The effect of strategic and tactical cause‐related marketing on consumers' brand loyalty
Abstract
Purpose
The first objective was to find out to what extent consumers reveal an effect of strategic and tactical cause‐related marketing on brand loyalty. Second, the article seeks to assess the moderating role of consumer involvement with a product on the relationship between cause‐related marketing and brand loyalty.
Design/methodology/approach
An experimental design with 240 participants was used.
Findings
The results show that consumers perceive a significantly enhanced level of brand loyalty as a result of strategic cause‐related marketing as long as the firm has a long‐term commitment to this campaign and the campaign is related to a low involvement product. Consumers do not exhibit a significant impact of tactical cause‐related marketing campaigns – whether related to high or low involvement products – on brand loyalty.
Research limitations/implications
First, all respondents were students from a western European university. Second, the experiment relied on imaginary storyboards. Third, the program dimensions were not manipulated separately.
Practical implications
If companies intend to increase brand loyalty through CRM they should set up long‐lasting CRM campaigns linked to the product that shows the lowest level of consumer involvement.
Originality/value
The added value of this paper is the link between cause‐related marketing programs and brand loyalty. Moreover, a distinction is explicitly made between tactical and strategic CRM programs.
Keywords
Citation
van den Brink, D., Odekerken‐Schröder, G. and Pauwels, P. (2006), "The effect of strategic and tactical cause‐related marketing on consumers' brand loyalty", Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 23 No. 1, pp. 15-25. https://doi.org/10.1108/07363760610641127
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2006, Emerald Group Publishing Limited