Is love really blind? The effect of emotional brand attachment on the perceived risk of really new products

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of emotional brand attachment in consumers’ evaluation of new products that represent technological innovation. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative study was conducted using survey data from a nationally representative probability sample of US consumers (n = 624) to understand the role of emotional brand attachment in the context of consumers’ evaluation of really new products (RNPs). A framework was developed and tested using structural equation modeling that included emotional brand attachment, brand trust, product incongruity, product familiarity, perceived risk, willingness to try, product evaluation and word-of-mouth intentions. Findings The results support the role of emotional brand attachment in the diffusion of RNPs. Specifically, results indicated that increased brand attachment reduces consumers’ perceived risk associated with a RNP and increases brand trust. Both constructs played a key role in shaping willingness to try the innovation, word-of-mouth intentions and product evaluation. Findings of this paper add explanatory power to demand-prediction models that more accurately describe the mechanism of the innovation adoption process. For marketing managers, the results emphasize the importance of consumer–brand emotional connections. Research limitations/implications The paper used a cross-sectional design; it would be interesting to use a longitudinal design to examine if the role of emotional brand attachment changes over time and how the changes might impact consumers’ perceptions and behaviors in the context of RNPs. Originality/value This is the first paper to explore the role of emotional brand attachment in the context of RNPs and consumers’ potential behavioral outcomes.

The relationship of brand attachment and mobile banking service quality with positive word-of-mouth

“…Park et al (2010, p. 2) define brand attachment as the strength of the connection between the self and the brand. Our study takes this definition into account, as do several others (Kaufmann et al, 2016;Aboulnasr and Tran, 2020;Saavedra Torres et al, 2020). Brand attachment is an important concept in marketing because it has significant implications in the realm of consumer perceptions, evaluations and behavior (Japutra et al, 2014;Aboulnasr and Tran, 2020).…”

Impact of consumer innovativeness on really new product adoption

“…Feiereisen et al, 2008), reducing individuals' perceived risk (i.e. Aboulnasr and Tran, 2019) or improving communication for better adoption of RNPs (i.e. Ajmal, 2019).…”

Exploring lack of closure as a brand transgression

“…There has been much multi-disciplinary research into attachment (Bowlby, 1979;Thomson et al, 2005), which is the strength of the bond between the person and their attached object (VanMeter et al, 2015). Consumers only form strong emotional attachments to a small number of brands through their lives in contrast to forming a positive attitude, which consumers may develop towards multiple brands and objects of less importance to them (Aboulnasr and Tran, 2019). The emotional significance of a brand attachment will increase over time and with repeated interactions (Ball and Tasaki, 1992), but it has been found to weaken if a brand loses its capacity to enrich the relationship with the consumer (Park et al, 2006).…”

“…Brand attachments have the capability of shaping consumer-brand relationships including perceptions of trust and credibility towards the brand (Dwivedi et al, 2019). Other outcomes of brand attachment include increased brand loyalty, a willingness to pay a premium, positive word of mouth and commitment to the brand (Albert and Merunka, 2013;Aboulnasr and Tran, 2019;Japutra et al, 2018).…”