Are look-alikes confusing? The application of the DRM paradigm to test consumer confusion in counterfeit cases
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Are look-alikes confusing? The application of the DRM paradigm to test consumer confusion in counterfeit cases Andrzej Falkowski & Justyna Olszewska & Joanna Ulatowska
# The Author(s) 2014. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com
Abstract The Deese–Roediger–McDermott (DRM) paradigm was used to investigate consumer confusion between original and look-alike brands. The results showed that look-alike brands were falsely recognized at a higher rate than original brands and that modality (audio, visual, and audiovisual) had no effect on false recognition rates. The results suggest that the DRM paradigm provides a useful tool for analyzing consumer confusion, brand substitution, and trademark infringement. Keywords DRM paradigm . Look-alike products . Original products . Consumer confusion . Memory distortions
1 Introduction Marketing analysis shows that only about 3 % of products in the marketplace do not need packaging (Sudol et al. 2000). The packaging is not only for protection but also attracts consumer’s attention and makes products more distinctive than others. A. Falkowski University of Social Sciences and Humanities, ul. Chodakowska 19/31, 03-815 Warsaw, Poland e-mail: [email protected] J. Olszewska Academy of Management, ul. Sienkiewicza 9, 90-113 Lodz, Poland e-mail: [email protected] J. Olszewska Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, 1012 East Hall, 530 Church Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1043, USA J. Ulatowska (*) Institute of Applied Psychology, Academy of Special Education, ul. Szczesliwicka 40 Bud. C, pok. 3621, 02-353 Warsaw, Poland e-mail: [email protected]
Mark Lett
However, not every company creates their products to be distinguishable from others. Rather, companies consciously try to imitate market leaders using similar colors, shapes, style of lettering, or design of logo to mislead the consumer that such a product has the same quality as the original brand (AIM 2004; for a review see Zaichowsky 2006). Products that significantly resemble the overall appearance of well-known brands by combining the distinctive visual features that are inherent to the original product with the slightly differentiated features are called “look-alikes” (AIM 2004; Balabanis and Craven 1997). The use of look-alikes raises objections from companies that own the original products and who had invested money to create distinguishable packaging that lets them achieve a leading market position as well as from consumers who may be misled and unwillingly buy the wrong product. The last two decades have given rise to many lawsuits initiated by the manufacturers of branded goods who claim that the look-alikes confuse customers and, in consequence, make them purchase the wrong products (Balabanis and Craven 1997). Are customers indeed confused by lookalike products? Most studies on customer confusion related to look-alike products do not focus on experimental testing of memory distortions, but are based on consumers’ opinions (ProMarka 2007), product similarity analysis (Kapf
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