The Asymmetric Effects of Positive or Negative Experiences with an Extension on Low- vs. High-Equity Parent Brands : A Microtheoretical Notion

We investigate the effects of actual product experiences with typical brand extensions on attitudes toward low- vs. high-equity brands. By using a three-wave longitudinal design, we assess both the immediate and delayed intra-individual influence of an experience with an extension on evaluations of the core brand. We find support for the microtheoretical notion that the valence of the experience with an extension has asymmetric effects on parent brand attitudes depending on the equity of the core brand. Good experiences with extensions result in greater attitude enhancement for low-equity brands, whereas bad experiences lead to greater attitude dilution for high-equity brands. These results are primarily due to the disconfirmation of expectations associated with the core brand, not the differential diagnosticity of the experience with the extension. Although the immediate effects are stronger than the delayed effects, the asymmetric feedback effects persist over time and beyond the context in which the experience occurred