Country of Origin - Marketing

Marketing

From a marketing perspective, country of origin is a way to differentiate the product from the competitors. Schooler (1965) is generally considered as the first researcher to empirically study this effect. He found out that products, identical in every respect except for their country-of-origin, were perceived differently by consumers. Since then, more than 1000 studies have been published on this subject. This research shows that the country of origin has an impact on consumers' quality perceptions of a product, as well as ultimately preference for and willingness to buy that product. Furthermore, several studies have shown that consumers tend to have a relative preference to products from their own country or may have a relative preference for or aversion against products that originate from certain countries (so-called affinity and animosity countries). The effect of country of origin is however debated, with some studies questioning the relevance of academic research on country-of-origin effects for business managers. Overall, academics seem to conclude that the country with which a product is associated with, the so-called country-of-association significantly impacts consumers' product evaluations and choice, but that given the number of publications available, care should be given whether yet another study on that effect is needed.