Do prototypical brands have an advantage over me-too brands in the mature marketplace?

Abstract

This paper explores the differential impacts of prototypical and me-too brands on purchase intentions for MP3 players and bank loans. A total of 674 responses were collected from self-administered surveys across two studies. Findings suggest that prototypical brands lose their competitive advantage in a mature marketplace. For both studies, the prototypical brand posed as a stronger financial/performance risk to purchase intention. The prototypical brand also presented as stronger social risk and psychological risk in Study 2 and Study 1 respectively. Quality perceived in the me-too brands had a stronger influence on purchase intention in Study 1. For both studies, the prototypical brand’s extrinsic cues exerted stronger influence on purchase intention. Finally, in Study 1, familiarity with the me-too brands had a stronger influence on purchase intention.