Present your Brand’s Authentic Side. Consumers will Dig Deeper into their Pockets.

Brand authenticity has been repeatedly designated as one of the major marketing trends in the 21st century. While brands extensively use authentic brand cues to create unique and trustworthy images, empirical research on the effects of authenticity is scant. This paper proposes that brand authenticity depicts an intangible benefit to consumers which thus should result in higher willingness to pay (WTP). In two experimental studies, we show that authentic brand cues indeed increase WTP levels. Importantly, we also demonstrate that both local and global brands can benefit from brand authenticity.