Search results

This study aims to explore the role of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbot marketing efforts (CMEs) in the establishment of relationships between brands and their customers, extending the link between relationship marketing and online consumer behavioral intentions.

Data are collected from 1,072 customers in the USA, who used chatbot marketing activities from any of 30 brands leading their industries in messaging innovation. Structural equation modeling is used for data analysis.

Results show that interaction, information, accessibility, entertainment and customization are important CMEs components. CMEs have significant direct effects on the quality of communication with chatbot agents and indirectly affect customer–brand relationships (CBR) and customer response. In addition, the findings demonstrate that CBR mediates the association between communication quality and customer response.

Implications of this study can enable practitioners to understand the effects of AI on user experiences and provide a guide for the development of CMEs strategies and relationship building.

Internet-based marketing communication has been an important element for organizations to build brand image and brand equity. Higher education is not an exception. However, configuring the right mix in the age of social networking sites and various online displays and constantly changing algorithm in search engine optimization have become major challenges today. Hence, the purpose of this study is to configure integrated online marketing communication for the development of brand image and brand equity for higher educational institutions.

The study is quantitative in nature. A responsive group of 370 students was chosen from different educational institutions in Malaysia via stratified random sampling techniques. Both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used for interpreting the data. To test the derived hypotheses, structural equation modelling was used.

In line with contemporary literature, the study revealed positive relationships between brand image and brand equity, between search engine and brand image and between social media and brand image. The relationship between online display and brand image was not found significant.

Future research can be done considering both online and conventional marketing communications for the same purpose. This approach can also be used for private and public institutions separately, considering their differences in nature.

Because history and tradition are no more a single tool to attain and retain the positive image and customer-based brand equity, this study can help higher educational institutions to configure integrated online communication for their target groups, such as students and industry, in the age of the internet.

This study generates a comprehensive understanding of the impact of Web-based marketing communication to develop brand image and brand equity of higher educational institutions.

The purpose of this paper is to propose a method by which to audit winemakers' communication of regional wine brands and to illustrate the method's conceptual basis through its empirical application to the Swiss wine Merlot Ticino.

The audit is comprised of two parts: one captures producers' intentions regarding the communication of the regional wine brand while the other determines what wineries actually convey through their formal communications. Data about intentions were collected through qualitative interviews and a survey of producers, while data on what wineries convey was based on a content analysis of wineries' communication materials.

The application of the audit to the brand Merlot Ticino shows that the proposed method provides several insights into the brand's personality, possible gaps between producers' intentions and actual communications, the potential target of the communication, the level of consistency of communication content and style, and the expressiveness of wineries in communicating the regional wine brands.

The content analysis adopted in this research focuses on formal communications issued by wineries. Adding oral contents and consumer perceptions would considerably improve the audit tool.

This paper provides winemaking regions with a useful tool with which to determine the effectiveness of their brand projections in the collective promotion of their regional wine brands. The paper is of value for academic research because it illustrates that results may be obtained in the wine brand field using methods traditionally used in corporate communication research, like projective techniques and communications audits.

The purpose of this study is to explore the pros and cons of WhatsApp communication service and its likely effects on consumer behavior and one’s perception of luxury brands.

This study conducted 27 in-depth interviews with UK-based participants. This study used NVivo12 to thematically analyze the collected data.

The findings indicate that perceived communication convenience, searching for prepurchase information, intimate consumer–brand relationship, perceived self-worth and the thrill of a new service positively contribute to luxury customers’ acceptance of WhatsApp communication usage. Nevertheless, many factors including push promotional strategy, poor service quality, brand “massification” effect, deficient sensory experience, fear of financial risk and deceptive practices, all curbed the participants’ acceptance of this communication platform. When service is poor, all these factors jeopardized the luxury image, causing an impaired brand image, accompanied with negative word of mouth and in some instances, unexpected anticonsumption reactions.

This study carries the limitations of any exploratory and qualitative research. Therefore, future research should replicate this study in other areas and for other instant messaging platforms.

The implications of this study serve as a reference for luxury brands’ managers when managing their WhatsApp service. This study provides important insights into the risk of using WhatsApp by luxury brands to communicate with customers. The overall conclusion is that WhatsApp communication service requires a close, supervised and innovative use to benefit luxury brands.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the topic of WhatsApp usage as a communication mean in the luxury industry is still largely underexplored, hence filling a gap in the literature that needs to be addressed given its significant implications.

Integrated marketing communications (IMC) is regarded as an important marketing management issue because of increasingly dynamic market conditions, and the impact that this dynamism is having on the effectiveness of traditional marketing communications tools and planning approaches. IMC relates to me strategic management of marketing communications to achieve superior brand performance. This paper uses that Integrated Marketing Audit (Duncan and Moriarty, 1997) as a mechanism to analyse the degree of integration of marketing communications management and link this to measures of brand performance. The research employs the Australian and New Zealand wine industries as a context to consider this relationship. Analysis suggests that a higher degree of integration in marketing communications management results in better brand performance. As a result, managers of wine brands should consider how to adopt IMC principles and review their management of marketing communications.

This study seeks to examine the effects of three communication avenues, namely controlled communication (e.g. advertising/promotions), uncontrolled communications (word‐of‐mouth (WOM)/publicity), and brand name, on consumer service brand evaluation.

This study employed a quantitative methodology and data were gathered from consumers intercepted in a shopping mall via a self‐completed survey.

The results show that controlled communications and brand name have a significant effect on customer satisfaction, brand attitudes and brand reuse intentions. WOM was shown to have a significant influence only on brand reuse intentions. In addition, comparisons made across different retail service types (e.g. stores and banks) showed differences in relationships between the examined variables.

The brand stimuli used in the survey instrument limit the findings to retail stores and banks and, thus, may not be applicable in all service situations. On this basis, it is recommended that future research should further explore the key constructs of this study in other service settings.

The findings suggest that controlled communications and brand name are pivotal in establishing consumer expectations, thus influencing satisfaction and brand attitudes. Therefore, these types of advertising should be utilised to communicate realistic service experiences, while brand names should reinforce consumer confidence, trust and safety in usage. Positive WOM advocating proven reliability and consistency of the brand should be encouraged and rewarded to encourage new usage and reusage behaviour.

The value of this paper lies in the comparison of different brand communications with different consumer responses to the brand not previously examined. The results therefore suggest ways in which marketers can maximise the benefits of their communications.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of brand communication, brand image and brand trust as potential antecedents of brand loyalty in a sample of consumers in Gauteng Province of South Africa.

Data were collected from 151 respondents, an 89 per cent response rate, using anonymously completed questionnaires. Research scales were operationalized on the basis of previous work. Data were collected from 151 respondents, an 89 per cent response rate, using anonymously completed questionnaires. Research scales were operationalized on the basis of previous work. Proper modifications were made in order to fit the current research context and purpose. “Brand communication” measure used six-item scales while “Brand image” used eight-item scale measure. “Brand trust” and “brand loyalty” used a four-item scale measure. All the measurement items were measured on a five point Likert-type scales that was anchored by 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree to express the degree of agreement.

The four posited hypotheses were empirically tested. The results supported all the hypotheses in a significant way except one (H2). Important to note about the study findings is the fact that brand communication has a stronger effects on brand image than on brand trust. However, brand image strongly influences brand trust. Notably too, the relationship between brand trust and brand loyalty is robust. This finding indicates that brand communication can have a strong influence on brand trust and brand loyalty via brand image. Perhaps this could be due to the fact that customers are likely to trust and be more loyal to brands with good image and reputation.

Despite the usefulness of this study aforementioned, the research has its limitations. Most significantly, the sample size was small and limited to Gauteng Province of South Africa. The study can be strengthened by increasing the sample size and including participants in other geographical areas. Future studies can also attempt to compare the perceptions of customers on the current study antecedents of brand loyalty from non-durable/FMCG to other product/service categories groups.

The findings of this empirical study are expected to have to provide fruitful implications to both practitioners and academicians. On the academic side, this study makes a significant contribution to the brand management literature by systematically exploring the impact of brand communication on brand image, brand trust and brand loyalty in South Africa. On the practitioners’ side, this study therefore submits that marketers ought to pay attention to both brand communication and brand image in order to build customer brand trust. By increasing the perceived level of brand image through effective brand communication, marketers will be able gain customer brand trust. Eventually, the customers will become loyal to a brand they perceive to trustworthy. In this regard, from a policy perspective, it is recommended that managers and business strategists ought to develop policies and strategies aimed at winning customers brand loyal or increasing customers’ brand trust since such an endeavour is likely to lead to customer retention and marketing cost reduction. There is growing evidence in the extent literature indication that loyal customers are likely to share their experience with brands with their peers through “word of mouth” (WOM) (Bennetta et al., 2005; Zehir et al., 2011; Russell-Bennett et al., 2013). At the same time, the society will tend to benefit from such information shared by their peers based on their brand experience.

Overall, the current study findings provide tentative support to the proposition that brand communication, brand image and brand trust should be recognized as significant antecedents for gaining and sustaining brand loyalty in South Africa. This study therefore, stand to immensely contribute new knowledge to the existing body of brand management literature in Africa – a context that is often most neglected by some researchers in developing countries.

Marketers use e-mail in new, potentially more informative, entertaining and lucrative ways – such as embedding video. The purpose of this paper is to examine consumer responses to audiovisual (i.e. text along with a short video) versus text-only messages in brand communication. Specifically, authors seek to uncover the efficacy of marketer-embedded video (vs text-only) in e-mail on the consumer's product interest, informativeness, perceived prestige, electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) intentions and willingness to pass the electronic message along digitally or on social media. With the dual coding theory and selective visual attention as theoretical guideposts, the intended contribution is a framework that can explain and predict advantages for multi-modal e-mail marketing communications.

Five hypotheses are tested experimentally with a one-factor experiment with two conditions (text-only vs audiovisual). The sample was 240 adult participants. Real brands (Audi and Apple) were used. For both brands, participants were randomly assigned to one of two conditions of the e-mail (i.e. audiovisual vs text-only). The stimuli are identical, with the exception of embedded video in the e-mail body. The videos are authentic brand videos, are approximately 50 s and use a product feature appeal. Participants’ pre-existing brand attitude was measured. Then, five dependent variables (product interest, informativeness, perceived prestige, e-WOM intentions and willingness to pass the electronic message along digitally or on social media) were considered with respect to consumer exposure to e-mail with video and text in the e-mail from the brand versus text-only e-mail from the brand.

The results supported the hypotheses that audiovisual messages (i.e. those with text and video) heighten informativeness, product interest, perceived prestige, intentions to spread e-WOM for a brand and willingness to pass along the e-mail along to friends and family when compared to text-only messages. These experimental findings from a one-factor experiment with two conditions (text-only vs audiovisual) are generally consistent for an American consumer technology brand Apple (iPhone) and a German luxury automobile brand Audi (S4). Hypotheses are supported for both brands (Apple and Audi), with the exception of product interest for Audi, which may be explained by the high price of a luxury automobile.

An implication here for the dual coding theory is that the theory may be extended to consider what happens after the consumer codes the information with both the verbal and the non-verbal subsystem. The finding of interest to information processing scholars is that a video accompanying text communication from a brand to a consumer has an advantage over text-only communication. Brands that communicate with multi-modal marketing communication have better outcomes in informativeness, brand prestige perceptions and intentions of online consumer behaviors, including positive e-WOM for the brand in general and willingness to pass the specific content along in digital and social media platforms. Consumers can become brand advocates by being more inclined to forward the e-mails with the product short video as well as the e-mail text.

Brand marketers should consider e-mail in an integrated brand promotion (IBP) campaign as a cost advantage; one of the reasons e-mail should have a solid place in the IBP toolkit is due to e-mail's relatively low cost. The main cost comes with administration and production of the video. As a managerial implication for advertisers, embedding ads of a short video format in e-mails is a way to be more effective than plain-text e-mails. Short videos in e-mails are a reasonable idea to include in an integrated marketing communications effort (plausibly due to information processing with both a verbal and a non-verbal system). Brands can use videos in e-mails to enhance informativeness regarding products to enhance product differentiation from competitors. Yet, it is important to raise caution with some concerning disadvantages potentially associated with e-mail marketing and video. The three areas of caution include potential issues of privacy, clutter and technical inhibitors.

Despite the fact that e-mail is one of the most heavily used communication tools in marketing, there is scarce literature on e-mail and branding. By brands evoking a degree of prestige with embedded videos, consumer willingness to become part of the marketing communications is enhanced, as their e-WOM and willingness to share the branded content increase.

This study aims to investigate the brand-oriented leadership of a city’s mayor and city online brand communication as brand management-related antecedents of residents’ city brand commitment. It thus examines if city brand managers can apply internal branding concepts from the corporate branding domain in a city branding context.

The relationships between the brand management-related antecedents and the internal city branding (ICB) objective are tested through structural equation modeling using cross-sectional survey data of 414 residents of a German city.

Both the brand-oriented leadership of the mayor in terms of acting as a role model by living the city brand and its identity and by showing commitment to the brand and the city’s online brand communication in terms of its quality have positive effects on residents’ city brand commitment. Moderation analyses reveal no significant differences between the path estimates for age, place of birth, duration of residency and education. However, the results differ significantly for gender.

As this study’s sample is limited to only one city in Germany, further research needs to investigate the relationships in different cities and other countries to ensure the generalizability of the results. Future studies might also include other aspects of city brand communication, as well as cognitive and behavioural ICB objectives.

To increase residents’ city brand commitment, city brand managers should ensure that a city’s online brand communication is adequate, complete, credible, useful and clear. Furthermore, through creating awareness for the importance of a mayor’s brand-oriented leadership and through educating and training the mayor to engage in this specific form of brand-oriented transformational leadership, city brand managers can increase residents’ emotional attachment with the city brand.

This study integrates internal branding research from the corporate branding domain with place and city branding research. It confirms that certain aspects of internal branding (i.e. brand-oriented leadership, brand communication and brand commitment) are applicable not only in the corporate branding domain but also in other branding contexts such as city branding if adapted properly.

The purpose of this study is to develop an analytical comparison between the impact of social media communication (both user-generated and firm-created) and the effects of traditional media communication. In particular, the components of customer-based brand equity and any difference in the effects according to brand origin associations are investigated. The target group consisted of fans and followers of beer brands on social media.

In all, 192 questionnaires were collected a survey link that was posted on beer brand pages that operate in the Italian market. Structural equation modeling was developed to investigate the impact of social and traditional media communication on brand equity and a multi-group analysis to examine the differences according to the brand names’ origin associations.

Results show that fans and followers cannot be considered as a collective unit. Additionally, consumers make a clear distinction between firm-created/user-generated social media and traditional media communication. Specifically, they distinguish how the effects of the two media outlets differ in relation to the brand origin associations. International brands should concentrate on both firm-created and user-generated communication, whereas national (Italian) brands should foster their firm-created communications. In both cases, however, traditional media communication loses its effectiveness on the brand equity components.

Contrary to existing literature, this project compares the effect of 2.0 and traditional media on various social media platforms, pointing out two different models according to the brands’ origin associations. This study develops interesting insights both for international companies with huge brand portfolios and for national firms in a complex market like those for beer.