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Why do boycotts sometimes increase sales? Consumer activism in the age of political polarization

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  • Neureiter, Michael
  • Bhattacharya, C.B.
Abstract
In this article, we argue that the occurrence, trajectory, and impact of consumer activism are in large part driven by the political environment in which firms operate, particularly by their country’s level of polarization and the political makeup of their core customer base. In environments characterized by low levels of political polarization, companies are embroiled in a relatively small number of political controversies, and as a result are rarely the target of consumer activism. Conversely, in highly polarized environments, people’s political sensibilities are easily offended, which leads to a relatively large number of political controversies. These controversies tend to arise along party lines, meaning they elicit a consumer boycott exclusively from one side of the political spectrum. Such partisan boycotts lead people on the other side of the political spectrum to rally around the company at the center of the controversy and to purchase more of its products. Whether a company’s sales end up decreasing or increasing depends on the nature of the issue at the heart of the controversy as well as on the political beliefs of its core customer base. We conclude by describing how companies can successfully navigate this complex interplay between political polarization, consumer activism, and customers’ political preferences.

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  • Neureiter, Michael & Bhattacharya, C.B., 2021. "Why do boycotts sometimes increase sales? Consumer activism in the age of political polarization," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 64(5), pages 611-620.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:bushor:v:64:y:2021:i:5:p:611-620
    DOI: 10.1016/j.bushor.2021.02.025
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Grzegorz Zasuwa, 2019. "The Role of Individual- and Contextual-Level Social Capital in Product Boycotting: A Multilevel Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-16, February.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Pedersen, Carsten Lund, 2023. "The paradoxical marketer: Interpretations, illustrations, and implications," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 66(6), pages 765-776.
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    4. Bart J. Bronnenberg & Jean-Pierre Dubé, 2023. "Comment on “Frontiers: Spilling the Beans on Political Consumerism: Do Social Media Boycotts and Buycotts Translate to Real Sales Impact?”," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 42(1), pages 28-31, January.
    5. Matthew Amengual & Rita Mota & Alexander Rustler, 2023. "The ‘Court of Public Opinion:’ Public Perceptions of Business Involvement in Human Rights Violations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 185(1), pages 49-74, June.
    6. Sheehan, Norman T. & Vaidyanathan, Ganesh & Fox, Kenneth A. & Klassen, Mark, 2023. "Making the invisible, visible: Overcoming barriers to ESG performance with an ESG mindset," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 66(2), pages 265-276.
    7. Giat, Yahel & Manes, Eran, 2023. "Firm response to ethically motivated boycotts," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 305(1), pages 300-311.
    8. Benjamin Barber & Daniel J. Blake, 2024. "My kind of people: Political polarization, ideology, and firm location," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(5), pages 849-874, May.
    9. Steven Chen, 2023. "A counterinsurgent (COIN) framework to defend against consumer activists," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 30(4), pages 275-301, July.
    10. Alyahya, Mansour & Agag, Gomaa & Aliedan, Meqbel & Abdelmoety, Ziad H., 2023. "A cross-cultural investigation of the relationship between eco-innovation and customers boycott behaviour," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    11. Sandikci, Ozlem & Jafari, Aliakbar & Fischer, Eileen, 2024. "Claiming market ownership: Territorial activism in stigmatized markets," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).

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