanding. Purple represents
creativity, imagination, spirituality and wisdom.
With these color associations in mind, we can state that choosing the right dominant color for a brand’s logo or ‘packaging’ is crucial for creating certain associations in the mind of the consumer and a desirable brand image, a statement that conforms to level 2 of Keller’s (2009) Customer-Based Brand Equity pyramid.
2.5 Consumer responses
The third level of the customer-based brand equity model pyramid consists of consumer responses: judgments and feelings about the brand that consumers form by putting all the different associations from the brand together. Brand feelings are consumers’ emotional responses and reactions to the brand. Brand judgments are consumers’ personal opinions and evaluations about the brand.
Research findings have proven that colors have a huge impact on marketing. Colors do not only shape our thoughts and emotions but also have the ability to influence people’s purchase habits, attitudes and even behavior. Bellizzi and Hite’s (1992) research into store atmospherics suggests that people prefer blue over red retail environments, finding the color more relaxing, encouraging longer periods of browsing and greater purchase intention. Singh (2006) highlights that colors influence the perception of the passage of time. Under a red
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 21 light, for example, time seems to pass more slowly and objects seem larger and heavier. On
the contrary, time seems to pass quickly under a blue light. Casinos take advantage of this principle, using red color lighting to get their customers excited, while also not making them feel that a great deal of time has passed. Similarly, Gorn et al. (2004) show that color
influences how quickly a webpage is perceived to download, and feelings of relaxation mediate this relationship.
This thesis is interested in whether brand color change has an influence on consumer judgments and investigates the following responses: brand attitude, purchase intention and brand evaluation. Brand attitude is here defined as a consumer’s attitude to the brand brand (Wilkie, 1986). Brand attitudes are important because they often form the basis for consumer behavior. Purchase intention is a measure of the possibility that a consumer will purchase a product: the higher the purchase intention expressed, the greater the probability of a purchase (Lin, Luarn, & Huang, 2005). It reflects the intention to buy a specific brand and is therefore a good indicator for actual brand purchase behavior. Brand evaluation is defined als the overall evaluation of a brand (Nedungadi, 1990).
Most research on attitude formation can be understood in the light of persuasion process paradigms, such as Petty and Cacioppo’s (1983) Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM). Attitude formation can take place through the central route, which implicates high cognitive effort, or the peripheral route consisting of low cognitive processing.
Research about consumer brand responses has shown that when people make a sub-conscious judgment about a brand within 90 seconds, 62%–90% of the judgment is based on color alone (Morton, CCICOLOR - Institute for Color Research). Furthermore, Pieters and Warlop (1998) found that consumers under time pressure block textual information in preference for pictorial information. These findings suggest that the color of a brand, or the color of a brand’s product packaging, will most likely peripherally affect the consumer.
This peripheral route occurs when there is either a lack of motivation or ability to evaluate the product or service (Mitchell and Olson, 1981). According to Olson and Jacoby (1972), consumers taking the peripheral route evaluate product or service quality on the basis of what they know about the brand, mostly based on the product’s appearance, where color plays a dominant role. Thus shown by the ELM model, colors are mostly used to make a quick subconscious judgment about a brand or create feelings associated with the brand.
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 22
3. The role of CSR in building customer-based brand equity
3.1 Defining Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
According to Cone Communications’survey results from 1994 and 1997, more than 70% of consumers in North America preferred products/services produced by socially responsible companies. More than 70% of consumers responded that they would switch the product brand they had initially selected to a more socially aware company’s product if the price and quality of products were equal. Since consumers tend to be in more favor of organizations
performing CSR activities, more organizations engage themselves in CSR (Nan & Heo, 2007).
CSR is a broad construct and can be defined through various perspectives: as a social obligation, a stakeholder obligation, ethics-driven, or a managerial process perspective (Maignan & Ferrell, 2004). In this light, some scholars (e.g., Ackerman, 1975; Swanson, 1995) have argued that CSR represents a positive commitment to society, and have
consequently defined CSR as a managerial process; monitoring and assessing environmental conditions, attending to stakeholder demands, and designing plans and policies aimed at enhancing a company’s positive impact. The traditional definition of CSR is, “The managerial obligation to take action to protect and improve both the welfare of society as a whole and the interest of organization” (Davis and Blomstrom, 1975, p. 6). Brown and Dacin (1997, p. 68) define CSR in a larger and societal view as “the company’s status and activities with respect to its perceived societal obligation”. Carroll (1979, 1991) defines CSR as “the social responsibility of business (which) encompasses the economic, legal, ethical, and discretionary expectations that society has of organizations”. This definition of CSR has become one of the most widely accepted and used (Mohr et al., 2001; Garcia de los Salmones et al., 2005). Research areas and units of analyses have been chosen differently, depending on which definition of CSR is used (Maignan & Ferrell, 2004). This thesis uses the meaning of CSR as defined by Bowen, “The obligation ‘to pursue those policies, to make those decisions, or to follow those lines of action which are desirable in terms of the objectives and values of our society’” (1953, p. 6).
CSR activities can range from simple philanthropic involvement, such as charitable contributions, to more strategically designed philanthropic, cause-related marketing (Cone et al., 2003) and green marketing (Cone et al., 2003; Hart, 1997). Since this thesis focuses on
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 23 the effect of CSR marketing on consumer responses, only the perceptions of consumers are
taken into account.
3.2 Brand color change and CSR associations
In order to portray themselves as responsible and caring citizens, organizations try to create CSR-related associations on top of their current brand associations. Brand color change is one such (marketing) strategy used to provoke CSR-related associations. If visual cues such as color are so powerful in shaping both unconscious and conscious attitudes and judgments about brands (Page & Herr, 2002), then it is important to choose the right cues in order to create a desirable brand image.
As has been aforementioned, colors in brand elements create specific associations that help to create a brand’s image in the mind of the consumer. Therefore, it is important to choose the right brand color. However, an important question that must be answered is: “What color represents Corporate Social Responsibility and sustainability for consumers”?
Psychology color studies have investigated this question. They found that the color green evokes nature, environment, health and sincerity (Madden et al, 2000; Bellizzi & Hite, 1992; Singh, 2006). These associations are in alignment with CSR-related associations and are defined as associations that reflect the status and activities of the organization regarding its perceived societal obligation (Leonard & McAdam, 2003). Furthermore, people use the color green to express sustainable and eco- friendly products. We talk, for example, about green electricity and green cars interfering with environmentally friendly products or
services. In addition, politicians talk about green initiatives when they explain sustainable or environmentally friendly developments.
Logically, could CSR-related associations not be constrained to one color? To answer this, more clarity about which color evokes CSR-related associations is needed. Therefore, for this research, a small pilot-test must be conducted to decide which color(s) evoke(s) CSR. Research findings of the self-conducted pilot test suggest that the color green is found to be the most appropriate for sustainability and CSR associations.
Wexner’s (1954) research into the appropriateness of color should be re-analyzed in order to find further clarity about the manipulation of the color green. Wexner examines a set of eight colors to represent eleven mood-tones, from which he constructs a correlation matrix. She found evidence for a relatively low correlation between the colors red and green. In her
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 24 research, red was most frequently chosen in the mood-tone categories of powerful, exiting,
hostile/defiant, cheerful, joyful and protective by respondents. Green, on the other hand, was chosen for the categories of calm, peaceful, serene, tender, soothing and secure. In addition, Madden, Hewett and Roth (2000) conducted research into the ratings of respondents from different countries about ten colors on twenty differential scales. Their findings suggest that, in general, blue, green and white formed one cluster of similar attributes and black and brown formed another, while red was the only color to stand alone.
Based on these research findings and the correlations found in the pilot-test performed in this thesis, we propose that the color red elicits associations that are different to other colors, and therefore a brand color change of brands from red to green is expected to evoke other brand associations and, in particular, more CSR-related associations. The following hypothesis is formulated:
H1: Brand color change from its original color to green will provoke more CSR associations than when the brand color change is absent.
3.3 Brand color change and consumer responses
Brand colors are powerful in shaping attitudes and judgments about brands (Page & Herr, 2002). Brands that have a negative image could thus change their visual cues to create a more desirable image. A change in visual cues, such as the brand elements of logo and packaging, is called rebranding. There are several objectives for rebranding, for instance: organizations that want to change their associations to promote premiums or exclusivity; their logo or packaging look outdated; the brand element change is in-line with a (product) innovation; or a brand wants to create CSR associations. In general, perform brand managers choose to rebrand in order to change the brand’s image into something more desirable.
Despite the importance and widespread use of logos, many evoke negative responses, are unrecognizable and even hurt the organizational image (Interband Schechter study as described by Bird, 1992). The influence of changes in brand elements depends on how the associative network is set in consumers’ minds. This not only means that the associations and evaluations of the brand can be rebuilt from scratch, but also that satisfied customers could lose the current positive associations and evaluations they have about the brand.
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 25 Although little research has been conducted on brand color change and consumer
responses, it is best to assume that consumers may not necessarily embrace changes in the core brand color. It is the old branding color that has earned their trust (Kohli & Leuthesser, 2001), but alternative research findings have proved a positive link between CSR association and consumer responses (Brown and Dacin, 1997; Creyer and Ross, 1997; Ellen, Mohr and Webb, 2000). According to a Cone research study (2007), 87% of American consumers are likely to switch from one brand to another (price and quality being equal) if the other brand is associated with a good cause or other CSR related activities. Thus, associating it with
sustainability and social responsibility positively changes the brand image. Therefore, it is likely to assume that consumers will respond positively.
To summarize, changing the core color of a brand to green can have consequences on consumer responses. As this thesis investigates well-known brands, the change in brand color will be remarkably different for consumers. Research findings of the pilot test reveal that the color green is likely to provoke CSR-related associations. Together with the popular CSR trend that today’s consumers prefer (Nan & Heo, 2007) and the research findings that show the positive effect of CSR marketing strategies on consumer brand responses, this thesis argues that a brand color change to green has a positive impact on brand responses, from intent to buy, attitude to the brand and evaluation of the brand. Therefore the following three hypotheses can be formulated:
H2: Brand color changes from its present color into green will have a positive influence on consumers’ intent to buy.
H3: Brand color change from its present color into green will have a positive influence on consumers’ attitudes to a brand.
H4: Brand color change from its present color to green will have a positive influence on consumers’ evaluation of a brand.
3.4 The mediating role of CSR associations
There have been numerous studies on CSR, corporate ethics, and social sponsorship that suggest a link between social initiatives and improved financial performance
(Mcguire,Sundgren, and Schneeweis, 1998; Pava and Krause, 1996; Stanwick and Stanwick, 1998). For instance, some research studies have shown that performing CSR activities has helped organizations to remain competitive and increase their market share (Chan, 2001; Fitzgerald, 1993; Porter and Van der Linde, 1995a). In addition, to be ‘green’ seems to be
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 26 a good business practice as studies have shown it promotes profitability, improves employee
motivation and commitment, and increases customer loyalty towards the organisation’s brand (Forte and Lamont, 1998; Hartmann, Ibanez, Forcada Sainz, 2005; Bech-Larsen, 1996).
However, besides the link between social initiatives and improved financial
performance, other studies have demonstrated a link between social initiatives and positive affective, cognitive attitudinal and behavioral responses of consumers towards the
organization and its products (Brown and Dacin, 1997; Creyer and Ross, 1997; Ellen, Mohr and Webb 2000). Bhattacharya and Sen (2004) found that CSR activities influence consumer behavior such as making purchases, loyalty to the brand and word of mouth advocacy. Lee and Park (2009) found a positive causal relationship between CSR dimensions and consumers ’ product/corporate evaluations. Previous research has so far looked at corporate attitudes (Brown and Dacin, 1997), and purchase intentions (Murray and Volge, 1997), finding positive results for each of these relationships.
Furthermore, Newell (1993) found in his research that corporate credibility had a positive effect on attitude toward the brand. Hence, when consumers are aware of the reputation and CSR-related activities an organization performs; it is likely that they would incorporate this information into their decision-making on whether or not to purchase products or services from the brand.
These studies imply that the CSR dimensions could influence consumers’
product/corporate responses, such as those regarding the intention to purchase products of a specific brand, the attitude towards a brand and the evaluation of a brand (Newel, 1993; Brown and Dacin, 1997; Murray and Volge, 1997). Based on these findings, this thesis argues for the necessity of CSR associations when changing a brand’s color. We propose that CSR associations stemming from a sustainable color strategy will lead to more positive consumer responses, leading to a more positive attitude towards the brand, an increased intent to buy and a more positive evaluation of the brand. Therefore, this thesis proposes that
consumers will respond positively towards color changes in the brand and that CSR
associations will mediate this positive relation towards consumer responses. Thus, it can be postulated that:
H5: CSR associations will positively mediate the brand color change present on consumer brand responses: (a) purchase intention, (b) brand attitude, (c) brand evaluation.
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4. The influence of CSR-mindedness and brand commitment
4.1 Different types of consumers respond differently towards brand color change There are different types of consumers. Some consumers consider environmental issues or take fair trade considerations into account when purchasing products, while other consumers only consider the price of a product. In this thesis, the division between consumers
considering CSR-related issues and consumers who do not, is measured by the construct of CSR-mindedness. CSR-mindedness is the degree of CSR involvement with consumers. An interesting question to investigate is whether highly CSR-minded consumers respond differently towards a brand color change into green, when compared with low CSR-minded consumers.
Noordam & DeVries (Biris, 2005) recently questioned marketing and communication professionals about consumer responses to a new product released by Coca-Cola – Coca-Cola Life – and its repositioning with the color green. Coca-Cola is not generally linked to
sustainable behavior, and therefore the marketers in the study make a distinction between the classic Coca-Cola consumer (who will likely embrace the new product and positively respond to it) and the ‘sustainable consumer’ (this last group of consumers will Coca-Cola Life accuse of ' greenwashing '). A negative response to the new product is triggered by the lack of credibility for the product name ‘Life’ and a color change to green, both of which are associated with a suspicious and cynical attitude from the sustainable consumer.
Research by Shrum, McCarty, and Lowrey (1995) found that consumers interested in sustainable products are generally more skeptical of advertising, or feel confused about the environmental claims used by firms (Mayer, Scammon, and Zick 1993). This skepticism is mainly produced by the exaggeration of some of the messages used by organizations, as well as the lack of a clear meaning in the message and the complexity of knowledge regarding the effects of different types of consumption on the environment (Fay, 1992; Carlson, Grove, and Kangun, 1993; Scammon and Mayer, 1995). As brand color change into green does not have a clear meaning, causing confusion and thus suspicion, this thesis will follow the same line of reasoning as the research conducted by Noordam & De Vries (2015).
In sum, CSR-mindedness in this study is thought to moderate the relationship between brand color change and consumer responses. It hypothesizes that highly CSR-minded
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 28 brand color changes to green. They will question the change and disregard it as ‘
greenwashing’. On the contrary, consumers low in CSR-mindedness will not be critical and thus will respond more positively towards the brand color change. Hence, we propose the following hypotheses:
H6: CSR-mindedness will moderate the influence of brand color change on consumer responses, from intent to buy, attitude to the brand and evaluation of the brand. Specifically, for consumers high in CSR-mindedness, (a) purchase intention, (b) brand attitude and (c) brand evaluation will be negative when brand color change is present. Conversely, for consumers low in CSR- mindedness, (a) purchase intention, (b) brand attitude and (c) brand evaluation will be more positive when brand color change is present.
4.2 The role of brand commitment
Consumers also differ in their degree of commitment to a brand. Strongly committed
consumers towards the brand Pepsi for instance, will never drink Coca-Cola and might even leave a restaurant where Pepsi is not served. Consumers that have strong levels of
commitment thus consider certain brands to be an integral part of their lives and tend to see strong connections between themselves and the brand (Escalas and Bettman, 2003; Fournier, 1998). This thesis agrees with brand commitment being defined as “an enduring desire to maintain a valued relationship [with the brand]” (Moorman and Zaltman, 1992, p. 316) and is a relationship that develops over time (Keller, 2005).
Walsh, Winterich and Mittal’s (2010) research has proved that brand logos convey a different meaning to consumers with strong brand commitment than to consumers with low brand commitment. They found that the greater the change in a brand’s logo, the more likely it is that strongly committed consumers will evaluate the redesigned logo more negatively (in terms of brand attitude). This thesis also argues that strongly committed consumers are likely to view brand color changes as threatening their relationship with the brand (Ahluwalia et al., 2000). Those with strong brand commitment will see the original brand color – and the associations provoked by this color – as representative of themselves (Escalas and Bettman, 2003). They are likely to view a color change in the brand as threatening their self-brand connections (Escalas and Bettman, 2003) and relationships (Fournier, 1998). Consequently, such consumers will be negatively disposed to the color change and likely to evaluate the brand more negatively. This logic is consistent from an information-processing perspective
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 29 (Ahluwalia et al., 2000). We argue here, that the effect should be greater on the strongly
committed, based on the brand color change.
Conversely, for consumers with weak brand commitment, a changed logo color would not be as meaningful. Such customers are unlikely to see the brand as an integral part of their lives as they have little or no personal relationship with the brand. They are likely to perceive a change in the brand’s color as novel and unique, which may lead them to evaluate the logo more positively (Kohlia and Suri, 2002). Therefore, the following hypothesis is formulated:
H7: The effect of brand color change on consumer responses will be stronger for high brand committed consumers than it will be for low brand committed consumers. Hence, Brand commitment will negatively affect the influence of brand color change present on consumer responses: (a) purchase intention, (b) brand attitude, (c) brand evaluation.
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5. Research framework
5.1 Conceptual model
This thesis argues that the antecedent ‘color’ of two brand elements – logo and packaging – could provoke consumer perceptions of organizations’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities. Moreover, the relationship between brand color change and consumer attitudes to the brand and their intent to buy will be investigated. It is expected that these CSR associations function as mediators in consumer responses when rebranding (in this instance, when changes to brand color take place). Therefore, this thesis argues for the necessity of brand CSR-related associations. In addition, the moderating impact of CSR-mindedness and brand commitment (separately) on the relationship between brand color change and consumer responses will be taken into account. In the experiment that follows, existing brand logo colors and ‘packaging’ will be manipulated and changed to the color green. Figure 2. presents the research framework and an overview of the expected hypotheses.
Figure 2: Conceptual framework
Note: pre-post measurements of the dependent variables are not mentioned in this framework, just as the three different brands used in this research. For hypothesis 1 t/m 7 see literature review.
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6. Methodology
This chapter provides the methodology of the thesis. First, the stimuli development is explained. In paragraph 6.2, the pilot test is described; after which the research design of the main research is explained. Following that, the sample and procedure will be outlined. Then, the measurement scales will be illustrated and finally the control variables and analysis are described.
6.1 Stimuli development
Different brands had to be chosen in order to set up a unbiased and interesting survey. An important starting point was the selection of an industry or industries. For several reasons, but namely because they contained multiple organizations with red-colored brands, there was an interest in the following industries: retail, petroleum, finance and energy. Financial institutions and energy companies were excluded from further analysis, since respondents tended to have a membership at one bank or energy company and therefore purchase intention could not be accurately measured. However, it remained necessary to compare brands from different industries. Therefore, at least one brand from the retail sector was selected and at least one brand from the petroleum sector was selected. To indicate precisely which brands were appropriate for the main research study, a pilot test was conducted.
6.2 Pilot test
Several red-colored brands were selected for a pilot test. Respondents were asked to indicate their familiarity with the brand, their attitude towards it, and their CSR orientation. The CSR orientation of the two different industries, retail and petroleum, was measured and the respondents’ perceived most appropriate color for sustainability and CSR was asked.
The respondents (N=25) in the pilot test were exposed to nine brands in total: five petroleum brands and four retail brands. The results of the pilot-test were used to choose the final stimuli in the main research survey and to determine the color of the brand’s color change.
Results from the one sample t-test indicate that respondents have the highest positive attitude towards Shell and Hema and that they also value both brands as high CSR-oriented. Based on these findings, it can be said that there is a similarity between Shell and Hema, despite their difference in industry. Therefore, both brands were selected for the main
Emilie Duijvestijn 10875107 32 research design. In order to make an interesting comparison between brands high in CSR and respondents having a positive attitude towards them, a more contentious brand was selected: Esso. Respondents value Esso as low in CSR orientation and have a more negative attitude towards Esso, compared to Hema and Shell. Hence, it was decided to have three brands – Hema, Shell and Esso – for the main experiment.
Lastly, respondents were asked which color they consider an appropriate indicator for sustainability and CSR. Analysis revealed that 94.4% of the respondents indicated green as an appropriate color and 5.6% indicated blue. This confirmed earlier results in the relevant literature on color and argues for the brand color change to green. For a complete overview of the results of the pilot test, see appendix B.
6.3 Research sample
A quantitative research method was used in order to find an answer to the proposed research question and hypotheses. An online questionnaire was conducted to test the developed hypotheses. The research strategy was used to find the causal links between the different variables in this thesis. The experiment performed consists of six conditions: three groups exposed to well-known brands (Shell, Esso, Hema) with their original brand color (brand color change absent) and three groups exposed to well-known brands (Shell, Esso, Hema) where the red brand color is changed to green (brand color change present). The respondents were randomly assigned to one of these six conditions. The research design of this study is a 2x3 between subject design, presenting three different brands and brand color changes (present/absent). Therefore, this thesis represents six different conditions that are based on the possible combinations between the independent variables.
Table 1: Six different conditions 2x3 (two sectors: petrol and retail)
Color change
Esso CSR low Shell CSR high Hema CSR high
Absent Original brand color for low CSR brand
Original brand color for high CSR brand
Original brand color for high CSR brand
Present Brand color change for low CSR brand
Brand color change for high CSR brand
Brand color change for high CSR brand
