Investigating the effects of product innovation and ingredient branding strategies on brand equity of food products

Purpose – Ingredient branding (IB) strategy and incremental product innovation (IPI) strategy are frequently used complementary strategies in food product marketing to build brand equity. The purpose of this paper is to assist managers in choosing between both the strategies based upon two governing criteria namely the involvement level of the product category and the level of parent brand equity. Design/methodology/approach – The study utilized an experimental design approach. A 2 (product involvement: high vs low)×2 (parent brand equity: high vs low)×2 (attribute strategy: IB vs IPI) balanced, completely randomized factorial design was set up to test the hypotheses. Findings – Findings suggest that IB strategy should be preferred when the product category is perceived as low involvement or when parent brand equity of the brand is low. The IPI strategy should be preferred when the parent brand equity is high. Either of strategies may be favored in case of high involvement products. Practical implications – The study provides guidance to product managers in choosing between IB and IPI in devising food product development and marketing strategies. Originality/value – This study is the first of its kind which attempts to compare and contrast between tangible and intangible augmentation strategies to build brand equity.