How the Logo Frame Impacts on Brand Extension (An Abstract)

Abstract

Brand extensions push a brand beyond its typical coverage and keep the brand growing. In order to extend the brand beyond its original product categories, marketers may alter the original logo to free the product limitation and increase the perceived fit of new product category. This study is inspired by the case of Starbucks’ logo redesign and suggests that logo frames may set a boundary on the perceived scope of the brand categories and its extensions. Furthermore, consumers’ regulatory focus is proposed to be a moderator on the relationship of logo frame and perceived brand categories, based on the information processing natures and tendencies of promotion- and prevention-focused people. Prevention-focused consumers tend to carry self-boundaries so their association can hardly be released by unframed logos.