When opposites attract? Exploring the existence of complementarity in self‐brand congruence processes

In the psychology of human interpersonal attraction, complementarity is a well‐recognized phenomenon, where individuals are attracted to partners with different but complementary traits to their own. Although scholarship in human–brand relations draws heavily from interpersonal attraction theory, preferred techniques for measuring self‐brand congruence tend to capture it in only one form: the similarity configuration, which expresses the extent to which brand traits essentially resemble or mirror a consumer's own. Hence, the aim of this study is to explore, for the first time, the existence of complementarity in self‐brand congruence. From a canonical correlation analysis of survey data in which respondents rated their own personality traits and those of their favorite brand, the existence of both similarity and complementarity configurations is indeed revealed. Based on this, the study then derives a measure of self‐brand congruence that captures both configurations, and tests its predictive power for a range of brand‐related outcomes. The new measure is found to perform well against existing measures of self‐brand congruence based purely on a similarity configuration, particularly for emotionally based brand‐related outcomes.     

自我概念一致性与品牌偏好关系研究:自我差异的调节作用

本文研究了自我差异对自我概念一致性与品牌偏好关系的调节作用。结果表明,当消费者感知到高水平的自我差异时,理想的自我概念一致性(相比现实的自我概念一致性)对品牌偏好的影响更大;而当消费者感知到低水平的自我差异时,现实的自我概念一致性(相比理想的自我概念一致性)对品牌偏好的影响更大。因此,企业不仅要深刻认识到消费者自我概念在品牌个性塑造中的重要性,而且必须将自我概念一致性与自我差异相结合,针对消费者不同自我差异水平进行品牌个性的细化塑造。     

An appraisal framework of the determinants and consequences of brand happiness

Recent academic discussions about the concept of brand happiness have introduced brand happiness as a promising new branding asset and a key research area. There is scientific evidence that its strong desirability, its characteristic of greatest emotional fulfillment, and its superior power to influence brand behavior qualify brand happiness as an important brand goal and differentiate it from other emotional‐relational concepts (e.g., emotional brand attachment, customer delight). However, there is no evidence on the effectiveness of brand happiness. To provide essential new insights in this research field, the authors theoretically develop an appraisal framework of the determinants and consequences of brand happiness and empirically verify it in four industry sectors. On the cross‐industry level, brand relationship quality, brand self‐relevance, brand goal‐congruence, and actual and ideal brand self‐congruence are confirmed to be important brand appraisal determinants of brand happiness, and pleasantness, fairness, and certainty are confirmed to be important situational appraisal determinants of brand happiness. The behavioral power of brand happiness was supported by showing that brand happiness strongly predicts five coping strategies; namely, the problem‐focused coping strategies of (re‐)purchase intention and price premium, and the emotion‐focused coping strategies of word‐of‐mouth, brand evangelism, and brand forgiveness. On an industry‐specific level, differences are observed regarding the influence of some of the brand appraisal determinants on brand happiness and regarding the influence of some of the situational appraisal determinants on brand happiness across the four analyzed industry sectors.     

Antecedents and consequences of brand attachment: A literature review and research agenda

Consumers develop powerful connections with brands and they feel a strong bond or attachment to favourite brands that can lead to re-purchase behaviour, reduced price sensitivity and increased customer loyalty. Gaining greater in-depth knowledge of brand attachment offers a powerful means of understanding and facilitates modelling the mechanisms for achieving greater profitability and increased revenue for firms. The purpose of this paper is first to map the antecedents, mediators and consequences of brand attachment; second to provide scholars with a map of prior research as a starting point for future research; and third to offer insights to extend understanding of how consumers relate to and engage with brands. The antecedents to brand attachment are categorized under five headings: brand-related concepts; self-brand connection and connection; congruence and the self; emotional drivers of brand attachment; and service-related concepts. The consequences of brand attachment are categorized as: brand loyalty and switching resistance; purchase intentions and willingness to pay; and word of mouth. The review and future research agenda utilize the Theory, Context, Characteristics, Methodology structure: (T) theory and concepts; (C) context and industry sectors; (C) characteristics (antecedents, mediators and consequences); (M) methods used in prior research. Recommendations focus on: social media marketing; social media marketing influencers and psychological ownership.     

城市品牌依恋影响机理研究——基于上海、泉州、兰州、岳阳的实证分析

文章从消费者行为视角切入,运用结构方程的定量研究方法,通过"消费者—品牌"关系分析了利益相关者(居民、潜在迁入者、旅游者、投资者等)城市品牌依恋对其城市品牌忠诚的影响机理。实证结果表明,城市品牌个性、城市品牌享乐主义价值、怀旧情感、城市品牌涉入度对利益相关者城市品牌依恋的形成具有直接影响;利益相关者对城市品牌的依恋通过消费者—品牌关系(信任、满意、承诺维度)对其城市品牌忠诚产生显著影响。     

The “little emperor” and the luxury brand: How overt and covert narcissism affect brand loyalty and proneness to buy counterfeits

The authors build on approach‐avoidance motivations theory to investigate the relationship between narcissism and luxury brand consumption. Narcissistic consumers, that is, those showing excessive conceit, are prone to consuming high‐prestige products and are thus attractive targets for luxury brands. Yet despite research in psychology distinguishing two types of narcissism, overt (or grandiose) and covert (or vulnerable) narcissism, little is known about how luxury consumption varies by these forms of narcissism. This paper focuses on Chinese Generation Y consumers to examine how overt and covert narcissism differ in their effects on luxury brand loyalty and proneness to purchase counterfeits as well as the moderating role of brand‐image self‐image congruity on the relationship between overt/covert narcissism and brand loyalty. Findings highlight the need for marketers to understand narcissistic targets more clearly in order to develop successful strategies to foster brand loyalty and diminish counterfeit consumption.     

Antecedents of emotional attachment of social media users

Emotional attachment has been documented to be an effective basis for consumer loyalty behaviors in many contexts; however, not much has been offered for new service formats enabled by information technology. This study explores the emotional attachment of social media users in terms of personality traits of users and websites. Drawing on literature on brand personality and brand–self congruence, this research proposes that a match between user’s individual personality and the personality traits of the digital artifacts promotes affective connection to social media websites. The social media, to which the user becomes emotionally attached, therefore becomes part of one’s self-definition and representation in the digital world. Self-expressiveness is also investigated as a motivational driver that helps users form such an emotional bond. Individuals with higher motivation to express themselves are more likely to develop an emotional attachment to social networking sites, exhibit loyal behavior, and experience a stronger effect than self-website congruence on emotional attachment. Results of this research provide support to the proposed relationships. Theoretical and managerial implications are elaborated in the discussion.     

Sports sponsorship effects on customer equity: an Asian market application

The authors of this study investigate sponsorship effects on customers in Korea and China, specifically to determine whether current sponsorship research applies to Asian countries and whether the model is significantly different between Korea and China. For this purpose, 251 Koreans and 309 Chinese participated in a survey. The findings suggest that appropriate fit between the sponsor and the sports event enhances brand loyalty and customer equity by positively influencing attitude toward the sponsor and brand image. However, in China, the sponsor's fit did not directly impact brand image. As expected, sporting event experience search positively affects attitudes toward the sponsoring brand, which enhances brand image. Koreans' more favourable attitude toward the sponsoring brand positively influences their brand preference, but favourable attitude does not significantly affect Chinese consumers' perceived congruency with a product. Brand image positively impacted brand preference, and therefore confirms brand personality's congruence effect in both countries. Both brand image and brand preference directly and positively enabled brand loyalty to develop more favourable customer equity. Koreans, however, showed higher effects in the relationships between brand image and brand loyalty and between brand loyalty and customer equity.     

What you touch,touches you: The influence of haptic attributes on consumer product impressions

The present research builds upon the touch literature to show that the salience of haptic product attributes related to product surface texture (smooth, rough) and weight (light weight, heavy weight) influence consumer product impressions. We propose that haptic cue congruity across texture and weight drive consumer product impressions depending on a consumer's need for touch (NFT). We show that high autotelic‐NFT consumers who touch for sensory pleasure enjoyed the incongruity between smooth texture and heavy weight haptic cues, and consequently showed favorable evaluations towards exciting brands. In contrast, low autotelic‐NFT consumers prefer the anticipated match between smooth texture and light weight haptic cues, which conformed to their expectation about the nature of a sophisticated brand personality. Further, we show how the interactive effect of haptic attributes and a consumer's autotelic‐NFT on willingness to purchase is mediated by product personality. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.     

Do you want to talk about it? When word of mouth alleviates the psychological discomfort of self‐threat

When consumers experience a self‐threat due to receiving negative information that calls the positivity of their self‐concept into question, psychological discomfort ensues, motivating consumers to seek a resolution. This research examines how consumers use word of mouth to overcome this discomfort and cope with a self‐threat. The psychological discomfort associated with a self‐threat generally influences consumers to refrain from spreading word of mouth in order to avoid the potential for further negative evaluations. However, a self‐threat can encourage the spread of word of mouth if consumers perceive a brand as possessing attributes positively associated with the threatened aspect of the self, signaling sufficiency in the threat domain. Furthermore, this research demonstrates that spreading word of mouth about a brand that signals sufficiency in the threat domain is an effective coping tactic that alleviates the psychological discomfort caused by the self‐threat. Overall, the present research deepens the current understanding of the relationships among self‐threat, symbolic brands, and word of mouth by revealing that a brand's symbolic associations shape the effect of the self‐threat on word of mouth.     

How does consumers' Perception of Sports Stars' Personal Brand Promote Consumers’ brand love? A mediation model of global brand equity

Previous research on the sports marketing of global brands has focused mainly on the sponsorship of sporting events and the endorsement of products by athletes. This study reveals the unexamined effect of the impact of sports stars' personal brand on global brand equity and consumers' brand love. Based on global consumer culture (GCC) theory and self-expansion theory, this paper examines the influence of sports celebrities' personal brand on consumers' perceptions of global brand equity and brand love. Using survey data from 372 users of “HUPU”, our results revealed that the use of sports stars' personal brand (attractiveness, expertise, and congruence) was positively related to global brand equity and brand love. Belief in global brand citizenship has a full mediating effect between attractiveness and brand love but a partial mediating effect between expertise, congruence and brand love. Product quality partially mediates the relationship between expertise and brand love. These findings suggest that it is appropriate to use sports stars' personal brand to build global brand equity and increase consumers’ brand love.     

An Investigation of Attitude Toward the Brand,Commitment, and True Brand Loyalty in a Cross-Cultural Context

Abstract

This study utilized data from two geographically separated cultures to investigate relationships involving antecedents to true brand loyalty. A relationship between the consumer's attitude toward the brand and a measure of expressed commitment was found to explain a significant percentage of the variance in commitment. A relationship between commitment and true brand loyalty also was found significant. Both relationships vary somewhat by product and culture. No evidence was found, however, suggesting that they could not be considered generalizable. The underlying components of brand attitude were found to vary by product and country. The culturally related differences-espe-cially those pertaining to the composition and meaning of the underlying components-have interesting managerial implications.     

What are the Building Blocks of Customer Brand Loyalty in Department Stores? A Multi-Level Mediation Analysis

Building customer brand loyalty through branding strategies to sustain competitiveness in the retail industry has gathered momentum among researchers. The purpose of this study is to examine the role of brand personality and consumer brand identification on customer brand loyalty via the mediating variables of perceived service quality, perceived value, brand trust, brand commitment, and word-of-mouth communication among Malaysian department stores' customers. Using a self-structured questionnaire, 381 usable responses are considered for data analysis by applying a covariance-based structural equation modeling approach. The results of exploratory factor analysis show that sincerity, followed by sophistication and competence, are the most significant dimensions used to predict brand personality in department stores. The outcomes also reveal that brand personality indirectly influences customer brand loyalty via consumer brand identification. Furthermore, perceived service quality, perceived value, brand trust, word-of-mouth communication, and brand commitment mediate the effects of consumer brand identification on brand loyalty. Finally, the proposed competing model implies that the indirect impact of brand personality and consumer brand identification is inevitable in building department stores' brand loyalty.     

The effects of schema congruity on consumer response to celebrity advertising

The trend of celebrity-branded products is on the rise, creating a new domain in which to explore the match-up hypothesis. Moving beyond the celebrity as an endorser, but rather, a brand promoting a brand extension, this article examines how perceived congruence between a celebrity's image and the brand image of products they have developed is related to attitudinal and behavioral measures of advertising effectiveness. Employing a 2 × 3 full factorial design, congruence between the celebrity's image and the brand's image was varied (less vs. more congruent), along with the use of the celebrity's image (present, absent, non-celebrity models) to determine how schema congruity influences consumer's response to celebrity advertising. The results of a multivariate analysis of covariance analysis indicating lower levels of congruence between the celebrity's image and the brand's image led to greater advertising effectiveness compared to higher levels of congruence. Specifically, the means of the attitudinal dependent variables in the less congruent condition were significantly higher than the means in the more congruent condition. These effects were more pronounced when a celebrity's image was featured in the advertisement compared to when it was not featured. The implication of the findings suggests that moderate violations in the consumer's celebrity schema may improve advertising effectiveness.     

Me,myself, and Ikea: Qualifying generic self-referencing effects in brand judgment

The present research extends previous work on the latent tendency to be attracted to objects, events and entities that are associated with the self by demonstrating when and how generic self-referencing brand names influence brand judgment. In five studies we hypothesize and find that using pronouns in brand names that refer to the consumer's self (i.e., ‘I’ or ‘my’ as in ‘iTunes’ or ‘MySpace’) produces an attraction effect and promotes favorable brand responses. The strength of the effect hinges on the extent to which the consumer's self-view is positive. In addition, we test a logical extension of the effect and show that attraction turns into avoidance when consumers' acute self-view is negative, particularly for products for which the association with the consumer's self is more salient, i.e., self-expressive products.     

Business‐to‐Business Branding: A Review and Assessment of the Impact of Non‐Attribute‐Based Brand Beliefs on Buyer's Attitudinal Loyalty

Business‐to‐business branding has received increasing attention from researchers in the last few years. Nonetheless, there is no agreement on the relative contribution of a brand versus an offering's functional attributes to the industrial buyer's preferences. Drawing on models from the business‐to‐consumer context, this paper demonstrates that non‐attribute‒based brand beliefs are predictors of hedonic outcomes as measured by industrial buyers' attitudinal loyalty, while attribute‐based brand beliefs are not. Moreover, the moderating role of the buyer's level of knowledge for the value‐generating process is identified, suggesting that the impact of non‐attribute‒based brand beliefs on attitudinal loyalty is greater for buyers with a low level of knowledge. Copyright © 2012 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Examining consumers' continuous usage of multichannel retailers' mobile applications

This paper examines the variables influencing a consumer's satisfaction and continuous use of a multichannel retailer's mobile application. Drawing upon the Expectation Confirmation Model for Information Technologies, post-adoption literature, and consumer behavior literature, we assess pertinent factors on the continuous usage of multichannel retailers' mobile apps. Through a sample of 1009 consumers who retained a retailer's mobile app for more than 6 months and conducting Structural Equation Modelling, the findings illustrate that utilitarian variables (perceived usefulness, ease of use, and personalization), hedonic variables (perceived enjoyment), and a brand-related variable (consumer loyalty intention toward the retailer's brand), play a significant role in influencing continuous usage of multichannel retailers' mobile apps. In contrast to e-commerce research, the study outlines that escapism plays a negative role in both consumer satisfaction and intention to continue to use a multichannel retailer's mobile app. Previous research points to the fact that consumers' retention of retailers' apps is low. This paper contributes to the emerging literature on consumers' continuous use of retailers' mobile apps through enhancing our understanding of technology and non-technology-related variables.     

Celebrity endorsement: How celebrity–brand–user personality congruence affects brand attitude and purchase intention

The present study provides and tests a conceptual framework aimed at comparing the relative effectiveness of celebrity–user, brand–celebrity, and user–brand personality congruence on brand attitude and brand purchase intention (BPI) thereafter. The data collection was done via an online survey of a representative group of consumers (n = 431) located across India. Hypotheses were tested using regression analysis with mediation approach. The results indicate that while user–brand and brand–celebrity personality congruence have a significant impact on brand attitude and purchase intention, celebrity–user congruence does not. Further, brand attitude is found to be a partial mediator on the relationship between the pair-wise personality congruence on BPI. The findings have major implications for marketers in understanding the significance of personality congruence among celebrity–brand–user in the formation of brand attitude and purchase intention that can be used in positioning and in increasing the advertising effectiveness of brands using celebrity endorsement. The present study is a pioneer in contributing to the celebrity endorsement literature by investigating the relative impact of three pairs of personality congruence: celebrity–brand, brand–user, and celebrity–user, on brand attitude and BPI, thereby supporting the applicability of McCracken's Meaning Transfer Model [McCracken (1989), The Journal of Consumer Research, 16 (3) 310–321) and the Hierarchy-of-effects model (Lavidge and Steiner (1961), Journal of Marketing, 25 (6) 59–62].     

Image congruence effects on product evaluations: The role of self-monitoring and public/private consumption

Past research has demonstrated that congruence between brand image and self-image is positively related to consumers' product evaluations. Results from this study support the hypothesis that increased self-monitoring is associated with a greater effect of image congruence on consumers' evaluations of publicly consumed brands, but not privately consumed brands. Results also suggest that consumers' evaluations of publicly consumed brands are more affected by the congruence between brand image and ideal self-image than actual self-image, whereas actual and ideal congruence have equal effects on consumers' evaluations of privately consumed brands. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

消费者自我概念结构维度对品牌个性的相对影响力研究

文章实证调查了消费者自我概念结构维度对品牌个性的相对影响力。问卷调查数据分析显示,在三个被研究的自我概念维度中,实际的自我概念对品牌个性具有最显著的积极影响;社会的自我概念对品牌个性也具有显著的积极影响。而理想的自我概念对品牌个性的影响未获统计学意义上的支持。另外,文章也获得品牌个性显著影响消费者品牌购买和品牌口传意图的实验证据,这些研究结果能够为实施基于消费者自我概念的品牌个性战略提供启示。