Drivers of brand extension success and the role of brand relationship quality

Abstract

Given the importance of brands and the strategy of brand extensions, the primary purpose of this study is to determine the key drivers of brand extension success. The proposed model not only incorporates the success factors such as parent brand quality, brand portfolio breadth, brand portfolio quality variance, corporate image and perceived fit that are widely discussed in prior research, but also introduces brand relationship quality that emphasizes the strength and depth of consumer-brand relationships as a potential success factor. In order to avoid any faulty interpretation of the significance and the relative importance of these factors under investigation, the study considers both the direct relationships between success factors and brand extension success and the structural relationships between perceived fit and other success factors. To test the proposed model, three national brands from the white goods sector are determined as the parent brands and for these brands, three hypothetical extension products are selected with varying levels of fit (high, moderate and low). The survey data is collected from a sample of approximately five hundred consumers living in Istanbul by means of house or workplace visits and is analyzed by conducting a series of structural equation modeling analyses. The findings not only show that most of the hypothesized relationships are at least conditionally supported but also reveal the significant role that brand relationship quality plays both directly and indirectly on brand extension success , especially in the context of moderate fit extension products.