Conceptualizing the consumer-brand relationship as a truly dyadic process

Abstract

The consumer-brand relationship (CBR) has gained interest in recent years, but as currently conceptualized, it is limited to a parasocial relationship where the role of the brand is not acknowledged. In order to better understand the CBR, we have to ask several key questions: (1) What is the CBR? (2) What are consumer-brand interactions (CBIs)? And (3) How can we measure CBIs? The objective in Essay 1 is to develop a better understanding of the conceptual foundation of the CBR. This was accomplished through extensive review of relevant literature, which highlighted the need to consider the CBR as a truly dyadic process (rather than a parasocial relationship). At the end of Essay 1, a conceptual definition of the CBR is presented, and the importance of two types of interactions (transactional and social) is stressed. Essay 2 focuses more on the level of interaction in the CBR context—the consumer-brand interaction (CBI). Through a qualitative research design, several interaction themes in the CBR context were discovered, and the result was a comprehensive description of the CBI—including a definition and identification of five relevant CBI dimensions. The CBI and these dimensions were empirically examined in Essay 3. Through the development of a measurement scale for CBI and dimensions, a structural model representing the relationships between these constructs could be tested. In addition, moderating effects of interaction type (transactional and social) were considered. The essays provide a better understanding of the CBR by first focusing in on the individual interactions (CBIs) that actually create those relationships. And by considering the CBR as a truly dyadic process, the manager’s role is considered—thereby providing managerial and theoretical implications.