Brand communities: loyal to the community or the brand?

Brand communities: loyal to the community or the brand?

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate empirically the relative emphasis accorded by members of a brand community to identification with that community and identification with the brand-owner, and thereby close a gap in the literature to date.Design methodology approach - Based on a r...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of marketing Vol. 47; no. 1/2; pp. 93 - 114
Main Authors: Marzocchi, Gianluca, Morandin, Gabriele, Bergami, Massimo
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Bradford Emerald Group Publishing Limited 01-01-2013
Subjects:
Brand loyalty
Community
Consumer behavior
Consumers
Customer relationship management
Hypotheses
Identification
Loyalty
Marketing
Studies
Trust
Customer behaviour
Brand loyalty
Brand management
Brand communities
Motorcycles
Europe
Social identification
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Summary:Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate empirically the relative emphasis accorded by members of a brand community to identification with that community and identification with the brand-owner, and thereby close a gap in the literature to date.Design methodology approach - Based on a review of the literature relating to identification, loyalty, and potentially mediating brand-related constructs, a cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey was carried out at a brandfest organised by a major European motorcycle manufacturer. Data collected from 256 respondents were analysed by structural equation modelling, testing seven hypothesised causal links.Findings - Brand loyalty is primarily influenced by identification with the brand community, through the mediating role of brand affect.Research limitations implications - The findings require confirmation in other settings and industry sectors before they can be generalised with confidence, but point to several fruitful research directions.Practical implications - Brand strategists have new evidence to guide allocation of effort and resources to the effective cultivation and maintenance of brand loyalty.Originality value - The study makes an original contribution, in a real-world setting, to the understanding of how members of a brand community relate to the brand, and of how their brand loyalty is activated.
ISSN:0309-0566
1758-7123
DOI:10.1108/03090561311285475