The Impact of Ad Repetition and Ad Content on Consumer Perceptions of Incongruent Extensions

The author challenges the view that incongruent extensions are doomed to fail and demonstrates that brand extension ad content and repeated exposure to those advertisements influence consumer reactions to incongruent extensions. In a study of four highly regarded brands, participants who viewed brand extension advertisements five times evaluated incongruent extensions more positively, expressed higher usage intentions, indicated more favorable consistency judgments, and exhibited increased elaboration and more positive elaboration than did participants who viewed the advertisements only once. This relationship was attenuated for highly incongruent extensions, for which the advertisement evoked primarily peripheral brand associations instead of benefit brand associations. However, for moderately incongruent extensions, advertisements that evoked either peripheral or benefit associations were equally effective. Process measures indicate the importance of the extent and nature of elaborative processing.