Showing papers on "Brand equity published in 2011"

Celebrity endorsement, brand credibility and brand equity

Abstract: Purpose – This research aims to examine the impact of celebrity credibility on consumer‐based equity of the endorsed brand. The mediating role of brand credibility and the moderating role of the type of branding (parent versus sub‐brand) employed by the endorsed brand on the endorser credibility‐brand equity relationship are also to be examined. The endorser credibility‐brand equity relationship was developed using associative learning principles whereas the brand signalling theory is applied to examine the mediating role of brand credibility. Design/methodology/approach – The conceptual framework was tested using a field experiment. Data were collected using a mall‐intercept approach at a shopping centre from a sample of consumers in a metropolitan Australian city. The data were analysed using structural equation modelling. Findings – Results suggest endorser credibility has an indirect impact on brand equity when this relationship is mediated by brand credibility. This mediating relationship was moderated by type of branding. However, the “endorser credibility‐brand credibility” and “endorser credibility‐brand equity” relationships did not vary according to the type of branding employed. Practical implications – In support of past findings, the present study shows that a celebrity endorser should be one who is perceived as credible based on their attractiveness, expertise and trustworthiness. Moreover, in this research, even a moderately low credibility endorser proved to be able to build the brand. Originality/value – The present study is one of the first to empirically examine and confirm the impact of endorser credibility on brand credibility and consumer‐based brand equity.

The role of brand experience and affective commitment in determining brand loyalty

Abstract: The purpose of this article is to study the direct and indirect relationship between brand experience and brand loyalty. The authors propose that the relationship is mediated by affective commitment. A survey-based quantitative approach is used to test the hypotheses based on the proposed theoretical model that delineates the relationships between brand experience, affective commitment and brand loyalty. The data were collected using traditional pen and paper as well as online surveys and were analysed using Structural Equations Modelling. The analysis suggests that affective commitment mediates the relationship between brand experience and brand loyalty for all three product categories that were studied (cars, laptops and sneakers). The article extends the understanding of the brand experience construct by studying its influence on brand loyalty and also by incorporating affective commitment as a mediating variable. In our sample, the findings support the fact that developing brand experience influences customer loyalty only through affective commitment.

Understanding value co-creation in a co-consuming brand community:

Abstract: Recent research has suggested that consumers collectively co-create value through consumption practices. This paper provides additional insights into value creation by demonstrating how individual consumers play distinct roles in the value creation process. By focusing on microdimensions of co-consuming groups, we show how individual consumers engage in value creation processes in the context of brand culture. We bring together concepts of value creation, working consumers, and double exploitation to demonstrate the roles played by consumers and communities in value co-creation. We focus on value creation in a particular type of co-consuming group: an online football fan community. Results show that co-consuming groups are platforms for value creation. We argue that double exploitation is not necessarily a threat to consumers because it may instead enable them to play active roles in value co-creation and gain power against brand owners. This paper contributes to the existing literature on brand community...

Enhancing%' or paper_id like 'brand equity through flow and telepresence: a comparison of 2D and 3D virtual worlds

Abstract: This research uses theories of flow, telepresence, positive emotions, and brand equity to examine the effect of using two-dimensional versus three-dimensional virtual world environments on telepresence, enjoyment, brand equity, and behavioral intention. The findings suggest that the 3D virtual world environment produces both positive and negative effects on brand equity when compared to the 2D environment. The positive effect of the 3D virtual world environment on brand equity occurs through telepresence, a specific aspect of flow, as well as enjoyment. The negative effect on brand equity can be explained using distraction-conflict theory in which attentional conflicts faced by users of a highly interactive and rich medium resulted in distractions from attending to the brand. Brand equity, in turn, has a positive effect on behavioral intention. The results suggest that although the 3D virtual world environment has the potential to increase brand equity by offering an immersive and enjoyable virtual product experience, the rich environment can also be a distraction. Therefore, developers of virtual world branding sites need to take into account limitations in the information processing capacity and attention span of users when designing their sites in order to avoid cognitive overload, which can lead to users being distracted from branding information. This paper not only provides a theoretical foundation for explaining users' experience with 2D versus 3D virtual world branding sites, but also provides insights to practitioners for designing 3D virtual world sites to enhance brand equity and intentions through user engagement.

Building brand loyalty through managing brand community commitment

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to: analyze the effect of trust and affect toward a brand community on the commitment of brand communities; and investigate the mechanism through which the commitment of a brand community is able to increase various loyalty behaviors (e.g. repurchase intentions, positive word‐of‐mouth, and constructive complaints).Design/methodology/approach – In order to test the hypotheses, a total of 200 Chinese female online brand community users were sampled, specifically users who had been active in the online brand community for over a year, and Partial Least Squares (PLS) analysis was performed.Findings – The results identified the significant positive paths: brand community trust → brand community commitment; brand community affect → brand community commitment; and brand community commitment → brand loyalty behaviors. In addition brand community commitment was found to play a mediating role in the relationships between brand community trust/affect and brand loyalty. Finally,...

The four Rs of place branding

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to discuss the concept of ownership in relation to place branding and to establish a basis upon which the representation of a place as a brand can be developed. We suggest that a bottom-up approach based on the paradigm of co-creation should be taken to developing a place brand and that brand ownership is determined by the extent to which the representation of the place reflects the experience of the community. Such an approach, we believe, is essential to achieve authenticity (brand essence), commitment from stakeholders, and brand sustainability. Grounded in ethnographic research, this paper presents a model that structures the features of community ownership from a bottom-up perspective and proposes four fundamental elements of place branding that encapsulate the experience of the place: rights, roles, relationships, and responsibilities.

“What? I thought Samsung was Japanese”: accurate or not, perceived country of origin matters

Abstract: Purpose – Extensive research has shown that country‐of‐origin (COO) information significantly affects product evaluations and buying behavior. Yet recently, a competing perspective has emerged suggesting that COO effects have been inflated in prior research and even that the COO concept has become irrelevant. The purpose of this paper is to reconcile these two competing perspectives by examining the effects of individual brand origin perceptions.Design/methodology/approach – The conceptual framework is grounded in consumers’ learning. Empirically, the authors’ hypotheses are tested using hierarchical linear modeling on a sample of 4,047 brand evaluations by 544 consumers.Findings – The results provide strong evidence that product country image of the consumer's perceived brand origin strongly affects brand attitudes, and this happens regardless of the perceptions’ objective accuracy. The authors also find evidence that educating consumers about brands’ true COO can contribute to changes in brand attitudes...

How to catch a city? The concept and measurement of place brands

Abstract: Purpose – The branding of places has gained popularity among city officials in recent years. Unfortunately, place marketers often disregard the complexity of place brands, as do their counterparts in the academic discussion: the focus repeatedly falls on the simple explorative description of certain city brands, rather than a proper conceptualization of a place brand that employs different measurement approaches for the different elements of the brand. Thus, this paper aims to identify those different elements and discuss measurement approaches that could prove useful in place branding.Design/methodology/approach – Following a review of the extant literature on the measurement of brand image in general and place branding in particular, the paper outlines distinct elements, categories and dimensions of a place brand, as well as a number of approaches from place brand image measurement, with example cases of each approach.Findings – Exploring a brand can be divided into three main approaches: in the form of...

The relationship between country‐of‐origin image and brand image as drivers of purchase intentions : A test of alternative perspectives

Abstract: – Against the background of mounting criticism of the country‐of‐origin (COO) construct, the purpose of this paper is to empirically contrast two competing perspectives of the potential influence of country‐of origin image (COI) on purchase intentions., – Based on personal interviews with over 300 UK consumers, the paper investigates the relative impact of COI and brand image as independent drivers (“orthogonality” perspective), and as causally‐linked drivers (“irradiation” perspective) on consumers’ intentions to buy specific US and Chinese brands., – Controlling for the effects of brand familiarity, the analysis shows that COI impacts purchase intentions indirectly in that its influence is fully mediated by brand image. These findings are consistent with an “irradiation” perspective of COI effects and demonstrate that brand image evaluations already encapsulate consumers’ COI perceptions., – Based on the country/brand combinations investigated, the results show that the recent criticism against the COO construct is largely unfounded and that the construct remains relevant to international marketing theory and practice., – COO remains a relevant and powerful influence on brand perceptions and, through them, on buying intentions and needs to be carefully managed by companies., – The paper provides explicit empirical comparison of alternative models depicting potential COO influence on behavioural outcomes (brand image evaluations and purchase intentions) in distinct country/brand combinations.

The impact of brand personality and sales promotions on brand equity

Abstract: This research assesses the relative impact of a long-term brand management instrument (brand personality) and a short-term marketing mix instrument (sales promotions) on brand equity formation. The authors measure consumer perceptions of promotional intensity and brand personality and model their impact on brand equity. They find a positive impact of brand personality and a negative impact of sales promotion intensity on brand equity at the aggregate level. In line with research that identifies varying consumer responses to promotional deals, this study posits that the relative impact of the two elements varies across consumer groups. Three homogeneous consumer groups differ according to the relative impact of brand personality and consumer promotions on brand equity, following an application of a finite mixture partial least squares procedure.

Brand personality appeal: conceptualization and empirical validation

Abstract: A substantial literature stream indicates there are benefits to having a favorable brand personality, such as enhanced brand attitudes and purchase intentions and higher levels of consumer trust and loyalty. Contemporary advertisements and promotional activities by a host of firms demonstrate a managerial belief in the value of establishing a brand personality that mirrors that of branding scholars. Yet extant research has yet to fully evaluate the perceived appeal of brand personality to consumers. This issue is important to managers because it is precisely this level of appeal that influences target consumers’ purchase decisions and helps to sustain the endurance of a brand’s perceived personality between promotional cycles. This article conceptualizes, develops, and validates measures for assessing a consumer’s perception of brand personality appeal (BPA). Three dimensions of BPA (favorability, originality, clarity) emerge and are empirically demonstrated to directly and positively impact consumer purchase intentions.

Social Media and Luxury Brand Management: The Case of Burberry

Abstract: Social networks, and social media as the tools, are everywhere in the marketer’s world today. Their growing importance was quickly acknowledged and they were casted one of the top research priorities by the trustees of the Marketing Science Institute (MSI) in 2006. Brands, and in particular luxury brands with their high brand equity, ought to have a clear understanding of what social media could do for them, and develop a clear strategy of how they could enhance customers’ experience and perceptions of their brands. Social media are highly related with the concept of Web 2.0, which go back to O’Reilly (2005) who realized that the companies that had survived the dot-com bubble in 2001 seemed to have something in common. These shared principles and practices are the modern second era of the web that can be described as Web 2.0. Beyond the social classification of content by tagging (folksonomy), Web 2.0 pages allow and encourage the creation of user-generated content. This includes creating and sha...

Gains and Losses from the Misperception of Brand Origin: The Role of Brand Strength and Country-of-Origin Image

Abstract: Mounting empirical evidence shows that consumers often associate brands with the wrong country of origin (COO) or are unable to classify a brand to any COO. In this study, the authors investigate t...

Brand image strategy affects brand equity after M&A

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the variance of two brand images and dimensions of brand equity after M&A, especially when the acquirer‐dominant is affiliated to a weak brand image and the acquired one has a stronger brand imageDesign/methodology/approach – In total, 409 responses were collected through random sampling from an internet survey platform in Taiwan (weak image differences were gathered from 209 respondents and strong image differences were gathered from 200 respondents)Findings – This study uses an experimental design to discuss how the variance of two brand images (this study uses two kinds of M&A: a company with an inferior brand image acquires one with a superior or average brand image) affects the acquirer's brand equity (perceived quality, brand association, and brand loyalty) This study also examines how brand equity of an acquired brand changes after M&A Results from the MANOVA and paired‐sample t‐test methods show that the greater the per

Tourism Destination Brand Equity Dimensions Renewal versus Repeat Market

Abstract: This article investigates the concept of customer-based brand equity for a tourism destination, which has been introduced into the tourism literature only a few years ago. Specifically, it investigates whether differences between renewal and repeat tourists exist in their evaluation of a tourism destination. A theoretically proposed model, encompassing the dimensions of awareness, image, quality, and loyalty, was empirically verified for the European tourism destination Slovenia from the perspective of German tourists. The results imply that the dimensions of image and quality play the most important role in tourists’ evaluation of a destination, regardless of whether they are first-time visitors or repeaters. Results also reveal differences in importance for the dimensions of awareness and loyalty between renewal and repeat tourists. Drawing on the results, the article offers some implications for tourism organizations in developing and implementing destination marketing strategies in foreign markets.

Drivers and Outcomes of Brand Heritage: Consumers' Perception of Heritage Brands in the Automotive Industry

Abstract: Heritage brands stand for longevity and sustainability, as proof that the core values and performance of the given products are reliable. Focusing on the automotive industry, the aim of the present study is to analyze the drivers and outcomes of brand heritage, focusing on the functions of the brand as perceived by consumers. To explore the perceived values and outcomes of heritage brands, we present the methodology and the results of our empirical study using a partial least squares-based path modeling approach. Our results show the significant effects of brand heritage on consumers' attitudes and behaviors related to the given brand.

The underlying dimensions of brand orientation and its impact on financial performance

Abstract: This research responds to the need for an increased understanding of brand orientation and its impact on financial performance. Since brand orientation is often perceived as a somewhat elusive concept we here present a theoretical framework for the purpose of identifying the underlying dimensions of brand orientation from a holistic perspective. Based on this framework we have performed a study on Sweden's 500 largest companies, aimed at analysing how brand oriented these companies are and how that degree of brand orientation influences their financial performance. In our analysis we have identified eight dimensions that can be seen as the anatomy of brand orientation. The analysis also provides empirical evidence of a significant positive relationship between brand orientation and profitability, showing that the most brand-oriented companies in this study have almost double the profitability of the least brand-oriented companies.

Brand equity in higher education

Abstract: Purpose – The potential to provide customers with information about experience and credence qualities in advance of purchase has resulted in widespread recognition of the significance of brands in relation to consumer choice in the service sector. Arguably, what is of particular significance in this process is brand equity – the value that the consumer ascribes to the brand. The main objective of this research is to enhance academic understanding of brand equity in the higher education (HE) sector and explore the implications for management practice.Design/methodology/approach – Quantitative data collected via a self‐completion survey are used to test a model of brand equity in the context of HE. The empirical setting is Egypt which, following liberalization, has a mixture of public and private provision and an increasingly competitive environment. It provides an example of an emerging market where building brand equity is likely to be an important component of organizational strategy.Findings – The resul...