%0 Journal Article
%T Up, Up, and Away: Upgrading as a Response to Dissimilar Brand Users
%A Deborah Roedder John
%A Yajin Wang
%J Journal of Marketing Research
%@ 1547-7193
%D 2019
%R 10.1177/0022243718820572
%X Researchers have found that consumers abandon and avoid products when they feel threatened by the presence of dissimilar groups who also use the product. In this article, the authors propose a different strategy for responding to dissimilar users, upgrading to a brandĄ¯s more exclusive products. Results from six studies show that upgrading is a preferred strategy for consumers with strong self¨Cbrand connections, who are unlikely to avoid or abandon the brand because their self-identity is tied to the brand. Among these consumers, the act of upgrading to a brandĄ¯s more exclusive products is driven by their feelings of self-threat when exposed to dissimilar users, which triggers a desire to attain a higher-status position among brand users that is fulfilled by upgrading. The authors also identify moderators of the upgrading effect for consumers with strong self¨Cbrand connections. These consumersĄ¯ increased interest in upgrading is dampened when a brandĄ¯s exclusive products are made more readily available and when a brand has already conferred higher status to them through a customer status tier program
%K brand management
%K brands
%K status
%K self¨Cbrand connections
%U https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0022243718820572