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The antecedents of brand loyalty: a meta-analysis study
Abstract
One of the most important marketing topics that has been discussed extensively by both academics and practitioners over the past decades is brand loyalty, with previous studies often examining the determinants of this loyalty. However, the results are still inconclusive, and a comprehensive research framework has yet to be developed. This study aims to integrate previous literature by identifying the antecedents and mediators of brand loyalty. Five research hypotheses with 45 sub-hypotheses were developed and validated through a meta-analysis by collecting 144 studies from the previous literature for the period between 1996 and 2014. The results indicate that both cognitive-related variables (including brand awareness, brand personality, and brand identity) and hedonic-related variables (including hedonic attitude, entertainment, and aesthetic appeal) have significant impacts on quality and value perceptions towards the brand (including perceived quality, reputation, brand image, perceived value, commitme...
... Os consumidores podem avaliar produtos e/ou serviços similares ou idênticos e fazer uma distinção efetiva entre eles, dependendo de como as marcas são percebidas entre si, comparativamente, o que corrobora a necessidade de um maior cuidado com o posicionamento da marca na mente dos consumidores (Keller, 2003). Além disso, as marcas agregam valor às ofertas das empresas e dão sentido ao processo de decisão de compra e ao consumo, tendo em vista o valor que é percebido pelos consumidores ou pelo mercado (Sasmita & Suki, 2015;Pappu & Quester, 2016;Wu & Anridho, 2016). Isso quer dizer que os consumidores escolhem os produtos ou serviços e suas respectivas marcas não só pelos seus benefícios utilitários, mas também pelos seus benefícios simbólicos Bairrada et al., 2018). ...
... Observa-se que a consciência de marca pode ser um preditor de percepções da marca que envolve a qualidade percebida pelos consumidores. Outros pesquisadores verificaram ainda que a consciência da marca tem uma influência positiva sobre a qualidade percebida e que quanto maior a consciência da marca, maior a qualidade que os clientes percebem em seus produtos e/ou serviços (Chi, Yeh, & Yang, 2009;Sasmita & Suki, 2015;Wu & Anridho, 2016). Para tanto, emerge a primeira hipótese de pesquisa: ...
Purpose:
Developing and keeping customers’ loyalty in relation to the brand is a strategic requisite for well-succeeded business. Thus, our main purpose was to develop and validate a theoretical model concerning customers brand loyalty.
Originality/value:
We explored perceived quality, brand awareness, brand personality, and brand love as brand loyalty determinants. In this sense, the focus of this study was to analyze the impact of some brand loyalty determinant constructs.
Design/methodology/approach:
The study was implemented by means of a survey, applied to 284 customers of a soft drink brand from Northeast Brazil that was acquired by one of the biggest soft drink producers in the world. Data were analyzed through multivariate statistics and applying structural equation modeling technic.
Findings:
It was possible to evidence that there is a positive relation between the constructs brand awareness and perceived quality and positive influence of brand personality over brand awareness, as well as perceived quality over brand love. Also, evidence showed that brand love influences brand loyalty and that consumption level is a meaningful moderator of this relation.
... Measured in behavioural and attitudinal context, brand loyalty is as a multidimensional construct affected by consumers' culture (Parida & Sahney, 2017), value perceptions and benefits of the brand (Bennur & Jin, 2017) as well as cognitive variables related to brand awareness and identity (Wu & Anridho, 2016). Brand loyalty is defined as the degree to which a consumer consistently purchased the same brand within a product class despite competitors' efforts (Ogba & Tan, 2009;Sriram, Balachander, & Kalwani, 2007). ...
... Defined as a consumer's perception of a product's consistent specifications, product benefits, quality and value additions (Aaker, 1991;Bhuian, 1997;Chi et al., 2009;Dodds & Grewal, 1991;Zeithaml, 1988), perceived quality acts as a salient differentiator for a brand (Aaker, 1991;Wu & Anridho, 2016). It is a dimension which significantly impacts the level of consumer's brand trust (Chi et al., 2009;Ghalandari, Nazarian, & Norouzi, 2016;Laluyan, Pangemanan, & Worang, 2017). ...
The fortune at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP) has been a major direction for organizations vying to expand/tap into the vast consuming base of rural India. In order to attract and retain these specific consumers, it is critical to understand their psyche, attitudes, motives and expectations as they offer the key to building a brand image. The paper attempts to understand the implications of maintaining a loyal consumer base in rural markets of India by building a sustainable brand image through understanding the dimensions of perceived quality, product promotion and brand trust. It also attempts to study the significant impact of such brand images on brand loyalty for the chosen product category of sports shoes. The formulated hypotheses were tested empirically through regression analysis to validate the proposed research framework for the present study. The study holds importance for brand marketers attempting to penetrate or establish a presence in the Indian rural markets.
... A strong brand personality is able to influence consumers in brand selection (Kaplan et al., 2010;Rajagopal and Rajagopal, 2017) and interpret the consumer image (Freling and Forbes, 2005) through self-symbolisation, self-expression (Kapferer, 2012;Keller, 1993), and the personality cue (Freling and Forbes, 2005). Further findings have proven that brand personality might stimulate the perception of brand value (Wu and Anridho, 2016) and brand love, especially in developing countries (Junaid and Hussain, 2016). The majority of people use brands to identify themselves (Louis and Lombart, 2010) because humans and brands are integrated (Lin, 2010). ...
Hypermarket brand extension products were introduced to the market some time ago and now include a growing number of product lines. This research looks at the brand value of hypermarket brand extension products through consumer experience and brand personality in the Malaysian market. Hypermarket brand extension products have a significant positive relationship with consumer experience and brand personality. Consumer experience also has a significant positive relationship with brand personality and brand value. However, the findings are not able to prove that hypermarket brand extension personality influences the overall brand extension value. Hence, consumer experience is the key to boosting the demand by consumers for hypermarket brand extension products. This research provides insights into developing the value of hypermarket brand extension products for practitioners and offers further thoughts for research scholars seeking a deeper knowledge of this field.
Previous literature uses first‐order meta‐analyses to overcome the divergent theories about customer relational benefit, which produced mixed results in terms of the associations found. Originally conceptualised as unidimensional, customer relational benefit is an integrative multidimensional concept that includes trust, commitment, loyalty, satisfaction, word of mouth, and other constructs involved in long‐term relational exchanges. The authors conduct a second‐order meta‐analysis on 41 first‐order meta‐analyses on customer relational benefits, generating 3.8 million observations and 3462 independent samples, resulting in an overall generalisation of the relationships between these constructs. We test three theoretical models and propose an alternative rival framework. Main results indicate that the product‐ versus consumer‐related model generates strong variance in loyalty. Second, the cognitive–affective–conative–behavioural model is not superior in terms of explaining and predicting loyalty, but our three‐stage model performs better. Third, the service‐profit chain model is an alternative in terms of generating a sequence of effects (serial perspective). Fourth, our new alternative framework (a three‐stage model based on the temporal sequence of loyalty) works better for explaining some constructs.
RESUMO Com o aumento da competitividade dos mercados e pautada pelas escolhas de consumidores cada vez mais exigentes, a marca tem sido referenciada como elemento diferenciador no mercado. Portanto, buscando uma maior compreensão desta relação entre consumidor-marca o presente estudo fomenta uma discussão teórica, com o objetivo de explorar de forma holística a dinâmica da natureza da relação dos construtos personalidade da marca e amor à marca, bem como o impacto combinado dos mesmos como determinantes da lealdade à marca de modo a fornecer uma contribuição para o avanço do conhecimento sobre este fenômeno. Para tanto, realiza-se uma pesquisa de cunho exploratório, através de uma revisão das principais literaturas sobre a temática. Esses construtos são conceitos emergentes na literatura no contexto do comportamento do consumidor, e do marketing relacional e por isso busca-se por meio deste estudo entender a abrangência da natureza desta relação e as suas implicações nas decisões de compra. Palavras-chave: Personalidade da marca. Amor à marca. Lealdade à marca 1 INTRODUÇÃO As marcas fornecem um meio de escolha para os consumidores, e leva-os a criarem laços preferenciais revelando um comportamento afetivo perante as mesmas. Os atributos da marca constituem uma garantia á uma promessa confiável de desempenho para os consumidores (AAKER, 1996). A forma como o consumidor se relaciona com as marcas á muito tempo tem sido discutido no campo do marketing na qual se estima ter começado por volta do final do século XX. (ZAINOL et al. 2016; KAUFMANN et al., 2016). O conceito de relacionamento com a marca (FOURNIER, 1998; MCALEXANDER et al., 2002; KAUFMANN et al., 2016) se origina nas relações interpessoais como estudadas nas pesquisas de personalidade e na psicologia social. A literatura sobre a marca sugere que as marcas significam coisas diferentes e assumem diferentes funções de forma diferente para as pessoas (KELLER, 2003). A marca alcançou uma importância crucial no mercado contemporâneo e é tido como um meio de estabelecer fortes laços (lealdade à marca) com os consumidores, proporcionando rentabilidade e sustentabilidade como um resultado para a empresa (AAKER, 1991). Assim sendo, as empresas dependem amplamente dos processos de gerenciamento da marca e gastam muitos recursos para posicionar suas marcas corretamente na mente dos consumidores-alvos visando a lealdade dos mesmos (IYER, PASWAN; DAVARI, 2016). A marca pode ser considerada como um ativo valioso para qualquer empresa e tem sido amplamente reconhecida como uma razão essencial para a escolha do consumidor que serve como uma ferramenta para verificar a diferenciação dos produtos/serviços e a sua singularidade. Ademais, as marcas podem impactar na confiança do consumidor e a própria confiança, por sua vez, facilita o processo de tomada de decisão, atenuando problemas associados com experiência do consumidor e credenciais qualidades do produto (AAKER, 1991; CHUNG et al., 2013; EMARI et al., 2012; SASMITA; SUKI, 2015).
Com o aumento da competitividade dos mercados e pautada pelas escolhas de consumidores cada vez mais exigentes, a marca tem sido referenciada como elemento diferenciador no mercado. Portanto, buscando uma maior compreensão desta relação entre consumidor-marca o presente estudo fomenta uma discussão teórica, com o objetivo de explorar de forma holística a dinâmica da natureza da relação dos construtos personalidade da marca e amor à marca, bem como o impacto combinado dos mesmos como determinantes da lealdade à marca de modo a fornecer uma contribuição para o avanço do conhecimento sobre este fenômeno. Para tanto, realiza-se uma pesquisa de cunho exploratório, através de uma revisão das principais literaturas sobre a temática. Esses construtos são conceitos emergentes na literatura no contexto do comportamento do consumidor, e do marketing relacional e por isso busca-se por meio deste estudo entender a abrangência da natureza desta relação e as suas implicações nas decisões de compra.
Transparent windows are intriguing windows to let customers easier to know the track of multiple processes of
the producing or transporting from real or virtual world at once. The purpose of this study was to investigate the
customers’ importance for assurance about the quality of products or services from transparent windows on both
utilitarian and hedonic perspectives. Also, these dual motivations were examined the mediated effect. The
findings of this study were showed as expectation mostly. Statistic and practical implications are presented
along with suggestions for future research.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) plays an important role on creating a good image for business owners especially in banking industry. In this paper, we present an empirical survey to measure the impact of CSR on increasing reputation as well as creating brand equity through customer satisfaction. There are five hypotheses in our survey where we examine whether positive perception on bank’s customers on CSR activities influences customer satisfaction, brand equity and firm’s reputation. In addition, we examine whether customer satisfaction, as in intermediate variable, influences the relationship between CSR and bank’s reputation as well as CSR and firm’s brand equity. The proposed study of this paper designs a questionnaire and distributes it among 384 experts who work for an Iranian bank located in city of Tehran, Iran. According to our results, there is a positive impact of CSR on customer satisfaction (β=0.84). In addition, there is a positive relationship between customer satisfaction and firm reputation (β=0.70), and between customer satisfaction and brand equity (β=0.98). However, our survey did not confirm that CSR had any positive impact on corporate reputation or brand equity.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationships among brand experience, brand personality, and customer experiential value. Understanding these relationships is helpful to managers in their assessment of the level of appeal that will influence target consumers' perception of brand personality, as well as their brand experience. An empirical survey conducted with 270 real consumers in Taiwan is used to test the hypotheses. Data are analyzed using Amos 17 to understand the effect of the research model. The empirical results reveal that brand experience positively influenced customer value, brand personality positively affected customer experiential value, and brand experience positively affected brand personality.
The main purpose of this study is to examine the relations between brand trust, brand affect, attitudinal loyalty and behavioral loyalty. In this regard, an online survey was conducted on sports shoe consumers in Turkey. 428 consumers participated in the survey which has been open for two months on the relevant web page. Hypotheses, which were proposed within the framework of the research model, were tested with structural equation modeling. The results indicate that there is a positive relation between brand trust and brand affect. Brand trust is also positively related to both attitudinal loyalty and behavioral loyalty. Contrary to expectations, brand affect exerted no significant impact on behavioral loyalty.
This study examines the underlying dimensions of brand equity in the chocolate industry. For this purpose, researchers developed a model to identify which factors are influential in building brand equity. The second purpose was to assess brand loyalty and brand images… … … … mediating effect between brand attitude, brand personality, brand association with brand equity. The study employed structural equation modeling to investigate the causal relationships between the dimensions of brand equity and brand equity itself. It specifically measures the way in which consumers' perceptions of the dimensions of brand equity affect the overall brand equity evaluations. Data were collected from a sample of consumers of chocolate industry in Iran. The results of this empirical study indicate that brand loyalty and brand image are important components of brand equity in this industry. Moreover, the role of brand loyalty and brand image as mediating factors in the intention of brand equity are supported. The principal contribution of the present research is that it provides empirical evidence of the multidimensionality of consumer based brand equity, supporting Aaker´s and Keller´s conceptualization of brand equity. The present research also enriched brand equity building by incorporating the brand personality and brand image, as recommended by previous researchers. Moreover, creating the brand equity index in chocolate industry of Iran particularly is novel.
Purpose
In today's marketplace, successful branding requires building strong bonds with the consumers, by creating favorable, strong and unique brand associations in consumer minds. This study aims to identify the role of functional (perceived quality) and symbolic brand associations (personality congruence and brand prestige) in creating brand loyalty in the ready‐to‐wear sector from the perspective of Generation Y consumers.
Design/methodology/approach
The research employs a structural equation modeling method based on data collected from 564 individuals born between 1977 and 1994. Turkey is chosen as the context of the study based on the fact that the ready‐to‐wear sector is one of the leading sectors in the country and about 30 percent of the population are Generation Y consumers.
Findings
The findings of the study reveal that perceived quality has a direct positive effect on brand loyalty, suggesting appearance and product quality perception are critical in the preferences of Generation Y consumers. Personality congruence and brand prestige, on the other hand, have an indirect positive effect on brand loyalty with the mediation of appearance and product quality.
Practical implications
The practitioners in the sector should devote special attention to appearance quality together with product quality, and construct a high quality and prestigious brand image with the personality traits of sincerity, competence, and excitement.
Originality/value
This study has contributions to branding, ready‐to‐wear, and Generation Y literature combining several important dimensions into a structural model, and examines the interrelationships among these dimensions as well as their effect on brand loyalty.
Hotel firms have increasingly recognized that branding strategies constitute a strategic weapon to secure a competitive edge in the global hotel industry. To extend current understanding of hotel brand management, this study investigates the role of customer brand identification in the formation of hotel brand loyalty. This study contributes to the literature by establishing that customer brand identification is an indirect predictor of hotel brand loyalty through its three known antecedents. Results suggest that while the customer may identify with a particular hotel brand, hotel loyalty still depends on the customer's positive evaluation of factors relating to service experiences. However, as consumers’ identification with a hotel brand affects their evaluation of these factors, hoteliers should leverage customers’ brand identification to engender positive consumer evaluation of the hotel brand and, ultimately, increase brand loyalty.
Restaurant managers have recited the quality mantra and sought solace in satisfaction, but customers are motivated by value.
Four of the dimensions that combine to contribute to chain restaurants’ brand equity are brand awareness, brand image, perceived quality, and brand loyalty. A test of a structural model connecting these four attributes of brand equity was based on data collected from 188 patrons of five chain restaurant brands in Korea. The resulting data analysis demonstrates that the four dimensions of brand equity are interrelated. The model indicates that the foundation of brand equity is brand awareness. However, while brand awareness influences brand loyalty formation, its impact is mediated by the effects of brand image and perceived quality. In addition, although brand awareness is a prerequisite of brand loyalty, brand image and perceived quality bear a stronger impact on the development of brand loyalty. On balance, the implications of these findings support the restaurant industry’s practices of constant promotion, quality assurance, and process improvement.
The objective of this article is to clarify the conceptual domains of organizational identity, image, and reputation. To initiate this theory development process, we present a “social actor” conception of organizational identity. Identity-congruent definitions of image and reputation are then specified and an integrated model proposed. With the aid of this model, a structural flawin the organizational reputation literature is identified and suitable remedies proposed. In addition, the authors explore the implications of invoking identity and identification in explanations and justifications of organizational reputation.
The authors report a study of the effects of price, brand, and store information on buyers' perceptions of product quality and value, as well as their willingness to buy. Hypotheses are derived from a conceptual model positing the effects of extrinsic cues (price, brand name, and store name) on buyers' perceptions and purchase intentions. Moreover, the design of the experiment allows additional analyses on the relative differential effects of price, brand name, and store name on the three dependent variables. Results indicate that price had a positive effect on perceived quality, but a negative effect on perceived value and willingness to buy. Favorable brand and store information positively influenced perceptions of quality and value, and subjects' willingness to buy. The major findings are discussed and directions for future research are suggested.
The Korean fast food industry has grown rapidly since the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. There are now 1500 fast food restaurants in Korea. This study investigated the relationships between consumer values of eating-out and the importance of fast food restaurant attributes in Korea. Using a questionnaire, 279 fast food restaurant patrons were surveyed. The results showed that consumer values of eating-out divided into two factors; hedonic and utilitarian. The hedonic value of eating-out had positive correlation with mood, quick service, cleanliness, food taste, employee kindness, and facilities, the utilitarian value centered on reasonable price, quick service, and promotional incentives. Also, the hedonic value more influenced buying frequency than the utilitarian. This study presents empirical evidence showing that Korean consumers choose fast food restaurants more by hedonic, not utilitarian, values of eating-out. Consequently, fast food restaurant marketers in Korea should consider hedonic aspects as the most important factors in attracting customers. Limitations and further research issues are suggested.
Purpose
This research study aims to examine the practicality and application of a customer‐based brand equity model, based on Aaker's well‐known conceptual framework of brand equity.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employed structural equation modelling to investigate the causal relationships between the dimensions of brand equity and brand equity itself. It specifically measured the way in which consumers’ perceptions of the dimensions of brand equity affected the overall brand equity evaluations. Data were collected from a sample of university students in Turkey.
Findings
The study concludes that brand loyalty is the most influential dimension of brand equity. Weak support is found for the brand awareness and perceived quality dimensions.
Research limitations/implications
While it is acknowledged that student samples are normally an unreliable basis for conclusions and predictions to be applied to consumers in general, it is considered that they were an appropriate group for this study, given that the subject was beverages.
Practical implications
Implications for brand managers and marketing planners are discussed. Marketing managers should consider the relative importance of brand equity dimensions in their overall brand equity evaluations.
Originality/value
Branding plays an important role in contemporary marketing, and is the focus of much literature, both academic and professional. This study contributes to the body of knowledge.
Based on theory from consumer behavior and cognitive psychology, the purpose of this paper is to discuss and test corporate image and customer satisfaction as two routes to customer loyalty. Based on data from 600 individual customers categorized as having high or low service expertise of three companies within the package tour industry, a conceptual model is proposed and tested empirically using structural equation modeling. The data used in the study are included in The Norwegian Customer Satisfaction Barometer. The paper concludes by claiming that for complex services, corporate image and customer satisfaction are not two separate routes to customer loyalty. Corporate image impacts customer loyalty directly whereas customer satisfaction does not. This finding was consistent with high and low service expertise. These results challenge the disconfirmation paradigm which predicts customer satisfaction as the primary route to customer loyalty. From a managerial perspective, information regarding the relative strength of the two routes is vital with regard to resource allocation in order to improve customer loyalty.
Integrating work on international assignments and domestic stress, we conducted meta-analyses of over 50 determinants and consequences of expatriate adjustment using data from 8,474 expatriates in 66 studies. We also examined the trajectory of adjustment over time, and time as a moderator of adjustment effects. Results emphasize the centrality, criticality, and complexity of adjustment, strongly supporting Black, Mendenhall, and Oddou's (1991) model. Structural modeling of proposed model extensions showed that adjustment uniquely affects job satisfaction, withdrawal cognitions, and performance.
Relationship marketing-establishing, developing, and maintaining successful relational exchanges-constitutes a major shift in marketing theory and practice. After conceptualizing relationship marketing and discussing its ten forms, the authors (1) theorize that successful relationship marketing requires relationship commitment and trust, (2) model relationship commitment and trust as key mediating variables, (3) test this key mediating variable model using data from automobile tire retailers, and (4) compare their model with a rival that does not allow relationship commitment and trust to function as mediating variables. Given the favorable test results for the key mediating variable model, suggestions for further explicating and testing it are offered.
Evidence from past research and insights from an exploratory investigation are combined in a conceptual model that defines and relates price, perceived quality, and perceived value. Propositions about the concepts and their relationships are presented, then supported with evidence from the literature. Discussion centers on directions for research and implications for managing price, quality, and value.
The purposes of the study are to explore the effects among brand awareness, perceived qualit y, brand loyalty and customer purchase intention and mediating effects o f perceived quality and brand loyalty on brand awar eness and purchase intention. The samples are collected from cellular phone users living in Chiyi, and the resea rch adopts regression analysis and mediating test to examine t he hypotheses. The results are: (a) the relations a mong the brand awareness, perceived quality and brand loyalty for purchase intention are significant and positive eff ect, (b) perceived quality has a positive effect on brand loyalty, (c) perceived quality will meditate the effects betwee n brand awareness and purchase intention, and (d) brand loyalty will mediate the effects between brand awareness and pur chase intention. The study suggests that cellular phone manufacturer s ought to build a brand and promote its brand awar eness through sales promotion, advertising, and other marketing a ctivities. When brand awareness is high, its brand loyalty will also increase. Consumers will evaluate perceived quality of a product from their purchase experience. As a result, brand
This research was conducted to determine and study impact of brand personality on relational consequences (trust, attachment and commitment) and implemented by a survey-descriptive method providing conclusion about role of brand on consumer's behavior. Six hypotheses were codified and produced for test based on the consequences of brand personality after providing general framework of the study. A questionnaire comprising of some 23 questions was designed and distributed over statistical population of the research including 150 consumers of products with Nestle brand. Collected data were analyzed using SPSS and LISREL (technique of structural equations) softwares, Friedman test and by modeling structural equations. All hypotheses were confirmed except the path from attachment to commitment. The obtained and analyzed results were provided.
span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"> Numerous studies have investigated the impact of self-concept brand image congruity on brand loyalty. However, there is a dearth of literature which has assessed this relationship across different product types. Furthermore, there is a lack of understanding regarding the role that gender may play in the creation of such brand loyalty. This study investigates the effects of self-concept brand image congruity on consumer attitude formation and resulting brand loyalty across two different types of products (i.e., hedonic and utilitarian products) and assesses the moderating role of gender within each product type setting. Results reveal that the proposed model is sufficiently robust to explain the effects of self-concept brand image congruities across different product types. Furthermore, this study indicates that gender serves as a moderator in both product type settings, however, in theoretically important different manners.
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The purpose of this research was to examine the antecedents and consequences of brand prestige in the luxury cruise industry in order to provide luxury cruise managers with practical strategies for maximizing and utilizing brand prestige. Based on the existing theoretical background, it was hypothesized that eight types of cruise experience factors influence the formation of brand prestige: food quality, service quality, staff/crew attractiveness, entertainment, ship facilities, ports of call, programs/places for children, and cabin quality. In addition, it was proposed that brand prestige can result in three managerial outcomes: well-being perception, customer brand identification, and brand loyalty. A conceptual model was developed and tested using the empirical data collected from 330 U.S. luxury cruise passengers. The results showed that all of the proposed hypotheses were statistically supported. The key theoretical/managerial implications that were derived from the analysis are presented and discussed in the last part of the article.
The author presents a conceptual model of brand equity from the perspective of the individual consumer. Customer-based brand equity is defined as the differential effect of brand knowledge on consumer response to the marketing of the brand. A brand is said to have positive (negative) customer-based brand equity when consumers react more (less) favorably to an element of the marketing mix for the brand than they do to the same marketing mix element when it is attributed to a fictitiously named or unnamed version of the product or service. Brand knowledge is conceptualized according to an associative network memory model in terms of two components, brand awareness and brand image (i. e., a set of brand associations). Customer-based brand equity occurs when the consumer is familiar with the brand and holds some favorable, strong, and unique brand associations in memory. Issues in building, measuring, and managing customer-based brand equity are discussed, as well as areas for future research.
Food quality and employee task performance have been demonstrated to positively influence customer evaluations of restaurant dining experience. This study extends previous research by incorporating customer affective responses to examine the mediating processes underlying the relationships between customer perceptions of task performance/food quality and perceived value. The moderating influences of employee hospitality and entertainment cues on the relationships between customer perceptions of task performance/food quality and their affective responses were also examined. Results from surveying 308 customers of full-service restaurants showed that customer affective responses mediate the relationships between task performance/food quality and perceived value. The results also indicated that the relationship between food quality and affective responses increases with employee hospitability. However, employee hospitability negatively moderates the relationship between task performance and affective responses. Additionally, strong entertainment cues positively reinforce the relationship between task performance and affective responses, but do not significantly affect the relationship between food quality and affective responses.
The domain of customer orientation, perceived quality and brand loyalty has been well documented in the Western market (for example, Europe and US). However, the afore-mentioned themes are underexplored in the Chinese market. Therefore, this study investigates the effects of customer orientation, perceived quality and satisfaction on brand loyalty. Both perceived quality and customer satisfaction are hypothetically associated with brand loyalty through customer orientation acting as a moderating variable. Our study of 547 surveyed customers shows that endogenous constructs have an impact on brand loyalty. Our results present an alternative perspective on the moderating role of customer orientation. Conclusions and implications are drawn and discussed for brand loyalty development.
In the competitive health care industry, the impact of hospital brand image on the attitudes and behaviours of patients towards hospitals has become an important issue. The aim of this study is to examine the relationship among hospital brand image, service quality, patient satisfaction, and loyalty. Survey data gathered from large private hospitals in Taiwan are used to test the relationship. The results reveal that hospital brand image has both direct and indirect effects on patient loyalty. It means that a positive hospital brand image not only increases patient loyalty directly, but it also improves patient satisfaction through the enhancing of perceived service quality, which in turn increases the re-visit intention of patients. Hospital brand image indeed serves as a lead factor in enhancing service quality, patient satisfaction, and patient loyalty. In addition, the results imply that the path from service quality to patient satisfaction is a key avenue for the impact of hospital brand image on patient loyalty. Consequently, this study proposes that hospital managers should strive to create and maintain the positive hospital brand image in order to enhance service quality, patient satisfaction, and loyalty. Several strategies regarding the creation and maintenance of the positive hospital brand image are also suggested in this study.
This paper explores how customers' perceptions of firms' corporate social responsibility (CSR) and fairness in their pricing strategy determine customers' behaviour as users of financial services. Specifically it proposes a model where CSR and price fairness positively determine customer loyalty through satisfaction and commitment. It also proposes that the entity's social responsibility actions influence customers' price fairness evaluations. To test this model, structural equation modelling is employed on a sample of 300 customers of banks and savings banks. Results show that both CSR and price fairness contribute to achieving customer loyalty, also confirming the roles of satisfaction and commitment as mediating variables. In addition, it is also shown that CSR influences customer perceptions of price fairness, in such a way that customers perceive that socially oriented firms are also fairer in their pricing strategies. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.
The purpose of this study is to understand the relationship between ‘brand personality’ and key outcomes in the Chinese automobile industry. A secondary aim of the study is to look at whether or not these relationships hold across purchasers and non-purchasers. The major conclusion is that while brand personality dimensions are somewhat consistent across both purchasers and non-purchasers, the brand personality outcomes differ somewhat between the groups. First, brand personality plays a critical role in improving perceived quality and creating brand trust, a key finding given the intensely competitive nature of the Chinese automobile industry. Second, perceived quality plays an important role in mediating the relationship between brand personality and brand commitment for both groups. Third, perceived quality does not affect brand trust for the purchaser group. In the context of Chinese automobile industry, increasing the level of perceived quality of a particular brand requires convincing non-purchasers that the brand is valuable, and that the information being provided is useful. Fourth, since the relationship between perceived quality and brand trust was found to be non-significant, future research studies may wish to focus on obtaining a better understanding of Chinese cultural perspectives to shed further light on why perceived quality and brand trust are not related for the automobile purchaser group.
The concept of consumer-brand identification (CBI) is central to our understanding of how, when, and why brands help consumers articulate their identities. This paper proposes and tests an integrative theoretical framework of the antecedents of CBI. Six drivers of CBI, a moderator, and two consequences are posited and tested with survey data from a large sample of German household consumers. The results confirm the influence of five of the six drivers, namely, brand-self similarity, brand distinctiveness, brand social benefits, brand warmth, and memorable brand experiences. Further, we find that all five of these antecedents have stronger causal relationships with CBI when consumers have higher involvement with the brand’s product category. Finally, CBI is tied to two important pro-company consequences, brand loyalty and brand advocacy. Theoretical and managerial significance of the findings are discussed.
The present study was an effort to investigate the impacts of both retail brand personality and self-congruity, using them together in the same study, on store loyalty. Subsequently, this study explored the moderating role of gender in these relationships of retail brand personality and self-congruity with store loyalty. Questionnaire was used to collect data (n=355) using systematic sampling from department store shoppers of age 18 years and above in Kolkata, a metropolitan city of India. Multivariate data analysis techniques like exploratory factor analysis, structural equation modeling were used to analyse the data. Results revealed that both retail brand personality and self-congruity constructs have positive impacts on store loyalty and gender significantly moderates these impacts. Arguably, this paper is the first to examine the three constructs namely, retail brand personality, self-congruity and store loyalty using them together in the same model. Academic and managerial implications are further discussed.
In recent years, there has been an exponential increase in the volume of user-generated content being made available in social media platforms of the Web 2.0 genre. Among the most valuable from a marketing perspective is the prevalence of online reviews of products and services which can serve as vast, up-to-the-minute sources of data for research and marketing management. In this paper, we describe our work on the analysis of the different components of brand equity and their relations in hotels, using data extracted from social media platforms. By using online sources of reviews, we can achieve a greater degree of confidence in our findings as we have access to a far greater quantity of reviews spanning any given timeframe. Additionally we can have greater confidence in the information contained therein, as the reviews reflect the opinions of the customers considered at leisure, usually after their return from the hotel, rather than a hastily completed survey as the customer leaves the hotel.
This study examines the dynamics of consumer-brand identification (CBI) and its antecedents in the context of the launch of a new brand. Three focal drivers of CBI with a new brand are examined, namely: perceived quality (the instrumental driver), self-brand congruity (the symbolic driver), and consumer innate innovativeness (a trait-based driver). Using longitudinal survey data, the authors find that on average, CBI growth trajectories initially grow after the introduction but eventually decline, following an inverted-U shape. More importantly, the longitudinal effects of the antecedents suggest that CBI can take different paths. Consumer innovativeness creates a fleeting identification with the brand that dissipates over time. On the other hand, company-controlled drivers of CBI – such as brand positioning – can contribute to the build-up of deep-structure CBI that grows stronger over time. Based on these findings, the authors offer normative guidelines to managers on consumer-brand relationship investment.
The purpose of this study was twofold: to investigate the structural relationships between patrons’ emotional responses induced by advertising, their perceived value, and their behavioral intentions in the chain restaurant industry; and to investigate which attributes of advertising bear the strongest impact on behavioral intentions. Based on the literature review, six evaluative dimensions of advertising were derived: relevant news, brand reinforcement, stimulation, empathy, familiarity, and confusion. Theoretical relationships between these six evaluative dimensions and patrons’ emotional responses, perceived value, and behavioral intentions were derived based on the literature review. Following the collection and analysis of data obtained from chain restaurant patrons, it was found that four dimensions of advertising in particular (relevant news, stimulation, empathy, and familiarity) have a significant impact on inducing emotional responses in patrons. Among the four dimensions, stimulation was found to bear the most significant effect on patrons’ emotional responses. It can thus be stated that advertising-induced emotional responses positively influence patrons’ perceived value. During this study, it was found that the level of arousal induced by advertising plays a moderating function in the relationship between patrons’ emotional responses and hedonic value. The possible interpretations of these findings and their managerial implications are discussed in the latter part of this article.
This study proposed a conceptual model to examine how customers’ perceptions of the physical environment influenced disconfirmation, customer satisfaction, and customer loyalty for first-time and repeat customers in upscale restaurants. Using a structural equation modeling analysis, this study showed that facility aesthetics, lighting, layout, and service staff had significant effects on disconfirmation. Moreover, disconfirmation exerted a direct influence on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Customer satisfaction also positively influenced customer loyalty. Finally, the impacts of facility aesthetics, lighting, table settings, and service staff on disconfirmation significantly differed between first-time customers and repeat customers. More specifically, facility aesthetics, lighting, and service staff were significant predictors of both first timers’ and repeaters’ perceived disconfirmation, while layout and table settings were significant determinants of only repeat visitors’ perceived disconfirmation. The implications for academic researchers and marketing practitioners are discussed.
This paper proposes a social identity perspective of customer–brand relationship and integrates brand identity and identification with value, trust and satisfaction in predicting brand loyalty. Two studies' empirical results support this path to brand loyalty framework. The results offer several theoretical implications. First, this research confirms the presence of significant direct and indirect effects of brand identity and brand identification on traditional antecedents of brand loyalty (i.e. perceived value, satisfaction, and trust). Second, the research suggests that social identification perspective of brand loyalty can integrate with other perspectives to model the consumer's psychological path to brand loyalty. Third, the research confirms the pivotal role of brand identification in brand loyalty development and stresses the mediation effect of brand identification on the effects of brand identity on the path to brand loyalty.
This study investigated the relationship of entertainment travelers’ past vacation behavior, vacation satisfaction, perceived vacation value, and intentions to revisit and repurchase. Subjects were inquirers for the purchase of an entertainment package that visited the destination and were systematically selected over a 12-month period. Results suggest that past behavior, satisfaction, and perceived value are good predictors of entertainment vacationers’ intentions to revisit the destination. It was further found that the variables of past behavior, satisfaction, and perceived value are poor predictors of intentions to visit and attend live theater entertainment or book an entertainment package during a visit. Given the relationships between past behavior, satisfaction, perceived value, and intentions to revisit, results of the present study provide important theoretical implications and direction for entertainment destination management.
Considerable discussion has arisen about how electronic commerce is changing retail marketing theory and practice. Most of the debate revolves around how retailers with investments in physical channels can apply their existing strategy online. The retail service brand is one component that requires examination, but there is no model to guide online strategy. The authors, therefore, draw on exploratory research from consumer focus groups to understand retail service branding in electronic markets. The case setting is a nationwide grocery service that recently extended its traditional strategy and offered consumers online shopping. The authors conclude that the service brand defines the experience of shopping online for consumers in terms of service attributes, symbolic meanings, and functional consequences of the service encounter. In the fulfillment of this role, the service brand acted as a relationship lever (fulcrum) on which trust was built between consumer and service provider. Managerial implications and future research directions are also considered.
Two studies were conducted to obtain insights on how consumers form attitudes toward brand extensions, (i. e., use of an established brand name to enter a new product category). In one study, reactions to 20 brand extension concepts involving six well-known brand names were examined. Attitude toward the extension was higher when (1) there was both a perception of "fit" between the two product classes along one of three dimensions and a perception of high quality for the original brand or (2) the extension was not regarded as too easy to make. A second study examined the effectiveness of different positioning strategies for extensions. The experimental findings show that potentially negative associations can be neutralized more effectively by elaborating on the attributes of the brand extension than by reminding consumers of the positive associations with the original brand.
Driven by more demanding customers, global competition, and slow-growth economies and industries, many organizations search for new ways to achieve and retain a competitive advantage. Past attempts have largely looked internally within the organization for improvement, such as reflected by quality management, reengineering, downsizing, and restructuring. The next major source for competitive advantage likely will come from more outward orientation toward customers, as indicated by the many calls for organizations to compete on superior customer value delivery. Although the reasons for these calls are sound, what are the implications for managing organizations in the next decade and beyond? This article addresses this question. It presents frameworks for thinking about customer value, customer value learning, and the related skills that managers will need to create and implement superior customer value strategies.
This article examines the historical evolution of the relationships among brands, consumers, and resellers in a world increasingly
dominated by very large retail organizations with substantial power within the marketing channel. It is widely believed that
manufacturers' brands are becoming less important as major retailers are becoming more powerful. This view is based on the
mistaken assumption that brands are relationships with consumers, not resellers. Arguments about the decline of brands are
often confused with arguments about changes in the brand management function. As major firms redefine their customer as the
reseller, not the consumer, there are substantial implications for brand management and the role of the brand manager. Marketing
strategy implementation will require increasingly careful coordination of marketing programs with sales strategy to achieve
the necessary coordination of reseller- and consumer-targeted communications to maximize the value of the brand to both the
retailer and the end user.
Purpose – The purpose of this conceptual paper is to identify important elements of brand building based on a literature review and case studies of successful brands in India. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is based on a review of the literature and takes a case study approach. The paper suggests the framework for building brand identity in sequential order, namely, positioning the brand, communicating the brand message, delivering the brand performance, and leveraging the brand equity. Findings – Brand-building effort has to be aligned with organizational processes that help deliver the promises to customers through all company departments, intermediaries, suppliers, etc., as all these play an important role in the experience customers have with the brand. Originality/value – The paper uses case studies of leading Indian brands to illustrate the importance of action elements in building brands in competitive markets.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship of consumer personality trait, brand personality and brand loyalty.
Design/methodology/approach
The convenience sampling method was used to collect primary data. A total of 400 adult consumers were interviewed who looked round or bought toys and video games in Taipei City Mall, and 387 effective questionnaires were collected; the effective response rate was 96.75 per cent. Regression analysis was adopted to test hypotheses.
Findings
The major findings were: a significantly positive relationship between extroversion personality trait and excitement brand personality; a significantly positive relationship between agreeableness personality trait and excitement brand personality, sincerity brand personality and competence brand personality; competence and sophistication brand personality have a significantly positive influence on affective loyalty; competence, peacefulness and sophistication brand personality have a significantly positive influence on action loyalty; agreeableness and openness personality trait have a significantly positive influence on affective loyalty; agreeableness and openness personality trait have a significantly positive influence on action loyalty.
Research limitations/implications
The restriction on selecting countries and brands, and the restraint of the sampling coverage present limitations. The paper verifies that consumers with different personality traits will have different cognizance towards brand personality, which can also be applied to the toy and video game industries. The paper proves that a distinct brand personality can appeal to more brand loyalty. It shows that agreeableness and openness of personality traits have a positive influence on brand loyalty.
Practical implications
The paper highlights the value of brand personality that benefits a company. It emphasizes the importance of brand loyalty for a company. Consumers who register in agreeableness and openness are the target audience for BANDAI.
Originality/value
The extra value of the paper is to link the theory and practice, and explore the relationship of consumer personality trait, brand personality and brand loyalty.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine effects of gender, need for uniqueness, and attitudes toward American products on dimensions of brand equity for a US and local apparel brand in the Indian market.
Design/methodology/approach
Three dimensions of brand equity are evaluated based on the respondents' shopping experience related to the selected US and local apparel brands. Data are collected from a convenience sample of college students in India.
Findings
The empirical tests show that, for a US apparel brand, there are direct and indirect effects of Indian consumers' gender, need for uniqueness (NFU), and attitudes toward American products on three dimensions of brand equity: perceived quality, brand loyalty, and brand associations with brand awareness. For local apparel brands, these effects are found for only one brand equity dimension: perceived quality.
Research limitations/implications
The study uses only one US apparel brand, which may limit the generalization of the findings to all product categories and countries.
Practical implications
US marketers need to improve Indian consumers' attitudes toward American products through marketing and promotional campaigns. On the other hand, Indian marketers should overcome the negative relationship between Indian consumers' attitudes toward American products and their quality perception toward a local apparel brand.
Originality/value
Little attention has been given to individual differences in evaluating the three dimensions of brand equity. By assessing brand equity based on the individual characteristics of gender, need for uniqueness, and attitudes toward American products, results of the study can help marketers to obtain more specific knowledge of brand equity about a target consumer group and thus enable them to plan and implement well‐suited strategies for improving their brand equity.