Role of brand attachment in customers’ evaluation of service failure

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose Luis Saavedra Torres ◽  
Monika Rawal ◽  
Ramin Bagherzadeh
Keyword(s):  
Customer Service ◽  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Service Failure ◽  
Negative Emotions ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Brand Attachment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Coping Tactics ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This paper aims to examine the role of brand attachment as a relevant construct in customers’ evaluation after they face a service failure which impacts future consumer behaviors. It mainly answers the research question: does brand attachment cushion or amplify the effect of service failure on customers’ negative emotions? Design/methodology/approach A 2 × 2 × 2 experimental design was conducted. Data analysis was performed with ANOVA and moderated mediation. Findings Customer’s feelings toward a brand (brand attachment) that existed before a service failure occurred can regulate customer’s negative emotions especially when consumer attribute service failure to a controllable cause. This process minimizes the effect of service failure in customer’s satisfaction and consequently increase customer behaviors like word of mouth and loyalty intentions. Research limitations/implications Adding perceived intentionality as a service failure’s attribution could provide another layer of explanation of customer behavior. Also, an expanded study using a sector characterized by higher cost of change and permanent consumption could provide result’s generalizability. Practical implications Brand attachment should be included in the customer service strategy. In a service failure situation, brand attachment becomes part of the “service customer policy” helping customers to regulate their negative emotions. Originality/value This study fills the knowledge gap regarding the role of customers’ positive emotions toward brands when a service failure occurs. The current study extends branding literature by differentiating brand attachment role from coping tactics.

scholarly journals Influence of emotions displayed by employees during service recovery

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
María Sicilia ◽  
M. Carmen Caro-Jiménez ◽  
Estela Fernández-Sabiote
Keyword(s):  
Customer Service ◽  
Service Failure ◽  
Negative Emotions ◽  
Service Recovery ◽  
Frontline Employees ◽  
Consumer Experience ◽  
Service Experience ◽  
Content Type

Purpose While research evidences how customers’ emotions can influence their consumer experience, understanding of how employees’ displayed emotions affect the customer service experience is more limited. Drawing on affect transfer theory, the authors test for the mediating role of attitude towards the employee, which is proposed to mediate the effect of employees’ displayed emotion on customers’ satisfaction with recovery. As service recovery entails a critical service experience in which emotions can easily rise, this paper aims to highlight the pivotal role of employee-displayed emotions during service recovery. Methodology A scenario-based experiment in the context of an airline service failure recovery (3 × 2 between-subjects design) manipulates frontline employees’ emotions (anger vs happiness vs no specific emotion) and the quality of the solution (bad vs good). Findings Employees’ displayed emotions directly affect attitude towards the employee and indirectly affect service recovery satisfaction. Moreover, attitude towards the employee is affected more by the employee’s displayed emotion when the solution offered is bad compared to good. Practical implications Employees’ emotions displayed during service recovery can enhance or damage service recovery strategies. Employees should control for negative emotions in the case of service failure, especially when unable to provide a good solution. Originality Emotions displayed by employees can influence the customer’s service recovery evaluations. There is an interesting interaction between the quality of the solution and employees’ displayed emotions. Additionally, the mantra of “service with a smile” may not be valid in the case of service recovery: rather, employees should avoid displaying negative emotions.

The role of emotions and social influences on consumer loyalty towards online travel communities

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 534-558 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carla Ruiz-Mafe ◽  
Jose Tronch ◽  
Silvia Sanz-Blas
Keyword(s):  
Social Presence ◽  
Perceived Risk ◽  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Social Influences ◽  
Negative Emotions ◽  
Subjective Norm ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Interpersonal Influences ◽  
Online Travel

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the role of emotions and social influences on loyalty formation towards online travel communities. Design/methodology/approach The individual (perceived risk) and social (subjective norm and social presence) antecedents of emotions as well as the impact of emotions on attitude and loyalty towards online travel communities are tested through structural equation modelling techniques. The sample consists of 385 active users of online travel communities in Spain. Findings Data analysis shows that perceived privacy and security risk elicit negative emotions such as stress, frustration and fear towards the online travel community. Normative influences (subjective norm) and feeling the presence of other community members (social presence) boost positive emotions towards the online travel community. Interpersonal influences have a positive effect on subjective norm but not external influences. Positive and negative emotions affect preferences towards the online travel community (attitudes) as proposed by social impact theory. Subjective norm and attitude have a direct influence on loyalty towards an online travel community, confirming previous research grounded on theory of reasoned action models. Originality/value Despite the crucial impact of consumers’ affective states on loyalty formation, research on social media is mainly focused on the technological nature of consumer information exchanges, neglecting other drivers of consumer behaviour beyond the technology employed. This paper develops a model that integrates the relationships between consumer emotions and their individual (perceived risk) and social (social presence and subjective norm) antecedents and outcome variables (attitude and loyalty). The role of social influences is analysed, assessing the conjoint impact of one-way communication (interpersonal influences and mass media) and Web 2.0 communications (social presence) on positive emotions and loyalty formation towards the online travel community.

Cognitive and social mechanisms: the role of emotions in creativity through work-based learning from a functionalist perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Liu ◽  
Jing Wei Li ◽  
Qi Wei Zhou
Keyword(s):  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Negative Emotions ◽  
Employee Creativity ◽  
Learning Mechanisms ◽  
Mediation Effects ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Negatively Associated ◽  
Chinese Company ◽  
Positive And Negative Emotions

Purpose From a functionalist perspective, this study aims to examine empirically how positive and negative emotions can exert influence on creativity in the workplace. This study built and tested a theoretical framework that delineates the effect of emotions on employee creativity through different learning mechanisms. Design/methodology/approach Field surveys were conducted in a Chinese company and data were collected from 340 employee-supervisor dyads. Findings The results indicate that positive emotions were positively related to task-related learning and interactional learning, both of which promote employee creativity. Task-related learning mediated the association between positive emotions and creativity. Nevertheless, negative emotions hindered employees from interactional learning and were negatively associated with creativity. Interactional learning mediated the association between negative emotions and creativity. Moreover, the interaction between positive and negative emotions was negatively associated with task-related learning. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature on emotions and employee learning by demonstrating the value of using a functionalist perspective through different procedural mechanisms for employee outcomes and exploring the mediation effects of different learning behaviors in promoting creativity.

Consumers and their celebrity brands: how personal narratives set the stage for attachment

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 831-847
Author(s):  
Bennie Eng ◽  
Cheryl Burke Jarvis
Keyword(s):  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Professional Lives ◽  
Moderating Effects ◽  
Brand Relationships ◽  
Brand Attachment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Relationship Norms ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This paper aims to demonstrate how consumer attachment to celebrity brands is driven by perceived narratives about the celebrity’s persona, which triggers communal (i.e. altruistic) relationship norms. The research investigates the differential role of narratives about celebrities’ personal vs professional lives in creating attachment and identifies and tests moderating effects of narrative characteristics including perceived source of fame, valence and authenticity. Design/methodology/approach Three online experiments tested the proposed direct, meditating and moderating relationships. Data was analyzed using mediation analysis and multiple ANOVAs. Findings The results suggest relationship norms that are more altruistic in nature fully mediate the relationship between narrative type and brand attachment. Additionally, personal narratives produce stronger attachment than professional narratives; the celebrity’s source of fame moderates narrative type and attachment; and on-brand narratives elicit higher attachment than off-brand narratives, even when these narratives are negative. Practical implications The authors offer recommendations for how marketers can shape celebrity brand narratives to build stronger consumer attachment. Notably, personal (vs professional) narratives are critical in building attachment, especially for celebrity brands that are perceived to have achieved their fame. Both positive and negative personal narratives can strengthen attachment for achieved celebrity brands, but only if they are on-brand with consumer expectations. Originality/value This research is an introductory examination of the fundamental theoretical process by which celebrity brand relationships develop from brand persona narratives and how characteristics of those narratives influence consumer-brand attachment.

scholarly journals Surprise! We changed the logo

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 239-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julien Grobert ◽  
Caroline Cuny ◽  
Marianela Fornerino
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Current Model ◽  
Brand Attachment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brand Familiarity ◽  
Brand Values ◽  
The Impact ◽  
A Company ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the impact of brand attachment and familiarity on perceived congruence between the logo and the brand. It explores the role of an under-researched factor, surprise, on perceived congruence in the case of a radical logo change. Design/methodology/approach A study was conducted with 220 students following a university logo change. Perceived congruence between the logos (old and new) and the school brand values was measured for two kinds of students, current and future (i.e. applicants). Findings Results show the importance of surprise in the acceptance of a logo change. Brand familiarity and brand attachment affect surprise in opposite ways, such that higher familiarity increases negative surprise, whereas higher attachment enhances positive surprise. Research limitations/implications This research used a school logo. Because schools represent a particular type of company, brand attachment to another type of brand could be different. The current model needs to be tested in different contexts. Practical implications Companies must pay special attention when communicating with their most attached consumers. In particular, companies that aim to change their logos must prepare for the change by relying on communications that can lead to positive surprise. Originality/value This study was conducted in a real context of logo change. It is the first study to focus on the link among familiarity, attachment and surprise when a radical logo change takes place within a company.

Foreign or domestic: who provides better customer service?

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 124-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amit Poddar ◽  
Timucin Ozcan ◽  
Ramana Kumar Madupalli
Keyword(s):  
Customer Service ◽  
Service Recovery ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Service Employees ◽  
Service Excellence ◽  
Customer Evaluations ◽  
Interaction Factors ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Service Representative

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of customer service employees’ (CSEs) competence and service recovery outcomes on service evaluations of foreign and domestic CSEs. Design/methodology/approach – Three experiments were conducted to test and validate the proposed hypotheses. The participants were told a cover story that they were either listening to (Study 2) or reading (Studies 1 and 3) a real conversation between a customer service representative of a bank and a customer and the authors wanted their views about the service encounter. While country of origin (COO) and competency were common independent variables across three studies, Study 2 included service recovery with a full refund and Study 3 had both full and partial refund and apology offered or not. Findings – Results from three experiments show that while competent CSEs are evaluated the same, regardless of their COO, the domestic CSE is evaluated more negatively than the foreign CSE when both are incompetent. The authors also find that when competent CSEs deliver no service recovery, the foreign CSE evaluations are significantly lower than the domestic one. Study 3 results show that this effect is mediated by participants’ ethnocentric beliefs. Research limitations/implications – For implications, this study provides a deeper understanding of the role of COO in services contexts. Future researchers can utilize the findings to investigate the important role that expectations play in determining service excellence and how it affects the COO effect. Practical implications – The paper provides managers in both offshoring client and provider firms with an understanding of the effects of offshoring on employee evaluations. It discusses the relevance/irrelevance of COO on the customer evaluations of service employees. Originality/value – The study investigates an under researched phenomenon – offshoring of services. This paper is one of the few looking at the role of different interaction factors, such as competence, recovery on service evaluations.

How emotions affect restaurant digital ordering experiences: a comparison of three ordering methods

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xi Y. Leung ◽  
Han Wen
Keyword(s):  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Negative Emotion ◽  
Negative Emotions ◽  
Restaurant Industry ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Expectancy Disconfirmation ◽  
Quick Service ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the role of consumption emotion in the digital food-ordering experience by comparing the performances of the three digital ordering methods in an experimental design. Design/methodology/approach A research model was developed based on the Feelings-as-Information (FaI) theory and the expectancy-disconfirmation theory. A 3 × 2 between-subjects lab experiment was conducted to compare the three digital ordering methods (online, mobile or chatbot) in two different types of restaurants (quick-service or full-service). Findings The results indicate that the chatbot ordering method evoked more negative emotions and less positive emotions than the other two methods. The online ordering method worked the best for quick-service restaurants, whereas the mobile ordering method was most suitable for full-service restaurants. Both positive and negative emotions (comfort and annoyance) significantly mediated the relationships between the ordering method and internal responses (satisfaction and behavioral intention). Only one negative emotion (anger) significantly mediated the relationship between the ordering method and order amount. Originality/value This is the first study that attempts to explore and compare consumers’ emotional responses resulting from restaurant digital ordering experiences in the context of the three food-ordering methods. The use of the FaI theory strengthens the theoretical foundation of research on emotion in the hospitality field. This study also pioneers the application of chatbot technology in the restaurant industry.

Tweeting your way out of disaster

2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (8) ◽  
pp. 17-19
Keyword(s):  
Customer Service ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Reading Time ◽  
Service Failure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Pertinent Information ◽  
Customer Services ◽  
A Company ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Do So

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings Social media now rules our online lives. It is an inescapable part of our modern existence, and as such, it is being embraced by companies to allow them to survive in the digital age. Twitter is becoming the go-to destination for customer service issues, mainly because of its public and instantaneous nature. Customers are able to make use of a huge audience and the potential for brand damage to a company by using Twitter to complain about a service failure. The costs are now so great that companies need to seriously consider and invest in their Twitter customer services. Success here can not only mitigate brand damage, but also improve it, whereas failure to do so can be catastrophic. Twitter is now the key to how well a company can do globally. Practical implications The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world’s leading organizations. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Intentionality attributions and humiliation

2014 ◽  
Vol 48 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 901-923 ◽  
Author(s):  
Concepción Varela-Neira ◽  
Rodolfo Vázquez-Casielles ◽  
Víctor Iglesias
Keyword(s):  
Service Providers ◽  
Negative Emotion ◽  
Service Failure ◽  
Switching Behavior ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Complaint Behavior ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – This paper aims to determine whether intentionality attributions have an effect on the customer’s complaint and switching behavior after a service failure, after accounting for the effects of the traditional dimensions of attribution (stability and controllability), and to examine whether intentionality attributions give rise to humiliation and to what degree this negative emotion enables us to understand the customer’s complaint and switching behavior after a service failure. Design/methodology/approach – A contribution of this investigation is that it studies real complaint and switching behaviors, as the few studies that focus on understanding customers’ complaint and defection behaviors mostly analyze customers’ intentions. Findings – The results of the study indicate that intentionality attributions have an effect on the customer’s switching behavior after a service failure, in addition to the impact of the traditional dimensions of attribution. The findings also show that humiliation is the emotion that mediates the relationship between intentionality attributions and switching behavior, opposite to other emotions that may also be related to attributions. Finally, the results also support that the effect of attribution of intentionality on complaint behavior is indirect; it only exists because attribution of intentionality influences negative emotions like humiliation, which in turn influences complaint behavior. Practical implications – To understand what makes customers complain after a service failure or switch service providers without giving them first the possibility of recovering the failure may help managers reduce the damage caused by the failure and increase the company’s profits. Originality/value – This study will try to contribute to the service failure research by analyzing the role of two variables that have not been analyzed before in this context: intentionality attribution and humiliation.

Open kitchen vs closed kitchen

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 2214-2229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaemun Byun ◽  
SooCheong (Shawn) Jang
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Service Failure ◽  
Causal Attribution ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Service Failures ◽  
Subject Experiment ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This study aims to investigate, when a service failure occurs, whether circumstantial cues could be used to encourage more positive responses by customers toward restaurants through the mediation of causal attribution. Design/methodology/approach A 2 (cause of service failure: easily observable vs difficult-to-observe) × 2 (kitchen design: open vs closed) between-subject experiment is used to analyze customers’ causal attributions of service failures and resultant responses. Findings When a service failure whose cause is easy to identify occurs, customers at open-kitchen restaurants show more negative responses than those at closed-kitchen restaurants because they are likely to attribute the responsibility to the restaurant. Attribution is confirmed to mediate the relationship between the interaction of service failure by kitchen design and customers’ responses. Practical implications Diverse circumstantial cues should be actively used to encourage more positive responses by customers. The mediating role of causal attribution should be considered in managing customers’ responses toward service failures. Originality/value This study finds that circumstantial cues could be useful in dealing with service failures in restaurants by confirming the mediating role of causal attribution.

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