Can we localise in Central Europe from the marketing aspect: verification of a conceptual model from Czechia

ABSTRACT In today’s world marketing is an important tool and local preferences based on the social environment can contribute substantially to the media mix. This study is about the issue of the preference of customers of stores, which use local elements as part of their marketing strategy over those who communicate globally. This paper describes the preference of Czech consumers for stores that use local elements as part of their marketing strategy over those who communicate globally. The model, which examines how interest in local activities and specific involvement in local communities’ influence consumer preferences, is created by the theory of justified action and the concept of the creation of social networks. The model is tested using data from a representative sample of Czech consumers (CAWI collection) using the analysis of the chi-square test and Spearman’s rank-order coefficient. The results show that both interest and specific involvement have a strong connection and relationship with local values. No similar study has previously been executed for the Czechia and this may be an important reason for feasible use in the retail branch. Due to similar development, this research can be generalized for other Central European countries.