Work “for” you or work “with” you: The effect of candidate's positioning on donation reception

Donations are a well-studied area in consumer research, but our understanding of political donations is limited. Because the motivations for donating to charity and political candidates are different, we use branding perspectives to investigate this important phenomenon. In four studies, we demonstrate that candidates with a “servant” brand positioning are likely to generate fewer donations compared with those with a “partner” positioning. This is because a servant brand positioning leads individuals to perceive that the candidates require fewer resources. We also show that the relationship between brand positioning and political donation is influenced by factors such as political ideology, election polls, and the percentage of the donation relative to election expenses. Specifically, the effect is stronger among conservatives, when the candidates are leading in the polls, and when a small donation represents a significant portion of the election expenses. These findings provide valuable insights into how brand positioning affects individuals' intentions to donate to political campaigns.