Despite the fact that the functional value of luxury brands is usually not significantly higher than those of non-luxury brands, luxury brands can achieve significant price premiums in the market ...over non-luxury brands. Additionally, in a majority of markets and product categories, the price for female luxury brands is significantly higher compared to their male counterparts. These differences might result from a higher perceived symbolic and social value of such luxury brands that have traditionally been more important for women than for men. Two experimental studies and one survey study in three product categories (i.e., clothing, perfumes, and wristwatches) in the Western culture show that, overall, women have a more positive attitude toward and a higher purchase intention of luxury brands versus non-luxury brands than men. Additionally, for female consumers, luxury brands provide more uniqueness, status and hedonic value than non-luxury brands. Important implications for marketing theory and practice can be derived. Marketers should use uniqueness claims in their advertising copy and differentiate in their product designs between male and female target groups.
Brand as Promise Bhargava, Vikram R.; Bedi, Suneal
Journal of business ethics,
09/2022, Letnik:
179, Številka:
3
Journal Article
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Brands are widely regarded as a constellation of shared associations surrounding a company and its offerings. On the traditional view of brands, these associations are regarded as perceptions and ...attitudes in consumers’ minds in relation to a company. We argue that this traditional framing of brands faces an explanatory problem: the inability to satisfactorily explain why certain branding activism initiatives elicit the moralized reactive attitudes that are paradigmatic responses to wrongdoing. In this paper, we argue for a reframing of brands that calls for viewing brands as a series of normatively binding expectations that are ethically akin to promises. Our promissory framing of brands avoids the explanatory problem, illuminates a number of ethical requirements on branding, and reconceptualizes the role of brand managers.
•Masstige (Mass Prestige) is important, yet a relatively less investigated construct in the literature.•American laptop brands have the potential to be seen as prestige brands compared to Asian ...brands in India.•Our study contributes towards the development of the theory of masstige marketing based on product, promotion and place.
In recent years, competition between brands have been linked to mass prestige associated with the brands. Mass Prestige (Masstige) is very important to study, and yet it is a relatively less investigated construct in the literature. This study is an attempt to contribute to the literature grounded in masstige theoretical approach by examining the prestige associated with the four best-selling laptop brands: 1) two American brands (HP, Dell); and 2) two Asian brands (Lenovo and Acer). We analyzed the competition between these brands in the second fastest growing emerging market, India. In order to measure masstige value, we used the Masstige Mean scale (Paul, 2015). The results show that American brands have the potential to be seen as prestige brands while Asian brands are trailing behind in masstige value and competition. Finally, but not less important, this paper discusses the potential reasons for different masstige value of four laptop brands.
In light of a growing interest in the use of social media marketing (SMM) among luxury fashion brands, this study set out to identify attributes of SMM activities and examine the relationships among ...those perceived activities, value equity, relationship equity, brand equity, customer equity, and purchase intention through a structural equation model. Five constructs of perceived SSM activities of luxury fashion brands are entertainment, interaction, trendiness, customization, and word of mouth. Their effects on value equity, relationship equity, and brand equity are significantly positive. For the relationship between customer equity drivers and customer equity, brand equity has significant negative effect on customer equity while value equity and relationship equity show no significant effect. As for purchase intention, value equity and relationship equity had significant positive effects, while relationship equity had no significant influence. Finally, the relationship between purchase intention and customer equity has significance. The findings of this study can enable luxury brands to forecast the future purchasing behavior of their customers more accurately and provide a guide to managing their assets and marketing activities as well.
In this study, we propose a new concept, brand awe, and explore its nature, underlying dimensions, and roles in relation to consumer responses. Brand awe is a specific mixture of emotions that ...consumers feel when they encounter a luxury or premium brand that they perceive to be vast and, thus, requires a schematic accommodation. Exploratory Factor Analysis (N = 205) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (N = 256) of the survey data based on fourteen brands yielded three dimensions of brand awe: Euphoria, Enthrallment, and Vastness. Results support the reliability and validity of the brand awe construct and the important mediating roles of brand awe between its triggers (i.e., prestige, luxuriousness, excellence, and innovation) and consumer responses.
Scant evidence is available on of how social media marketing activities influence brand equity creation and consumers' behavior towards a brand. This research explores these relationships by ...analyzing pioneering brands in the luxury sector (Burberry, Dior, Gucci, Hermès, and Louis Vuitton). Based on a survey of 845 luxury brand consumers (Chinese, French, Indian, and Italian), who follow the five brands studied on social media, the study develops a structural equation model that helps to address gaps in prior social media branding literature. Specifically, the study demonstrates the links between social media marketing efforts and their consequences (brand preference, price premium, and loyalty). The study measures brands' social media marketing efforts as a holistic concept that incorporates five aspects (entertainment, interaction, trendiness, customization, and word of mouth). Another contribution of the study is that it finds that SMMEs have a significant positive effect on brand equity and on the two main dimensions of brand equity: brand awareness and brand image.
Previous research on self-brand connections has not considered the inclusion of brand categories (e.g., national and private brands). The current work examines consumers’ preference for national and ...private brands and their tendency to include brands as part of their self-concept (measured by the brand engagement in the self-concept (BESC) scale and manipulated using a tagline). Study 1 revealed higher BESC consumers to prefer national (vs. private) brands. Study 2 identified a boundary condition for our initial study by demonstrating consumers higher in BESC to prefer national brands (relative to private brands) less when presented a self-concept threat. Additionally, results showed lower BESC consumers deferring to national (vs. private) brands when facing a self-concept threat. Finally, Study 3 results were consistent with Study 2 findings when brand engagement was manipulated (vs. measured). Our work suggests that when a self-concept threat unrelated to the branded self is presented, the central importance of brands, for those consumers more highly engaged with brands, will decrease to the point of impacting preferences.
•Human brand authenticity is a significant predictor of brand love.•This predictive power varies according to the type of human brand.•Human brand self-branded product purchase intention reinforces ...brand love.•Openness, honesty, and personal interactions demonstrate human brand authenticity.
The present study compares the impact of perceived human brand authenticity on brand love across six fields—politics, music, movies, sports, business, and social media—using a survey-based quantitative methodology. The results indicate that human brand authenticity is a significant predictor of brand love, although its predictive power varies according to the type of human brand. Authenticity exerts the most influence in the field of politics, followed by music, movies, and sports. In social media and business, human brand authenticity shows no significance toward brand love. Although existing branding scholarship identifies authenticity as a predictor of positive marketing outcomes, the current study’s findings uncover a boundary condition concerning the context in which the human brand performs. In addition, brand love can be materialized through increased purchase intention of human brands’ self-branded products, allowing the human brand to benefit from passive income and brand-building opportunities.
•Presents consumer brand engagement scales specific to product and service contexts.•Advances empirical understanding of CBE measurement through scale refinement.•Provides marketers with tools and ...insights about S-D logic informed CBE.
Consumer brand engagement (CBE) has attracted significant attention amongst academics and practitioners; yet, myriad conceptualizations and operationalizations exist. This research conceptualizes Service-Dominant Logic-informed CBE as a consumer’s psychological state and behavioral manifestations that occur through the process of value co-creation, involving resource integration and service exchanges in consumer-brand interactive service systems. This research develops and validates two CBE scales specifically for product and service brand contexts. The CBE scale refinement process resulted in a 29-item scale in product (smartphone) context that comprises of two dimensions: affection and reasoned behavior, and a 20-item scale in service (social media) context, which consist of four dimensions: affection, identification, absorption and social connection. The two refined scales demonstrate good psychometric properties. This research’s findings offer managers and scholars insight on how consumers engage and experience services and products. This study provides an overview of theoretical and managerial implications.
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