Maximising Export Returns (MER): Consumer behaviour and trends for credence attributes in key markets and a review of how these may be communicated

Abstract

This report builds upon earlier work conducted by the Agribusiness and Economics Research Unit (AERU), and examines trends in consumer attitudes toward credence attributes concentrating on key markets (United Kingdom, China, India, Singapore and Indonesia) that are important or have potential for New Zealand exporters. This report is part of a wider research project ‘Maximising Export Returns (MER)’, an MBIE funded three year project undertaken by the AERU at Lincoln University. This project aims to explore how export firms can capture price premiums by including credence attributes in products for overseas markets. The purpose of this report is to provide an initial literature review to identify types of credence attributes, explore consumer preferences for them as well as provide an overview of “smart” technologies being used by consumers internationally.