Abstract

The word cool is everywhere, in magazines, movies and in advertising. Although the origins of the word and its general relevance to marketing have been well discussed, there has been little scientific research of coolness and its consequences in the context of marketing of specific brands or product categories. The focus of this dissertation is to build the first theory driven and psychometrically sound measure of a brand’s level of coolness in the form of a brand coolness index (BCI). The concept of cool as it applies to brands is defined and the five dimensions of cool are identified with the purpose of building the BCI. A model that investigates the effects of brand coolness on consumer attitudes and several behavioral consequences is proposed. BCI is a multidimensional instrument that will be a powerful diagnostic tool for both academics and practitioners. The proposed model emphasizes the importance of being a cool brand in relation to brand affect, brand trust, brand loyalty, willingness to pay a price premium and positive word of mouth.