Understanding customer brand engagement in brand communities: an application of psychological ownership theory and congruity theory

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jitender Kumar
Keyword(s):  
Brand Equity ◽  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Psychological Ownership ◽  
Customer Engagement ◽  
Brand Community ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Communities ◽  
Brand Engagement ◽  
Online Brand Communities ◽  
Value Congruity

Purpose The purpose of this study is the exploration of customer engagement with the brand and brand community (dual foci) inside online brand communities and to assess the simultaneous impact of dual foci of engagement in creating equity for the brand. The role of sense of community is explored as a moderator in influencing customer engagement. Design/methodology/approach The sample is composed of the members of Facebook-based brand communities. An internet survey of 833 subjects provides data to test the theoretical model with the help of structural equation modelling using AMOS 21. Findings The empirical investigation supports the proposed theory except for a few counterintuitive findings. Psychological ownership with the brand and the brand community has a direct effect on customer engagement with the brand and the brand community, respectively. A brand-based value-congruity has a direct effect on brand engagement; however, community-based value-congruity has an indirect effect on brand community engagement through brand community psychological ownership. The moderating effect of sense of community on engagement is also observed. Engagement with dual foci explained a substantial proportion of the variance in brand equity. Research limitations/implications A student sample, cross-sectional research design and a limited number of constructs in the nomological network to explore engagement in an online brand community constitute few limitations of this study. Customer engagement with dual foci has major implications for both the researchers and practitioners dealing with online brand communities. Practical implications To engage customers in online brand communities, dual foci should be the objective of management. A sense of ownership towards the brand and value-congruity with the brand should be aimed to engage customers with the brands; brand community psychological ownership and value-congruity with the community should be embraced by the firms to achieve brand community engagement. A high sense of community also needs to be promoted for strengthening dual foci engagement that further generates brand equity. Originality/value Customer brand engagement and brand community engagement had been studied separately in literature ignoring the fact that brand is the raison d’etre of the community. Taking a dual object engagement perspective, this study has charted out different routes of how to generate brand equity using online brand communities.

Leveraging marketer-generated appeals in online brand communities

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 133-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Welf H. Weiger ◽  
Hauke A. Wetzel ◽  
Maik Hammerschmidt
Keyword(s):  
Brand Equity ◽  
User Behavior ◽  
User Engagement ◽  
Brand Community ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Communities ◽  
Online Brand Communities ◽  
Matched Data ◽  
Entertainment Value ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The proliferation of online brand communities has shifted control over brands from firms to consumers. Demonstrating how marketers can stimulate consumers to use these opportunities and engage with the brand in such communities, the purpose of this paper is to address the effectiveness of normative and utilitarian appeals commonly employed in practice for enhancing engagement intensity and brand equity in turn. Design/methodology/approach This paper presents two studies at an individual user level. The first study builds on matched data on marketing actions, user behavior, and user perceptions from a Facebook brand community. The second study uses an experiment with members of a firm-hosted online brand community. The authors employ seemingly unrelated regressions while controlling for self-selection. Findings Marketer-generated appeals have a positive effect on brand equity that is mediated by engagement intensity. However, the strength of these effects depends highly on community, user, and relationship characteristics. Practical implications Generally speaking, marketer-generated appeals are effective tools for marketers to build brand equity through enhanced user engagement. However, their effectiveness can be improved when managers use a targeted approach. To offer precise managerial guidance, this paper shows how entertainment value, content consumption asymmetry (e.g. whether a user prefers user-generated content over marketer-generated content), and membership duration increase or lower the impact of appeals in building the brand through engagement intensity. Originality/value The authors provide evidence that appeals designed to drive user engagement in online brand communities are effective tools for boosting brand equity.

Consumer psychological motivations to customer brand engagement: a case of brand community

2019 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 168-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jitender Kumar ◽  
Jogendra Kumar Nayak
Keyword(s):  
Brand Loyalty ◽  
Psychological Ownership ◽  
Customer Engagement ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Brand Community ◽  
Ongoing Research ◽  
Brand Attachment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Engagement ◽  
Study Results

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the psychological motivations behind customers’ engagement with the brands and further investigate the effect of brand engagement on brand attachment and brand loyalty.Design/methodology/approachThe theoretical model is tested with the data collected from 282 brand community members during offline brand community events, and structural equation modeling technique is used for statistical analysis.FindingsThe results indicate that brand psychological ownership and value-congruity act as important psychological motivations for customers to engage with the brands. A sense of brand attachment mediates the relationship between brand engagement and brand loyalty.Research limitations/implicationsCurrent study was conducted on a single brand community. Future research testing and validating the proposed model for multiple brands across different product categories is suggested for the generalization of current study results. The identification and validation of psychological drivers of engagement can have major implications on the ongoing research on customer engagement concept.Practical implicationsAn effectively instilled sense of psychological ownership and value similarity notion in customers can help managers in engaging customers and capitalize on their repurchases and recommendations along with their attachment to the brands.Originality/valueThe study is unique in terms of the brand engagement model depicting the psychological antecedents to engagement with the brands and identifying the mediating role of brand attachment between brand engagement and behavioral loyalty.

Online brand communities as heterogeneous gatherings: a netnographic exploration of Apple users

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 375-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tuğba Özbölük ◽  
Yunus Dursun
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Opinion Leader ◽  
Brand Community ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Communities ◽  
Online Brand Communities ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Online Brand Community

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the different types of members based on their roles within an online brand community dedicated to Apple. Design/methodology/approach Design/methodology/approach Data are drawn from an 18-month netnographic study, including participant and non-participant observation. Findings Findings reveal that members of the online brand community share a common goal but they are heterogeneous in many respects. In this research, five different types of brand community members are identified: learner, pragmatist, activist, opinion leader and evangelist. These findings emphasize the heterogeneity of the brand community or the differences of members and subgroups they form in the community. Practical implications This paper offers some insights for brand managers. There are different sub-tribes in online brand communities and these sub-tribes develop their own meanings of the brand. This means that online brand communities do not form one single homogenous target group and can be segmented into subgroups. Findings also offer a deeper understanding of negative characteristics of online brand community members. The role “activist” found in this study may be crucial for marketers, as activists can represent the negative side of online brand communities. Originality/value The literature on brand communities has focused predominantly on the homogeneity of these communities. This paper extends the literature by demonstrating the heterogeneity in an online brand community. The paper contributes to the brand community literature by substantiating that online brand community members can be segmented into subgroups based on their roles within the community. In addition, the paper extends the existing literature on brand communities that has overlooked the destructive consumer roles.

Engagement valence duality and spillover effects in online brand communities

2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 877-897 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jana Lay-Hwa Bowden ◽  
Jodie Conduit ◽  
Linda D. Hollebeek ◽  
Vilma Luoma-aho ◽  
Birgit Apenes Solem
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Method ◽  
Spillover Effect ◽  
Spillover Effects ◽  
Consumer Engagement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Communities ◽  
Brand Engagement ◽  
Online Brand Communities ◽  
Constant Comparative Method ◽  
Depth Interviews

Purpose Online brand communities (OBCs) are an effective avenue for brands to engage consumers. While engaging with the brand, consumers simultaneously interact with other OBC members; thus engaging with multiple, interrelated engagement objects concurrently. The purpose of this paper is to explore both positively and negatively valenced consumer engagement with multiple engagement objects, the interplay between these, and the spillover effect from consumers’ engagement with the OBC to their engagement with the brand. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on 16 in-depth interviews with OBC members of a luxury accessory brand, a constant comparative method was adopted using axial and selective coding procedures. The objective was to understand the nature of participants’ engagement with the brand, the OBC, and the interplay between individuals’ engagement with these objects. The coding framework and resultant interpretive frameworks address engagement valence, outcomes, and direction. Findings This study illustrates consumer expressions of consumers’ positively and negatively valenced engagement with a focal brand, and with the OBC. Further, it demonstrates the interplay (spillover effect) that occurs between consumers’ engagement with the OBC, to their engagement with the brand. While the existence of positively valenced engagement with the OBC was found to further enhance consumer brand engagement (i.e. reflecting an engagement accumulation effect), negatively valenced engagement with the OBC was found to reduce consumer brand engagement (i.e. reflecting an engagement detraction effect). Originality/value While consumer engagement has been recognized to have both positive and negative manifestations, this study demonstrates that consumers’ engagement valence may differ across interrelated engagement objects (i.e. the brand and the OBC). Further, we demonstrate the existence of engagement spillover effects from the OBC to the brand for both positively and negatively valenced engagement.

Creating Consumer-Based Brand Equity With Social Media Content Marketing

2019 ◽  
pp. 419-441
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Weitzl
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Brand Equity ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Brand Communities ◽  
Brand Engagement ◽  
Online Brand Communities ◽  
Simultaneous Evaluation ◽  
The Social ◽  
Entertainment Value ◽  
The Impact

Due to the growing importance of company-initiated online brand communities (OBCs) like Facebook brand fan pages, details about consumers' perceptions of these sites need to be linked to their effects on customer-based brand equity. This research builds on Keller and Lehmann's brand value chain as the theoretical foundation and adopts the theory to fit the social media context. This approach enables the simultaneous evaluation of the impact of consumer online content perceptions on both fan-page engagement and consumers' brand mindset. Specifically, this research investigates the consumer-based outcomes of perceptions of content's vividness and interactivity as well as the effects of perceived information and entertainment value of brand posts. In addition, this empirical study evaluates the consequences of positive brand fans' comments for consumer online engagement (e.g., liking), brand awareness, image, and attitude. Results show that consumer-oriented brand pages can stimulate positive offline brand engagement such as loyalty and recommendation.

scholarly journals Unveiling heterogeneous engagement-based loyalty in brand communities

2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (9) ◽  
pp. 1854-1881 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurence Dessart ◽  
Joaquín Aldás-Manzano ◽  
Cleopatra Veloutsou
Keyword(s):  
Brand Loyalty ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Brand Community ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Communities ◽  
Brand Engagement ◽  
Equation Modelling ◽  
Behavioural Engagement ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Although recent research appreciates that consumers increasingly interact with brands in brand communities and that brand engagement is an important and complex phenomenon in brand communities, little is known about the nature of individuals’ brand engagement in brand communities. This study aims to identify brand community members’ segments in terms of their brand engagement within the community; help us understand if these segments use a different approach in the development of brand loyalty; and develop mechanisms that can be used to identify members of these segments. Design/methodology/approach The paper adopts a quantitative approach and uses a total of 970 responses from members of Facebook brand pages in three popular languages on Facebook (English, French and Spanish). Data are analysed with structural equation modelling, integrating FIMIX-PLS and POS-PLS. Findings The results reveal that cognitive, affective and behavioural engagement dimensions play a different role in driving brand loyalty. Three different segments of engaged consumers exist (emotional engagers, thinkers and active engagers). Variables related to the perceived value of the brand community provide initial explanations as to the differences of the consumer groups. Research limitations/implications The data were collected from a specific type of brand communities (Facebook-based, company-managed brand communities) and are self-reported. Practical implications This work demonstrates the heterogeneity of brand community members in terms of their brand engagement profile and the effect of this profile on the formation of behavioural brand loyalty. Suggestions on identifying members of these segments based on the value that they get from the community are offered. Originality/value This work extends the brand engagement and brand community literature. It is the first work that provides this nature of actionable suggestions to the teams supporting brands with brand communities.

Fostering brand love in Facebook brand pages

2019 ◽  
Vol 43 (5) ◽  
pp. 710-727 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariola Palazon ◽  
Elena Delgado-Ballester ◽  
Maria Sicilia
Keyword(s):  
Brand Equity ◽  
Product Category ◽  
Brand Community ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Brand Love ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Brand Engagement ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze how brand love is built in the context of brand pages by proposing a model in which brand love depends on relationships ties with other brand consumers (sense of brand community) and with the brand itself (self–brand connection). Design/methodology/approach Information was collected from a sample of 559 members of the community of a well-known baby food brand on Facebook. Data were collected through an online questionnaire sent by the company. Findings Results suggest that both sense of brand community and self–brand connection foster brand love and that self–brand connection exerts a mediating role between sense of brand community and brand love. Furthermore, the effect of brand community on brand love is conditioned by a personal trait of individuals such as brand engagement in self-concept. In addition, this study identifies a new consequence of brand love not previously analyzed in the literature: brand equity. Research limitations/implications A potential shortcoming is the product category analyzed and that the length of membership was not controlled and it may be a moderator between participation and community consequences. Practical implications The key implications are the importance of nurturing relationship ties among brand users and building self–brand connections on brand pages as precursors of brand love. Originality/value The study offers empirical evidence about the mechanism through which brand love is formed on social-media platforms such as Facebook. Furthermore, the authors have demonstrated the relationship between brand love and brand equity, which had not been examined yet in the literature.

scholarly journals “No piracy talk”: how online brand communities work to denormalize controversial gaming practices

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 1103-1122
Author(s):  
Daiane Scaraboto ◽  
Stefânia Ordovás de Almeida ◽  
João Pedro dos Santos Fleck
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Brand Community ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Communities ◽  
Online Brand Communities ◽  
Online Brand Community ◽  
Alternative Practices ◽  
Normalization Process

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explain how online brand communities work to support the denormalization of controversial (i.e. illegal yet normalized) gaming practices.Design/methodology/approachThis qualitative study was characterized by long-term immersion in an online brand community for Brazilian Xbox gamers. The dataset includes online and offline interactions with community members, interviews, and online archival data.FindingsThis study shows how online brand community members promoted legal gaming in a market where piracy was prevalent. It demonstrates how community members worked to establish coherence; engaged in cognitive participation; developed collective action that extended beyond the community; and reflected on their own work.Research limitations/implicationsThis study identifies online brand communities as a potential ally in combating controversial practices in online gaming; complements individual and behavioral approaches in explaining why consumers adopt controversial practices in online environments; and adds a normalization framework to the toolkit of Internet researchers.Practical implicationsThis study identifies ways in which the potential of online brand communities can be leveraged to reduce consumer adherence to controversial gaming practices through denormalizing these and normalizing alternative practices that may be more desirable to companies and other stakeholders.Originality/valueThis long-term, qualitative study inspired by normalization process theory offers an innovative perspective on the online practices of consumers who engage with a brand in ways that create value for themselves and for the brand.

Understanding customer brand engagement in user-initiated online brand communities: antecedents and consequences

2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Matute ◽  
Ramon Palau-Saumell ◽  
Nicoletta Occhiocupo
Keyword(s):  
Affective Commitment ◽  
Brand Management ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Communities ◽  
Brand Engagement ◽  
Online Brand Communities ◽  
Community Identification ◽  
Antecedents And Consequences

Purpose The purpose of this study is to provide a better understanding of customer brand engagement (CBE) by proposing and empirically testing a model of antecedents and consequences of CBE for user-initiated online brand communities (OBCs). Design/methodology/approach The model is tested using a sample of 584 participants in two relevant OBCs created and managed by brand fans. Specifically, data were collected from two communities in the photography products category: Nikonistas and Canonistas. Findings The results indicate that community and brand identification positively and significantly influence CBE. Furthermore, the supporting role of OBCs’ moderators facilitates CBE and moderates the influence of community identification on CBE. Regarding the outcomes of CBE, the results show that higher levels of engagement are positively, directly and significantly associated with favorable intentions towards the brand and the community. These effects are then mediated by brand affective commitment. Research limitations/implications The study has been conducted in two Spanish OBCs of two specific high-involvement products category: it is cross-sectional and focuses on a limited number of antecedents and consequences. Practical implications Evidence from this research supports and emphasizes the potential that these platforms have for brand management such that firms’ resources could be best allocated on those elements that lead to superior CBE. Originality/value The study endorses the role of CBE in fostering brand and community-related favorable outcomes in the context of user-initiated OBCs. It shed lights on the potential that these online platforms have for brands and on the role that brand management should play in digital contexts that are outside the direct control of the company.

Exploiting online environment to engage customers: social commerce brand community

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-361
Author(s):  
Maria Teresa Cuomo ◽  
Alice Mazzucchelli ◽  
Roberto Chierici ◽  
Francesca Ceruti
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Case Study ◽  
Social Commerce ◽  
Brand Community ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Communities ◽  
Online Brand Communities ◽  
The Social ◽  
Online Brand Community ◽  
Multiple Case

Purpose Taking jointly into account social commerce and online brand community, this paper aims to investigate how the growth of social commerce and the fast adoption of online brand communities have given firms the opportunity to establish a new kind of community, namely, the social commerce brand community. Adopting a managerial perspective, the research aims to identify the core dimensions of social commerce brand community and shed light on how they contribute in engaging customers and transform them into brand advocates. Design/methodology/approach Five social commerce retailers operating into five different sectors of activity have been involved in a multiple case study. Data retrieved from semi-structured interviews have been triangulated with information gathered from different sources to provide depth to the cases and enhance data validity. Findings This study substantiates the rise of social commerce brand community as a new phenomenon that differs from traditional online brand communities and provides firms with concrete support in selling activities and in managing relationships with customers. The multiple case study allows also to detect social commerce brand community core pillars, namely, participants’ identification, participation, conversation and social support. These four elements turned out to be crucial to develop an effective social commerce brand community. Research limitations/implications This study extends existing theory on social commerce and online brand community by investigating the social commerce brand community as a new phenomenon and clarifying the fundamental pillars on which it relies. Originality/value This study extends existing theory on social commerce and online brand community by investigating the social commerce brand community as a new phenomenon and clarifying the fundamental pillars on which it relies.

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