What is brand personality? A historical and prescriptive account

Abstract

Despite decades of brand personality (BP) research, recent meta-analyses/reviews highlight how this stream of inquiry still lacks a commonly accepted construct definition. Moreover, definitions generally refer to brand personification and not personality in a proper psychological sense. This lack of conceptual specificity is problematic as it confounds research and practice. The present paper addresses this definitional confusion. It offers a historical account of the BP construct with some prescriptive advice for its future use. It thereby hopes to create awareness and discussion as to what BP actually is, or ought to be. Based on how trait psychology understands personality, a new definition is suggested, BP reconceived as ‘the distinct set of human personality traits that lead brands to regard their environment in characteristic ways, and as a result, communicate and behave consistently over situations and time’. By clarifying the BP construct, this paper aims to improve research. It also hopes to benefit practice. A better understanding of BP stands to enhance segmentation, positioning and differentiation, rendering branding efforts more effective.