BRAND RETRIEVAL, CONSIDERATION SET COMPOSITION, CONSUMER CHOICE, AND THE PIONEERING ADVANTAGE

Recent research on the pioneering advantage has shown that consumers o ften prefer pioneering brands to follower brands. Recent research on c onsumer choice suggests that information about brands is filtered thro ugh a series of sequential cognitive processes. This study attempts to integrate these two separate lines of research by investigating the e ffects of pioneering on each stage of the multistage decision process. A within-subjects longitudinal experiment was conducted to simulate b rand order of entry into a new market. We also developed a sequential logit model to isolate the direct impact of pioneering on each stage o f the decision process while controlling for indirect effects of pione ering on previous stages. The results revealed that the pioneering bra nd (vs. followers) is more likely to be retrieved, considered, and sel ected. Moreover, the results revealed that consumers are more likely t o bypass consideration set formation when the choice decision is simpl e (vs. complex). Theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.