What and how to communicate about a corporate brand with the consumers: An exploratory study

Abstract

The present exploratory study investigates the differential impact of various relevant corporate brand associations on consumers' cognitive (product attitude and purchase intention) and affective responses (affective corporate commitment) in the three sectors, namely durables, services and fast moving consumer goods. The findings reveal that corporate brand associations can be categorised into two categoriesuniversal associations, which are influential in all the sectors, and sector-specific associations, which have a differential effect on consumers in different sectors. Thus, this study reveals that corporate branding is important to consumers in all the sectors, but a single corporate brand story does not work in all the sectors. Further, corporate associations do not always have a positive effect on the consumers; under certain circumstances, these might either have no effect or have a negative effect on the consumers. Finally, there are two routes by which corporate brand associations can influence consumers -by affecting their cognitive responses or by influencing their affective responses towards the company. The recognition of the important corporate brand associations in the three sectors, and the routes (cognitive or affective) through which these associations influence consumer choices would enable marketers to develop more sophisticated corporate communication strategies.

The Mediating Role of Affective Brand Commitment and Customer Engagement in Developing Purchase Intention of Fashion Apparel Brands

“…Customer brand commitment is stated as the emotional or psychological bond with a brand (Kahle, Beatty, & Homer, 1988). In addition, previous research indicates that there are two different ways in which brand associations can persuade consumers to make choices: whether it influences their cognitive responses or triggers their emotional responses (Mann & Ghuman, 2018). Consumer cognitive responses are based on evaluating information about the characteristics of the brand, whereas their affective responses show their preference for the brand because of a pleasant experience with the brand (Oliver, 1999).…”

“…Over the years, several studies have shown that commitment increases buying intention (Anastasiadou, Lindh, & Vasse, 2019). Affective corporate commitment has a positive influence on purchase intent (Mann & Ghuman, 2018). Customer affective commitment is positively related to future PI (Chiu, Chen, Du, & Hsu, 2018).…”

“…Based on existing product brand research, researchers argue that associations with company brands can also convince consumers of their responses, whether it affects their cognitive responses or influences their emotional responses (Mann & Ghuman, 2018). Understanding the ways in which associations with company brands persuade consumer to make choices is essential for company brand managers to maximise the effectiveness of company The Mediating Role of Affective Brand Commitment.…”

Conceptualizing and managing corporate logo: a qualitative study

“…Early references to logo, identity, image and reputation focused on visual identification and were studied mainly by practitioners until the 1980s, when they became the graphic design features for organizations (Simoes et al, 2005). Visual identity is the "face" of the company (Topalian, 1984) which brings visibility to a company and helps it communicate via integrated communications (Mann and Ghuman, 2018;Van Riel and Balmer, 1997). An integrated approach when embedded in social identity theory in its simplest form advocates developing and managing the impressions that stakeholders receive about organizations (Simoes et al, 2005), including logo.…”

The Effect of E-Service Quality and Brand Image Toward Netflix Customer Loyalty through Customer Satisfaction

“…However, customers nowadays not only paying attention to the quality of services/products that the company offered., but they also seek the brand image of the services/products. Mann & Ghuman (2018) define brand image as a set of brand associations that are formed and embedded in the minds of customers. A positive brand image is able to predict customer satisfaction so that it can stimulate customer loyalty (Jasni et al, 2020).…”