Investigating of the influence process on consumer’s active engagement through emotional brand attachment and brand love

Chul-Jae Choi, Jialei Xu, Dae-Gyu Min
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In addition, structural equation model analysis (SEM) was used to test the research hypotheses raised in this study.FindingsThe results found that brand prestige and brand consciousness affect on emotional brand attachment. Emotional brand attachment had a significant effect on brand love and brand commitment. And brand love affect brand commitment and active engagement. Emotional brand attachment affects active engagement. Brand love was mediated in the relationship between emotional brand attachment and active engagement. Self-congruity was moderated in the relationship between brand prestige and emotional brand attachment. However, self-congruity was not moderated in the relation to brand consciousness, brand trust and emotional brand attachment.Research limitations/implicationsThis study has significance in that it identified the antecedent factors that cause consumers' emotional brand attachment and confirmed that they have differential effects depending on the degree of consumer self-congruity. In addition, this study is meaningful in that it confirmed the concept of the causal difference between attachment and brand love as consumers' emotional responses to luxury brands. However, the scope of this study was limited to offline stores excluding online purchases as a place of purchase for luxury brands. In a situation where the purchase of luxury brands is gradually increasing in various online environments, limiting the scope of the study to offline stores may have problems in generalizing the study. Therefore, in future research, we would like to propose a study on the relationship and influence between these variables by integrating all purchasing environments, such as offline and online.Practical implicationsThe management implications of the results of this study are as follows. First, brand marketers and managers must suggest strategies to increase emotional attachment to customers who are satisfied with the brand and have a favorable brand attitude. After segmenting target customers and identifying their tendencies, behavioral characteristics, and preferred brands, emotional attachment can be strengthened by providing information about the brand to each segment and strengthening the brand image. Strategies like these can help target customers strengthen their emotional connection to a luxury brand, build positive attitudes toward the brand, and prevent them from switching to competing brands. Second, a strategy is needed to ensure that target customers have a strong emotional response to the company's luxury brand and become immersed in the brand. Target customers who have an affinity for the brand can strengthen their level of brand attachment and become immersed in the brand by allowing them to directly participate in brand activities through various advertising campaigns, events, and content. Third, you can strengthen your brand by developing a brand that fits the self-concept of your target customers. Brand marketers or managers can strengthen brand attachment by presenting a brand that fits the characteristics of each target customer and recognizing that the brand's status is relatively high compared to competing brands.Social implicationsThis study identified how consumers' brand engagement in a luxury brand environment is influenced by its components. In other words, the preceding factors for consumers' brand emotion were identified, and the influence of emotional brand attachment and brand love, which represent the consumer's emotional state that affects consumers' brand engagement, was investigated. The theoretical implications of the results of this study are as follows. First, Shahid et al. (2022) found that emotional attachment was expressed more strongly when emotional bonds were formed through relationship formation. Hwang and Kandampully (2012) found that emotional attachment and brand love are conceptually similar but differ in intensity. And Gómez-Suárez (2019) said that brand attachment is a prerequisite for brand love. As mentioned earlier, previous research has shown that emotional attachment and brand love differ depending on the consumer's emotional state. The results of this study showed that emotional brand attachment did not affect active participation, while brand love did. This means that active engagement is directly influenced by brand love rather than emotional attachment. Through these research results, it can be confirmed that even if consumers have similar brand emotional states, the impact on consumer behavior is different depending on the intensity of the emotional state. Therefore, in the consumer-brand relationship, the intensity of emotions arising from the interaction between the consumer and the brand is different, and only when brand emotions are at a high level, consumers engage in behavioral participation toward the brand. Second, Morris and Keltner (2000) found that consumers activate the integration of emotions in the decision-making process. Hwang and Kandampully (2012) found that love induces consumers to maintain a relationship with a brand, and that brand commitment increases when consumers feel intimacy and a strong emotional bond between themselves and the brand. Through these prior studies, it was confirmed that emotions play an important role in the consumer's decision-making process, and in particular, it was confirmed that maintaining close relationships with others induces emotional commitment to the object. In this study, brand loyalty was also found to have a positive effect on brand immersion and active participation. Therefore, consumers need to foster strong bonds with luxury brands to create brand love and strengthen their relationship with the brand, leading to brand commitment and active participation. Third, Ji et al. (2018) found that brand reputation has a positive effect on consumer attitudes and behaviors, including brand attachment, purchase intention, and brand loyalty. Casidy et al. (2015) found that consumers with high brand awareness are likely to have high brand preference and have favorable and positive brand attitudes due to their high brand knowledge. Previous research has shown that consumers' brand reputation and brand consciousness influence brand attachment.Originality/valueThis study dealt with a more comprehensive variable in the relationship between luxury brand factors as an antecedent variable of emotional brand attachment in luxury brand situations, and provided important evidence for the mediating effect of brand love, which was a limited emotional variable. 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引用次数: 0

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to confirm the causal relationship between emotional brand attachment, brand love, and brand commitment, and then explain how these variables affect active engagement. In addition, it is to confirm the effect of brand prestige, brand consciousness, and brand trust on emotional brand attachment and to identify the moderating role of self-congruity in the causal relationship between these variables.Design/methodology/approachIn this study, a survey was conducted targeting 320 consumers who have recently purchased luxury products or brands. In addition, structural equation model analysis (SEM) was used to test the research hypotheses raised in this study.FindingsThe results found that brand prestige and brand consciousness affect on emotional brand attachment. Emotional brand attachment had a significant effect on brand love and brand commitment. And brand love affect brand commitment and active engagement. Emotional brand attachment affects active engagement. Brand love was mediated in the relationship between emotional brand attachment and active engagement. Self-congruity was moderated in the relationship between brand prestige and emotional brand attachment. However, self-congruity was not moderated in the relation to brand consciousness, brand trust and emotional brand attachment.Research limitations/implicationsThis study has significance in that it identified the antecedent factors that cause consumers' emotional brand attachment and confirmed that they have differential effects depending on the degree of consumer self-congruity. In addition, this study is meaningful in that it confirmed the concept of the causal difference between attachment and brand love as consumers' emotional responses to luxury brands. However, the scope of this study was limited to offline stores excluding online purchases as a place of purchase for luxury brands. In a situation where the purchase of luxury brands is gradually increasing in various online environments, limiting the scope of the study to offline stores may have problems in generalizing the study. Therefore, in future research, we would like to propose a study on the relationship and influence between these variables by integrating all purchasing environments, such as offline and online.Practical implicationsThe management implications of the results of this study are as follows. First, brand marketers and managers must suggest strategies to increase emotional attachment to customers who are satisfied with the brand and have a favorable brand attitude. After segmenting target customers and identifying their tendencies, behavioral characteristics, and preferred brands, emotional attachment can be strengthened by providing information about the brand to each segment and strengthening the brand image. Strategies like these can help target customers strengthen their emotional connection to a luxury brand, build positive attitudes toward the brand, and prevent them from switching to competing brands. Second, a strategy is needed to ensure that target customers have a strong emotional response to the company's luxury brand and become immersed in the brand. Target customers who have an affinity for the brand can strengthen their level of brand attachment and become immersed in the brand by allowing them to directly participate in brand activities through various advertising campaigns, events, and content. Third, you can strengthen your brand by developing a brand that fits the self-concept of your target customers. Brand marketers or managers can strengthen brand attachment by presenting a brand that fits the characteristics of each target customer and recognizing that the brand's status is relatively high compared to competing brands.Social implicationsThis study identified how consumers' brand engagement in a luxury brand environment is influenced by its components. In other words, the preceding factors for consumers' brand emotion were identified, and the influence of emotional brand attachment and brand love, which represent the consumer's emotional state that affects consumers' brand engagement, was investigated. The theoretical implications of the results of this study are as follows. First, Shahid et al. (2022) found that emotional attachment was expressed more strongly when emotional bonds were formed through relationship formation. Hwang and Kandampully (2012) found that emotional attachment and brand love are conceptually similar but differ in intensity. And Gómez-Suárez (2019) said that brand attachment is a prerequisite for brand love. As mentioned earlier, previous research has shown that emotional attachment and brand love differ depending on the consumer's emotional state. The results of this study showed that emotional brand attachment did not affect active participation, while brand love did. This means that active engagement is directly influenced by brand love rather than emotional attachment. Through these research results, it can be confirmed that even if consumers have similar brand emotional states, the impact on consumer behavior is different depending on the intensity of the emotional state. Therefore, in the consumer-brand relationship, the intensity of emotions arising from the interaction between the consumer and the brand is different, and only when brand emotions are at a high level, consumers engage in behavioral participation toward the brand. Second, Morris and Keltner (2000) found that consumers activate the integration of emotions in the decision-making process. Hwang and Kandampully (2012) found that love induces consumers to maintain a relationship with a brand, and that brand commitment increases when consumers feel intimacy and a strong emotional bond between themselves and the brand. Through these prior studies, it was confirmed that emotions play an important role in the consumer's decision-making process, and in particular, it was confirmed that maintaining close relationships with others induces emotional commitment to the object. In this study, brand loyalty was also found to have a positive effect on brand immersion and active participation. Therefore, consumers need to foster strong bonds with luxury brands to create brand love and strengthen their relationship with the brand, leading to brand commitment and active participation. Third, Ji et al. (2018) found that brand reputation has a positive effect on consumer attitudes and behaviors, including brand attachment, purchase intention, and brand loyalty. Casidy et al. (2015) found that consumers with high brand awareness are likely to have high brand preference and have favorable and positive brand attitudes due to their high brand knowledge. Previous research has shown that consumers' brand reputation and brand consciousness influence brand attachment.Originality/valueThis study dealt with a more comprehensive variable in the relationship between luxury brand factors as an antecedent variable of emotional brand attachment in luxury brand situations, and provided important evidence for the mediating effect of brand love, which was a limited emotional variable. In addition, additional implications for the moderating role of brand self-congruity on emotional brand attachment were suggested.
通过情感品牌依恋和品牌热爱调查消费者主动参与的影响过程
目的 本研究旨在确认情感品牌依恋、品牌热爱和品牌承诺之间的因果关系,然后解释这些变量如何影响主动参与。此外,本研究还将确认品牌声望、品牌意识和品牌信任对情感品牌依恋的影响,并确定自我一致性在这些变量之间因果关系中的调节作用。结果结果发现,品牌声望和品牌意识会影响情感品牌依恋。情感品牌依恋对品牌热爱和品牌承诺有显著影响。品牌热爱影响品牌承诺和主动参与。情感品牌依恋影响主动参与。品牌热爱在情感品牌依恋和积极参与之间起中介作用。自我一致性在品牌声望和情感品牌依恋之间的关系中起调节作用。本研究的意义在于,它发现了导致消费者情感品牌依恋的前因因素,并证实了这些因素会因消费者自我一致性程度的不同而产生不同的影响。此外,本研究的意义还在于它证实了消费者对奢侈品牌的情感反应中依恋和品牌热爱之间存在因果差异的概念。然而,本研究的范围仅限于线下商店,不包括作为奢侈品牌购买场所的线上购买。在各种网络环境下购买奢侈品牌逐渐增多的情况下,将研究范围局限于线下商店可能会在推广研究方面存在问题。因此,在今后的研究中,我们希望通过整合线上线下等所有购买环境,对这些变量之间的关系和影响进行研究。首先,品牌营销人员和管理者必须提出相应的策略,以增加对品牌满意、对品牌态度良好的顾客的情感依恋。在对目标客户进行细分并确定他们的倾向、行为特征和偏好品牌后,可以通过向每个细分市场提供品牌信息和强化品牌形象来加强情感依恋。这些策略可以帮助目标客户加强与奢侈品牌的情感联系,建立对品牌的积极态度,防止他们转向竞争品牌。其次,需要制定一项战略,确保目标客户对公司的奢侈品牌产生强烈的情感反应,并沉浸于品牌之中。对品牌有好感的目标客户可以通过各种广告活动、事件和内容让他们直接参与品牌活动,从而加强他们对品牌的依恋程度,并沉浸在品牌中。第三,可以通过开发符合目标客户自我概念的品牌来强化品牌。品牌营销人员或管理者可以通过展示一个符合每个目标顾客特点的品牌,并认识到与竞争品牌相比,该品牌的地位相对较高,从而加强品牌依附性。社会意义本研究确定了消费者在奢侈品牌环境中的品牌参与度是如何受其组成部分影响的。换言之,本研究确定了消费者品牌情感的前置因素,并探讨了代表消费者情感状态的品牌依恋和品牌热爱对消费者品牌参与的影响。本研究结果的理论意义如下。首先,Shahid 等人(2022 年)发现,当通过关系形成情感纽带时,情感依恋表现得更强烈。Hwang 和 Kandampully(2012)发现,情感依恋和品牌热爱在概念上相似,但强度不同。而Gómez-Suárez(2019)则表示,品牌依恋是品牌热爱的前提条件。如前所述,以往的研究表明,情感依恋和品牌热爱因消费者的情感状态而异。本研究结果表明,情感上的品牌依恋并不影响主动参与,而品牌热爱则影响主动参与。这说明,主动参与受品牌热爱而非情感依恋的直接影响。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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