The global market today is characterized by the proliferation of binational
products, or products that are branded in one country while actually
manufactured in another. This paper investigates how consumers evaluate the
quality of such products under two different situations. In Study 1, where brand
name and country-of-manufacture were the only pieces of information given about
a product, it was found that consumers used both pieces of information in
evaluating the product. In Study 2, however, where specific attribute product
information was available as well as brand name and country-of-manufacture, it
was revealed that consumers relied heavily on the brand name information. The
implications of the results for marketing, manufacturing, and sourcing
strategies are discussed.
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