Do country-of-manufacture and country-of-design matter to industrial brand equity?

Purpose-This paper aims to investigate the effects of country-of-manufacture (COM) and country-of-design (COD) on industrial brand equity. Design/methodology/approach-A conceptual framework to assess how international buyers evaluate industrial brand equity when confronted with a single cue and multiple cues is proposed. Data for testing the hypotheses are collected through fax, e-mail, and online surveys of managers from 102 industrial buyers of Taiwanese fasteners. A quantitative study is undertaken of 64 respondents using PLS analysis. Findings-The main finding is that the single-cue framework produces more statistically significant COM and COD effects on industrial brand equity than does the multiple-cue framework. The current results confirm previous findings that the country-of-origin effects based on single-cue and multiplecue studies produce conflicting and inconclusive results. Research limitations/implications-These findings underscore the findings that the impacts of COM and COD on industrial brand equity are jointly determined by study characteristics, research designs, and the nature of the dependent variable being investigated. Practical implications-A clear implication for managers responsible for branding and communicating B2B products in international markets is to continue to create clear awareness of the offering and to provide appropriate imagery for consolidating the reputation of firms in both their internal (product) and external (country-of-origin) dimensions. Originality/value-While country-of-origin and consumer products have been widely studied in the literature, the paper examines the effects of COM and COD on industrial brand equity in analyzing the process by which international buyers evaluate brand equity when confronted with a single cue and multiple cues.