A set-theoretic approach to identifying effective configurations ofpromotional attributes

Purpose Most previous studies have indicated promotional attributes separately (e.g. time pressure, giveaways, price discounts, exclusivity) and found controversial effects. This paper aims to explore how different attributes can be aligned with each other and integrated with different levels of brand strength to influence sales or purchase intention according to the fit logic. Design/methodology/approach Both field data and controlled experiments are used to understand the effectiveness of promotion configurations. This paper first conducts an exploratory study using qualitative comparative analysis, based on 625 online promotion campaigns. This paper identifies several effective configurations of promotion attributes, leading to the development of two hypotheses. Three experiments are then designed to test the validity of these two hypotheses. Findings The results show that strong brands should adopt nonmonetary promotion, whereas weak brands should adopt monetary promotion; exclusivity and time limitation should be used separately. Research limitations/implications This paper provides empirical insights on how promotion elicits sales in terms of the configuration of promotional attributes and brand strength. This paper examines the integrative effect of types of giveaways, promotion duration and promotion target as well as brand strength on promotion effectiveness. Future research can explore other promotional attributes. This study is a first attempt to introduce and apply the set-theoretic approach to address strategic research issues and inform strategic decisions and managerial actions. Practical implications The findings can facilitate marketers’ understanding and predictions of deal recipients’ responses to promotions. Originality/value This paper adopts a holistic view to investigate how different promotion attributes interact with one another to stimulate sales. It explores the integrative effect from field data and finds converging evidence through a set-theoretic approach and controlled experiments.

Latin: Back to the Future? Some Reflections on Latin and Literacy in the Digital Age

Vogt-Spira Gregor, Latin: Back to the Future? Some Reflections on Latin and Literacy in the Digital Age (Łacina: powrót do przyszłości? Kilka refleksji nad łaciną i kwestiami literackimi w epoce digitalizacji).This paper argues that Latin meets the challenges of this day and age so that its preservation actually has a well-founded place within European countries and societies. The argumentation starts by the observation that Latin gathers a number of additional values as an alterity training, a cognitive training, a linguistic training or a socially integrative effect, values, which are remarkably not bound to a specific culture. Above all, digitization and the modern cybernetic world is seen as a central challenge, digitization with its enormous quantitative increase in reading and writing activity also transforms the user profile in a way that complements it, a factor to which educational institutions have yet to come up with a conclusive response. Referring to this development, Latin has the particular significance of imparting the standards of an elaborate written form into the composition and decoding of texts. Furthermore, Latinity itself is considered to be one of the key factors that have shaped modern-day Europe, and the later Latin-language literature is seen to be a comprehensive component of each country’s respective national literature and culture. To conclude, the ancient European custom is brought into focus that, practically, antiquity serves as a vehicle for legitimizing modernization.

The Alternative Liste Westberlin and the Evolution of the West German Left

In October 1978, diverse members of the West Berlin Left founded the Alternative Liste für Demokratie und Umweltschutz (Alternative Ballot for Democracy and Environmental Protection, AL). This article examines the origins and evolution of the AL. Initially, the new political organization fundamentally opposed the parliamentary system. Within three years, however, the AL won a significant presence in the West Berlin Parliament, and in 1989, the party joined the Social Democrats in governing West Berlin. The AL’s parliamentary participation had a moderating, integrative effect on the party and its members. From the late 1970s through the end of the 1980s, a significant segment of the radical West German Left grew to accept parliamentary democracy, demonstrating the strength of the Federal Republic.