Passing the Torch: Intergenerational Influences as a Source of Brand Equity

Abstract

In today's competitive battleground, the concept of brand equity has proved to be an important source of strategic insights for marketers. However, one potentially valuable source of brand equity—the operation of intergenerational influences—has generally been overlooked in the marketing literature. This article reports the findings of two studies that show intergenerational impacts on brand equity to be persistent and powerful across an array of consumer packaged goods. However, as a strategic challenge, these effects seem to apply strongly for some brands but not for others—they are selective. In Study 1, the authors use parallel surveys of mother–daughter dyads to isolate and quantify intergenerational impacts, and the surveys reveal a differential range of effects at both the product category and the brand level. In Study 2, the authors use interpretivist methods to delve more deeply into these effects—the forms they take, the way they have developed, and factors that sustain or disrupt them. On the basis of these findings, the authors identify implications for managers and future research needs. Overall, intergenerational influences are a real marketplace phenomenon and a factor that merits much closer attention from marketing strategists who are interested in brand equity issues.