What is the added value of an organic label? Proposition of a model of transfer from the perspective of ingredient branding

ABSTRACT

This paper investigates the added value of an organic ingredient strategy and the transfer mechanisms at work when placing an organic label on product brands. We proposed and empirically tested an integrated model that included three stages: brand and label equity; transfer mechanisms; and product evaluation. We first selected an organic label and product brands and then tested our hypotheses with a sample of French consumers. The results confirm the positive influence of brand and label equity on transfer mechanisms (brand/label perceived fit and ease of transfer) and, in turn, illustrate how ease of transfer influences the overall product evaluation. A surprising result is that brand/label perceived fit does not directly affect the overall product evaluation; rather, it only influences brand/label ease of transfer.

KEYWORDS:

• Organic food
• ingredient branding
• brand equity
• perceived fit
• ease of transfer
• overall evaluation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. The French agency for the development and promotion of organic agriculture.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Eline Jongmans

Dr Eline Jongmans is an assistant professor in marketing at the University Grenoble Alpes and a member of the Center for Studies and Research Applied to Management (CERAG EA 7521). She completed her PhD in 2014. Her research focuses on consumer decision-making for products with characteristics that are difficult to assess for consumers (e.g. related to innovation and the environment). The results of her research have been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals and presented at international conferences.

Maud Dampérat

Prof Maud Dampérat has been a full professor of marketing at Lyon University UJM IAE (Saint-Etienne) and the COACTIS laboratory (EA 4161) since 2017. From 2008 to 2017, she was an associate professor at the Grenoble Institute of Technology, and prior to this, she was an assistant professor of marketing at HEC Montreal. Her research focuses on the marketing of innovations, especially team creativity for innovation and new product development, and the customer experience with interactive devices. She has published widely in refereed journals.

Florence Jeannot

Dr Florence Jeannot is an associate professor of marketing at the INSEEC School of Business & Economics. She graduated from the prestigious business school ESCP Europe and began her career as an advertising manager at J. Walter Thompson. She then joined Dassault Systèmes. After earning a PhD from the University of Grenoble, she shifted her career to marketing research and teaching. Her research interests are in the area of consumer decision making. She has published in refereed journals.

Ping Lei

Dr Ping Lei is an assistant professor of marketing at the INSEEC School of Business & Economics. She specializes in marketing research, consumer psychology and neuroscience in consumer research. She had been the head of the Marketing Management Department for six years. Dr P. LEI holds a BS, three master's degrees (business administration, international finance and master’s research) and a PhD. (management science). She was an invited professor at the University of Grenoble Alpes.

Alain Jolibert

Prof Alain Jolibert graduated from the renowned business school ESCP Europe and received his PhD from the University of Texas at Austin. He was associate university professor at the University of Grenoble Alpes, president of the French Marketing Association, and redactor-in-chief of Research and Applications in Marketing. He is currently professor at the INSEEC School of Business & Economics. He has published articles in refereed journals, including the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Marketing and Psychology and Marketing.