Brand Experts Research Articles

Establishing measures and drivers of consumer brand engagement behaviours

Discussion of consumer brand engagement within the broader brand management literature adopts largely a psychological view for conceiving the nature of the construct. As a result, little focus has been devoted to consumer brand engagement behaviours – an aspect that has high managerial relevance. Of particular relevance are the challenges of establishing appropriate measures and better understanding the drivers of brand engagement behaviours. With the aim of addressing these challenges, this paper presents a theoretically-grounded and empirically-validated measure of consumer engagement behaviours based on the Actual Brand Engagement framework proposed by brand experts. This paper first establishes the framework’s suitability given the literature on engagement behaviours. The framework is conceptualised through demonstrating the importance of consumer brand knowledge, category involvement and corporate-level associations in driving engagement behaviours, thereby accommodating the role of brand-, category- and corporate-level factors. Using data collected from Australian consumers, the framework is empirically established by demonstrating: (1) the validity of the Actual Brand Engagement framework for measuring engagement behaviours and (2) the predictive validity in explaining a consumer’s willingness to pay a price premium. Cumulatively, this study addresses both the academic and managerial need for guidance as to how to best measure and influence brand engagement behaviours.

Brand analysis of global and local banks in India: a study of young consumers

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the perceived differences in brand analysis dimensions, such as brand-specific association (represented by perceived brand quality, brand price, brand emotional value and brand social value), brand impressions (represented by perceived brand image and general brand awareness) and brand credibility (represented by perceived brand trustworthiness and brand expertise), for young consumers in the context of banking services in India. All three types of banks operating in the Indian market are compared: state-owned banks, private (Indian) banks and global (foreign) banks. Design/methodology/approach The authors follow a cross-sectional design in this study. A structured questionnaire is created with the help of well-established scales. Reliability and validity tests are performed on all the dimensions of the scale. Exploratory factor analysis, ANOVA and ordinary least squared multiple regression analysis are performed to test the proposed hypotheses empirically. Findings The authors report significant differences in perceptions among young consumers among the three types of banks for all the dimensions of brand-specific associations, that is, perceived quality, perceived price, perceived brand social value and perceived brand emotional value. The authors find partial support for the hypotheses presented in this study concerning differences in three bank types among young consumers related to general brand impressions and brand credibility. Practical implications The results provide insights on the perceptions of the global and local brands among young consumers in the context of the banking industry. This will aid practitioners in assessing the relative position of their brands with respect to their global/local counterparts. These insights would help brand managers to design effective marketing mix strategies to target the young Indian consumers more effectively. Originality/value This is the first study that includes the concept of brand credibility along with brand-specific associations and general brand impression in investigating purchase intention of banking services by young consumers.

Country Branding and Country Image: Insights, Challenges and Prospects. The Case of Estonia

Abstract Gaining understanding about customers ’mindset and information on their experiences is a precondition for the formulation of an effective country branding strategy. What potential tourists might learn and how they can be made to feel about a place can help small and not very well-known countries compete with bigger and more popular tourist destinations. The article focuses on the effectiveness of Brand Estonia and claims that it is still a challenge, despite the existence of an ongoing strategy. It also favors the revision of the brand identity selection and the promotion of Estonian brand, and supports a customer-based approach for their assessment. Documentary and empirical evidence show that the image of Estonia among its most important target audiences in the field of tourism does not match the Estonian brand identity. The gap in-between was evidenced by the results and content analysis of 24 in-depth interviews made with a selected group of people well acquainted with the country as well as some branding experts. This article contributes to the existing case study literature with findings that also manifest opportunities to strengthen the country brand, if its formulation develops a realistic brand identity and its promotion is based on accurate, unique and appealing ideas. It proposes academic support to innovative or alternative concepts for the country branding, and comments on applications of this study to more specific fields and further research.

Retail branding as a value creation process: managerial and research priorities

Purpose – The first purpose of this communication is to highlight retailers' current challenges related to branding as a value creation process. The second purpose is to identify existing organizational brakes that may slow down retailer brand building. The final aim is to indicate managerial and research priorities in retail branding. Design/methodology/approach – The article confronts the conclusions of previous research and the findings of a longitudinal case study conducted with a major French retailer and brand experts between 2004 and 2011. Findings – The authors identify managerial implications and four research priorities: cultural and organizational change, development and sharing of new capacities, customer behavior knowledge, and development of a strategic retailer brand building model. Originality/value – The question of creating and sustaining retailer brands in the long term is addressed both from a managerial and academic perspective. The longitudinal case study illustrates how a major Euro...

Line Extension Asymmetry: Higher Quality Line Extensions Help, Lower Quality Extensions Do Only a Little Harm

Abstract "Managers often extend brands to different quality levels. Adding lower priced variants is a particularly popular option for fighting the growing number of retailer brands. Such a move may increase sales, but it also risks diluting brand image. This study examines such line extensions by testing middle-quality brands that offer higher or lower quality line extensions. According to the results, the adverse effects of brands’ lower quality versions seem to be overestimated. Higher quality line extensions improved overall brand perception and evaluation far more than lower quality extensions damaged them. This asymmetry prevailed in multiple product classes and for various dimensions of brand evaluation such as brand attitude, brand expertise or brand innovation. In general, consumers seem to prefer broader product lines. Even if lower quality extensions reduced brand prestige, there was hardly any effect in the overall evaluation. The negative quality association was tempered by increased perceived brand innovation and positive variety effects. However, lower quality extensions are not harmless in every case. Managers are well advised to consider all branding options and to analyze possible effects, not only on the brand but also on the individual product. "

Branding and advertising in an Islamic context: Representing the forbidden

This paper focuses on the communication vector of brand tangibility in an Islamic context. The study generates a dialogic advertising strategy to help advertisers construct implicit images within a framework of Islamic marketing. Although Islamic branding is qualitatively different from conventional branding, international branding experts use conventional advertising techniques when branding to Muslims. A dialogic advertising strategy enables branding and advertising experts to bring forward voices of others in cases where their portrayal is prohibited by Islamic laws and regulations. This paper will be of great value to marketers because it will help them improve their branding strategies when targeting the Muslim consumer and engaging with the Islamic market.

Talking about art(s)

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual framework to describe possible key features in the relationship between culture and place branding. The inspiration to redact this paper was drawn from the inadequacy of literature and attempts to introduce the theoretical framework linking these two fields by asking: how do we define culture within the context of place branding? How do decision makers distinguish whether culture should be at the forefront of a place branding strategy? On one hand, the paper points out the powerful advantages while using art(s) and culture‐based activities to promote a place. On the other hand, the paper highlights the layered dilemmas for practitioners concerning the amalgamation of such a practice on a branding campaign.Design/methodology/approachThose questions' clarification is achieved by means of a literature review that examines this relationship from a wide range of disciplines: sociology, marketing, place branding, cultural management, urban studies, etc.FindingsThe paper's findings can be summarized in three points: first, culture plays a critical role on a place branding campaign, as long as the authentic cultural elements are produced by the residents. This practice helps to avoid the mass reproduction of “borrowed” cultural elements, i.e. the investment in cultural and leisure consumption industries. Second, the cultural field has already deployed practices used by local authorities in urban regeneration, such as cultural planning. Thus, converged objectives link cultural managers to place branding experts, refining multi‐dimensional policy thinking towards a more integrated image. Finally, the cultural aspect is related with the pre‐existing reputation of a place. Further, it is connected with the minds of people, fostering the contentions of common essence between culture and branding.Social implicationsThis paper intends to contribute and enhance inter‐professional thinking, by approaching the cultural sector with the appropriate sensitivity.Originality/valueThe paper provides deeper understanding of culture, bordering the gap between technocrats and cultural‐oriented professionals by contributing to the creation of a coherent communication system for the study of place branding theory. The cultural dimension of a place is very spacious and further research needs to be made, approaching the subject from new perspectives, such as people's perception of the brand while using art(s) as a branding tool.

Co‐creating a nation brand “bottom up”

PurposeThe paper aims to apply the co‐creation paradigm to nation branding in order to analyze how the identity and image of a nation brand are inter‐twined in terms of levels and dimensions, respectively.Design/approach/methodologyThis explorative study was conducted among 178 Finnish university students, who were asked to build a program for branding Finland. The students worked in small groups of two or three. In all, 75 reports were handed in, of which those (67) targeted at tourists were taken for analysis. The analysis was conducted in accordance with a model modified from Gnoth.FindingsIts image is a critical stimulus in motivating tourists to visit a destination. A nation brand is at the crossroads of three levels of identity and a fragmented set of images. The idea is to exploit the right fragments in line with the destination and the target groups.Research limitations/implicationsThe empirical analysis was based on data gathered from MBA students. The intention is to extend the sampling to include branding experts, company representatives and delegates of the Finnish Nation Brand Committee in order to build up a more specific picture of a nation's brand identity and image. The examination is restricted to one, rather homogeneous country, Finland. It would be of interest to conduct comparable analyses in other, more heterogeneous countries. Another avenue for future research would be to test the market, in other words to question potential visitors about their perceptions, and thereby to determine whether the nation's brand identity and image coincide.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the theoretical discussion on the role of branding in the marketing of places, herein called nations. For practitioners, it highlights the importance of managing the brand “bottom up”, in other words starting from the people.

Building country image through corporate image: exploring the factors that influence the image transfer

Place branding scholars and practitioners increasingly highlight the influence that corporate image can exert on country image. Yet, there is remarkably little academic research on this image transfer. In this qualitative study, we identify factors that influence the transfer of associations from corporate images to country images through 13 in-depth interviews with place branding experts. Findings reveal six consumer-related (awareness of the corporate brand's country of origin; power of the corporate image; strength of the corporate brand–country association; brand image fit; brand image misfit; strength of industry–country association) and four company-related (extent to which the company plays up or down its country of origin; the company's international and market visibility; number of corporate brands operating in the market) factors that influence this image transfer. Our contribution to the place branding literature is 10 research propositions on the influence that these factors pose in the transfer of associations from corporate brands to countries. We provide country branding managers with guidelines in selecting corporate brands for country branding campaigns and discuss suggestions for future research.

On Islamic branding: brands as good deeds

PurposeThe paper aims to clarify some of the most important issues pertinent to the emerging field of Islamic branding (IB). Namely, it answers the following questions: what does IB mean? Why is it important and what makes it different from conventional branding? What are its types? What is the future of IB?Design/methodology/approachThis is a conceptual research paper that builds on the author's vast expertise and knowledge of the Islamic market and Islamic marketing and branding practices, ethics, and motivations to answer the various research questions.FindingsAlthough IB is qualitatively different from conventional branding, international branding experts still view it from the same perspective and, therefore, use conventional branding techniques when branding to Muslims. The motivations to underlying IB are not fully appreciated and the concept remains bound by an abstract understanding of Halal and Haram.Research limitations/implicationsThis is a conceptual paper and, as such, it is subject to the same limitations surrounding similar conceptual academic works.Practical implicationsThe paper will be of great value to marketers because it will help them improve their branding strategies when targeting the Muslim consumer and engaging the Islamic market.Social implicationsThe IB practices have the potential to add a human touch to the exploitive conventional branding practices common among today's marketers.Originality/valueThis is the first paper of its kind that conceptualizes and clarifies the various facets of IB.

중소기업의 현지브랜드 개발과 브랜드 컨설팅 프레임워크: 정부지원프로그램을 중심으로

Abstract The brand consulting for paving the way for overseas-based companies to develop local brands includes many processes such as the analysis of local markets and consumers, the analysis of in-and-out circumstances including the diagnosis of corporate competence and resource, the establishment of brand strategies, the development of brand concepts, and the development of design, which should be performed before the eventual launch of overseas markets. So, the success of overseas-based brand consulting just depends on coworking(i.e., consortium) by brand experts from international marketing, design to local-overseas brand rights which have been barely touched upon by the brand experts. This study aims to present brand consulting framework and to support the development of local-fit brands when the small and medium industries, esteemed relatively less compatible than conglomerates, expand their business in the non-English-speaking countries. This study also includes the results of a demand inquiry on the local fit brand targeted for SMEs. As a brand consulting framework which has been performed at work sites through the accumulated many year's trial and error, it could be a significantly meaningful guidance for the brand experts who perform local-fit brands consulting and the SMEs who look for overseas-based brand consulting.

매스티지 패션 브랜드의 관계마케팅 실행요인이 신뢰, 만족 및 재구매의도에 미치는 영향

This study analyzes how the relationship marketing implement factors of masstige fashion brands influence the trust, satisfaction and repurchase intention of consumers. The survey was conducted from October <TEX>$15^{th}$</TEX> to <TEX>$30^{th}$</TEX> in 2008 with 330 responses used in the data analysis. The statistical analysis methods were frequency analysis, factor analysis, reliability analysis, and multiple regression analysis. The results show that the relationship marketing implement factors of masstige fashion brands were customer orientation, salesperson expertise, communication, brand expertise, and inducement. The relationship marketing implement factors of masstige fashion brands influence the trust and satisfaction of consumers. The trust and satisfaction of consumers influence the repurchase intention in the masstige fashion brands.

When communication challenges brand associations: a framework for understanding consumer responses to brand image incongruity

Abstract In this conceptual paper, the authors review literature on how consumers react when a piece of brand communication is incongruent with established brand associations. Although brand experts typically criticize such brand image incongruity, it is a fact that companies do communicate in a way that challenges existing associations, for example in advertising or when launching brand extensions. The article integrates previous work—which has been scattered across several poorly connected domains—into a coherent framework. The authors propose effects of brand image incongruity on consumers' processing and evaluation. They also identify marketing implications and avenues for future research. The propositions imply opportunities for brand management, thus suggesting the need for a balanced view on brand image incongruity. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

‘On-brand banking’: An examination of the factors contributing to effective branding and brand development through direct marketing in the consumer financial services sector

The services sector now accounts for more than two-thirds of GNP in the UK and yet much of the work on branding is based on fast-moving consumer goods. This paper presents key factors for effective brand and brand loyalty building in financial services direct marketing and examines why these success factors may be missing from most financial services direct mail. The issues are examined here from a direct marketing (DM) agency and DM brand experts' perspective. Key objectives for successful branding in financial services direct marketing emerge. Barriers believed to be preventing the consumer financial services sector from using the direct marketing medium to its full brand-building potential are reported and recommendations are made for overcoming some of these problems.

What can direct marketing do for branding and bonding?

This paper adds to knowledge about direct marketing by focusing on what direct marketing does for brand building or for ‘bonding’ with customers. This issue is important because direct mail alone accounted for as much as £1,665m or 11.6 per cent of total advertising expenditure in 1998 in the UK. This is more than the total outdoor, radio and cinema advertising spend. The paper explores the issues from a direct marketing (DM) agency and DM brand experts' perspective. It examines to what extent there has been a shift during the past ten years from using direct mail as a tactical sales tool, to a longer-term, strategic brand-building tool. Four roles for DM in brand building emerge. Underexploited roles for DM in tailoring ‘brand relevance’ to selected consumers and in acknowledging or developing the ‘brand experience’ of existing customers are reported.