Limited-edition advertising does not always work for luxury brands: The influence of consumption contexts

Limited-edition advertising on a limited quantity available to be sold (limited quantity scarcity) is used to increase product value, thereby enticing consumers. This type of limited-edition advertising has been proven to be effective for luxury brands; as a result, its adoption has increased over the years. However, are limited editions effective across all consumption situations? The current study argues that limited-edition advertising may not always work as well as previously thought and that it is only effective when (1) consumers are in emotional (vs. cognitive) consumption contexts; (2) the consumption is socially visible (vs. invisible); and (3) the country of origin where the luxury product was made is favorable (vs. unfavorable). The results of two experiments using 807 participants confirmed the study's hypotheses. More importantly, the findings showed that limited-edition advertising had detrimental effects in a cognitive consumption context; that is, using limited-edition advertising in a cognitive consumption context decreased consumers' purchase intentions. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.