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Dynamics of consumer decision making of over-the-counter drugs: evaluating product comparison claims and moderating role of price consciousness
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Dynamics of consumer decision making of over-the-counter drugs: evaluating product comparison claims and moderating role of price consciousness

Ilwoo Ju and Hyunmin Lee
Journal of communication in healthcare, v 10(2), pp 88-99
03 Apr 2017
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17538068.2017.1337605

Abstract

comparative claim health advertising health marketing Over-the-counter price consciousness private label
Price consciousness has been found to be an important factor in consumers' over-the-counter (OTC) drug decision making. In response to this, major drug store chains have employed low-price strategies to attract consumers and which has contributed to the growth of private label (PL) (or store brand) OTC drug sales. However, while a comparative claim in the PL OTC drug packaging (e.g. a reference to national leading brands) is a predominant message approach, little is known about how such a message strategy interacts with consumers' price consciousness on their packaging message evaluation and drug purchase decision making. An online experiment using a U.S. adult consumer panel was conducted to examine the moderating role of price consciousness in evaluating the PL OTC packaging comparative claims and making a purchase decision. The results showed that consumers' varying price consciousness levels moderated the effects of comparative claims in PL OTC packaging. Furthermore, the comparative claim effects were mediated through message involvement and perceived message effectiveness on purchase intention. The findings indicate that consumers' price consciousness, a dispositional consumer trait, can interact with a situational marketing message factor in the process of consumer evaluation of PL OTC packaging messages. In addition, consumers' PL OTC purchase decision was found to be made through consumers' message evaluation. Understanding the mechanism of consumers' PL OTC drug packaging message processing, by examining boundary conditions and mediating paths, may provide insight into promoting needed medical treatments for public health. The theoretical and practical implications of this study are discussed.

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