THE COUNTRY BRAND IMAGE, THE COUNTRY-OF-ORIGIN IMAGE AND THE ROMANIAN WINES IMAGE. AN EXPLORATORY APPROACH
Abstract
This paper describes the results of an exploratory research on the Romanian country brand image, the country-of-origin image and the Romanian wines image. It is part of a larger study that includes, in addition to the exploratory research, case studies (Chile and France) and a quantitative research on a sample of 325 wine consumers from various countries. Qualitative research involved conducting non-directive interviews based on an interview guide on a sample of 21 wine experts from various countries - Italy, France, UK, Austria, etc., managers of wine companies, oenologists, brand managers etc. Our results show that the country brand and the country-of-origin image impact the Romanian wines image, influencing the perception of wine quality and wine image as a result of the generalization or halo effect. Furthermore, as shown in the literature review, it is possible to build the image of the country brand starting from the image of wines and their promotion in various markets alongside their origin (the case of Chile, Argentina, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia etc.). This article is original because it considers, in addition to the country-of-origin image and the image of its products, the general image of the country brand as a generic construct.
.
Keywords
References
Allred, A., Chakraborty, G., & Miller, S. J. (1999). Measuring images of developing countries: a scale development study. Journal of Euromarketing, 8(3), pp. 29-49.
Anholt, S. (2007). Competitive identity: The new brand management for nations, cities and regions. NewYork: Palgrave Macmillan.
Balabanis G, Diamantopoulos A. (2011), Gains and Losses from the Misperception of Brand Origin: The Role of Brand Strength and Country-of-Origin Image, Journal of International Marketing, 19(2), pp. 95-116.
Balestrini, P., Gamble, P. (2006), Country-of-origin effects on Chinese wine consumers. British Food Journal, 108(5), pp. 396-412.
Cotîrlea, D. A., (2015), Antecedentele și consecințele imaginii României în percepția publicului intern și extern, Phd thesis, Universitatea Babeș- Bolyai, Cluj Napoca.
Corsi, A. M., Mueller, S., Lockshin, L. (2012). Let's see what they have: what consumers look for in a restaurant wine list, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 53 (2012), pp. 110-121.
Crouch, R. C., Orth, U. R., Lu, V., N., (2016), For the Love of Country: How Origin-related Affect Influences Consumer Wine Evaluation and Preference, Conference: 9th Academy of Wine Business Research Conference, University of South Australia, Business School, Conference Proceedings, ISBN: 978-0-9944460-0-8, pp. 313-320.
D’Alessandro, S., Pecotich, A. (2013), Evaluation of wine by expert and novice consumers in the presence of variations in quality, brand and county of origin cues. Food Quality and Preference, 28(1), pp. 287-303.
Felzensztein, C., Keith Dinnie, K. (2006) The Effects of Country of Origin on UK Consumers' Perceptions of Imported Wines, Journal of Food Products Marketing, 11(4), pp. 109-117.
Forbes, S. L. (2014), Battle of the nations: Consumer perceptions of wine origins, Working Paper, Faculty of Commerce Working Paper No. 9 by Lincoln University, https://hdl.handle.net/10182/6032.
Goldberg, M. E., Baumgartner, H. (2002), Cross-country attraction as a motivation for product consumption. Journal of Business Research, 55(11), pp. 901–906.
Goodman, S., Lockshin, L., Cohen, E., Fensterseifer, Ma, J., H, d’Hauteville, F., Sirieix, L., Orth, U., Casini, L., Corsi, A., Jaeger, S., Danaher, P., Brodie, R., Olsen, J., Thach, L., Perrouty, J., P., (2008), International Comparison of Consumer Choice for Wine: A Twelve Country Comparison, 4th International Conference of the Academy of Wine Business Research, Siena, 17-19 July, 2008.
Goodman, S., Lockshin, L., Cohen, E. (2007), Influencers of consumer choice in a retail setting - more international comparisons, Wine Industry Journal, 22(6), pp. 42-48.
Gürhan-Canli Z., and Maheswaran D. (2000), Cultural variations in country of origin effects, Journal of Marketing Research, 37, pp. 309–17.
Hall, J., Lockshin, L., O’Mahony, G. B. (2001). Exploring the links between wine choice and dining occasions: factors of influence, International Journal of Wine Marketing, 13(1), pp. 36–53.
Halstead, L. (2002), How do consumers select wine? Factors that affect the purchase decision making process in the wine category, Research Proceedings: Annual Academy of Marketing, June.
Hamlin, R., Leith, K. (2006), Studying the country-of-origin cue in action: An experimental examination of wine evaluations in the United Kingdom and New Zealand. Place Brand Public Dipl 2.
Hamzaoui Essoussi, L., Merunka, D. (2007), Consumers' product evaluations in emerging markets: Does country of design, country of manufacture, or brand image matter? International Marketing Review, 24(4), pp. 409-426.
Hooley, G. J., Shipley, D., Krieger, N. (1988), A method for modelling consumer perceptions of country of origin. International Marketing Review, 5(3), pp. 67-76.
Jenes, B. (2012), Theoretical and Practical Issues in measuring country image. Dimensions and measurement model of country image and country brand, Ph.D. Dissertation, Corvinus University of Budapest Doctoral School of Business Administration.
Josiassen, A. (2010), Young Australian Consumers and the Country-Of-Origin Effect: Investigation of the Moderating Roles of Product Involvement and Perceived Product-Origin Congruency, Australasian Marketing Journal, 18(1), pp. 23-27.
Kaneva, N. (2011), Nation Branding: Toward an Agenda for Critical Research, International Journal of Communication, 5, pp. 117–141.
Keown, C., Casey, M. (1995), Purchasing behaviour in the Northern Ireland wine market, British Food Journal, 97(1), pp. 17-20.
Kilduff, K., Nuñez Tabales, J. M. (2016), Country Branding and its effect on the consumer in the global market, Cuadernos de Gestión, 17(1), pp. 83-104.
Laroche, M., Papadopoulos, N., Heslop, L.A., Mourali, M. (2005), The influence of country image structure on consumer evaluations of foreign products, International Marketing Review, 22 (1), pp. 96-115.
Lee, H., Kim, C., Ford, T. (2015), The Country of Origin: A Category-Based Process. In: Chebat JC., Oumlil A. (eds) Proceedings of the 1998 Multicultural Marketing Conference. Developments in Marketing Science: Proceedings of the Academy of Marketing Science. Springer, Cham.
Lee, R., Lockshin, L. (2012), Reverse country-of-origin effects of product perceptions on destination image, Journal of Travel Research, 51(4), pp. 502–511.
Lee, R, Lockshin, L, Greenacre, L. (2016), A Memory-Theory Perspective of Country-Image Formation, Journal of International Marketing, 24(2), pp. 62-79.
Loveless, K., Mueller, S., Lockshin, L., Corsi, A., (2010), The relative importance of sustainability, quality control standards and traceability for wine consumers: A cross-national segmentation, Proceedings of the 13th Australian and New Zealand Marketing Academy conference ANZMAC.
Magnusson, P., Krishnan, V., Westjohn, S.A., Zdravkovici, S., (2014), The spillover effects of prototype brand transgressions on country image and related brands, Journal of International Marketing, 22(1), pp. 21-38.
Mariutti, F., Tench, R. (2015), Are we talking the Same Language? Challenging Complexity in Country Brand Models, Athens Journal of Business and Economics , 1(1), pp. 49-62.
Martin, I. M., Eroglu, S. (1993), Measuring a multi-dimensional construct: Country image, Journal of Business Research, 28(3), pp. 191-210.
Martìnez-Carrasco L, Brugarolas M, Del Campo FJ, Martìnez Poveda A (2006), Influence of purchase place and consumption frequency over quality wine preferences. Food Qual Prefer, 17(5), pp. 315–327.
Melnyk V, Klein K, Völckner F. (2012), The Double-Edged Sword of Foreign Brand Names for Companies from Emerging Countries, Journal of Marketing, 76(6), pp. 21-37.
Milovan-Ciuta, A. M., Ardelean, V. M., Sahour, S. A., Jurca, F. C. (2019). The country of origin influence on the decision to buy wine- A research framework proposal. Ecoforum Journal, 8(1).
Mueller, S., Remaud, H., (2010). Are Australian wine consumers becoming more environmentally conscious? Robustness of latent preference segments over time. AWBR 2010 5th international conference of the Academy of Wine Business Research pp. 1-9.
Oberecker, E.M., Diamantopoulos, A. (2011), Consumers’ Emotional Bonds with Foreign Countries: Does Consumer Affinity Affect Behavioral Intentions? Journal of International Marketing;19(2), pp. 45-72.
Orth, U.R., McGarry, M., Dodd, T.H. (2005), Dimensions of wine region equity and their impact on consumer preferences, The Journal of Product and Brand Management, 14(2/3), pp. 88-97.
Papadopoulos, N., Heslop, L. (2002), Country equity and country branding: Problems and prospects, Journal of Brand Management, 9(4), pp. 294-314.
vealRoth, M.S., Romeo, J. B., (1992), Matching Product Category and Country Image Perceptions: A Framework for Managing Country-of-Origin Effects, Journal of International Business Studies, 23(3), pp. 477-497.
Thorelli, H.B., Lim, J., Ye, J. (1989), Relative importance of country of origin, warranty and retail store image on product evaluations, International Marketing Review, 6 (1), pp. 35-46.
Sirieix, L., Remaud, H., (2010), Consumer perceptions of eco-friendly vs. conventional wines in Australia. Refereed paper – 5th International Academy of Wine Business Research Conference, 8Ǧ10 February 2010, Auckland (NZ).
Solomon, M., Bamossy G., Askegaard S., Hogg, M.K. (2010), Consumer Behavior. A European Perspective. Harlow: Pearson Education.
Sun, L., Zheng, X., Su, M., Keller, L. R. (2017). Intention-Behavior Discrepancy of Foreign Versus Domestic Brands in Emerging Markets: The Relevance of Consumer Prior Knowledge. Journal of International Marketing, 25(1), pp.91-109. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4k76k612.
Usunier, J. C., Cestre, G. (2008), Comment: Further considerations on the relevance of country‐of‐origin research, European Management Review, 5(4), pp.271-274.
Veale, R., Quester, P. (2008), Consumer Sensory Evaluations of Wine Quality: The Respective Influence of Price and Country of Origin, Journal of Wine Economics, 3(1), pp.10-29.
Verlegh, P., W.J. (2001), Country –of-origin effects on consumer evaluations, Doctoral Thesis, Wageningen Universiteit, accessed November 20, 2017.
Wall, M., Heslop, L.A. (1986), Consumer attitudes toward Canadian-made versus imported products, JAMS 14, pp.27–36.
Wang, X., Yang, Z. (2008), Does country of origin matter in the relationship between brand personality and purchase intention in emerging economies? Evidence from China's auto industry. International Marketing Review, 25(4), pp. 458-474.
Zeithaml, V. (1988), Consumer perceptions of price, quality, and value: a means-end model and synthesis of the evidence, Journal of Marketing, 52(3), pp. 2-22.
Zeugner-Roth, K.P., Diamantopoulos, A., Montesinos, M.A. (2008), Home country image, country brand equity and consumers’ product preferences: an empirical study, Management International Review, 48(5), pp.577–602.
Zeugner- Roth, K. P., Diamantopoulos, A. (2009), Advancing the country image construct, Journal of Business Research, 62(7), pp. 726-740.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.