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This research aims to systematically explore the cognitive and emotional effects of values-related and performance-related negative brand publicity and investigate how the psychological effects translate into different behavioural outcomes. In addition, it examines the relative effectiveness of two major brand response strategies in mitigating negative publicity.

Two experimental studies were conducted to test the hypotheses. Study 1 examines the effects of values- and performance-related negative brand publicity, using a 3 (negative brand publicity: values-related vs performance-related vs control) × 2 (brand: Dove vs Axe) between-subjects experiment. Study 2 further compares the effects of two major brand response strategies on consumers’ post-crisis perceived trustworthiness and trust and responses towards a brand involved in negative publicity. A 2 (negative brand publicity: values-related vs performance-related) × 2 (brand response strategy: reduction-of-offensiveness vs corrective action) between-subjects design was used.

The results suggest that values-related negative brand publicity is perceived as being more diagnostic and elicits a stronger emotion of contempt, but a weaker emotion of pity than performance-related negative brand publicity. Moreover, values-related negative brand publicity has a stronger negative impact on consumer responses than performance-related negative brand publicity. Interestingly, compared to perceived diagnosticity of information and the emotion of pity, the emotion of contempt is more likely to cause differences in consumer responses to these two types of negative brand publicity. Regarding brand response strategy, corrective action is more effective than reduction-of-offensiveness for both types of negative brand publicity, but the advantage of corrective action is greater for the performance-related case.

This research enriches the negative publicity and brand perception literature, showing the asymmetric cognitive, emotional and behavioural effects of values- and performance-related negative brand publicity. It also identifies the psychological mechanisms underlying consumer responses to negative brand publicity, and it provides empirical evidence for the relative effectiveness of two major brand response strategies.

This study aims to investigate the nature of brand hate, its antecedents and its outcomes.

The authors conduct two quantitative studies in Europe. In Study 1, a measure of brand hate is developed and its effects are tested on behavioral outcomes. In Study 2, the authors show how brand hate and its behavioral outcomes change depending on the reasons for brand hate.

The study conceptualizes brand hate as a constellation of negative emotions which is significantly associated with different negative behavioral outcomes, including complaining, negative WOM, protest and patronage reduction/cessation. Reasons for brand hate related to corporate wrongdoings and violation of expectations are associated with “attack-like” and “approach-like” strategies, whereas reasons related to taste systems are associated with “avoidance-like” strategies.

The study views brand hate as an affective phenomenon occurring at a point in time. Researchers could adopt a wider perspective by looking at the phenomenon of hate as a disposition/sentiment, not merely as an emotion. They could also adopt a longitudinal perspective to understand how brand hate develops over time and relate it to brand love.

The authors’ conceptualization of brand hate offers insights to companies about how to resist and prevent brand hate for one’s own brand.

The study provides a first conceptualization of brand hate and develops a scale for measuring it. The authors relate this conceptualization and measurement of brand hate to important behavioral outcomes and different types of antecedents.

The purpose of this paper is to show how sonic logos, despite their brief exposure time, resonate with consumers’ emotions and attitudes in a manner that until now has been attributed to only longer background music in advertising. The moderating role of sonic logo placement within the ad (beginning versus ending) and the mediating role of emotion felt after exposure to the brand and advertisement are also explored.

An expansion on sonic logo research is completed through two experiments testing nine hypotheses. A pretest is also conducted to create two orthogonal sonic logos (sad sonic logo and happy sonic logo) which are then used in the two experiments.

Participants had higher attitude scores for an advertisement that had a happy sonic logo over the ad that had a sad sonic logo. These consumer attitudes are mediated by emotion felt because of the exposure to the brand and advertisement and are moderated by placement of the sonic logo within the ad. Placement drove more positive consumer attitudes of a sad sonic logo at the beginning and a happy sonic logo at the end of the advertisement.

Given the short nature of a sonic logo, sonic logo placement in the advertisement is shown to change consumer perceptions. This effect uncovers an important aspect of placement of the sonic logo in the advertisement which gives practitioners a means of application. Furthermore, consumer emotions drive these strong attitudes despite the short exposure times of the sonic logo.

This paper expands upon the limited sonic logo research and shows how the short exposure time of a sonic logo can have the same emotional qualities as long-form music, previously reserved for background music in advertising. In addition, by uncovering the mediating relationship of emotion felt after exposure to the brand and advertisement, it is shown how these short audio branding elements can help shape emotion and consumer attitude toward brands. Finally, altering placement of the sonic logo can enhance consumer attitudes of the advertisement and brand.

Consumers' responses to service failures are influenced not just by company-related issues but also by one's ability to react to stressful situations. The aim of this research is to explore the emotional intelligence of brand haters and transform them into forgivers.

This study used two qualitative methods, namely in-depth semi-structured interviews with a total of 17 participants who have different emotional intelligence levels (high, medium and low) and projective techniques with 6 participants.

This study's results showed that consumers with high and medium emotional intelligence feel less hate toward a brand and are more likely to forgive it, whereas consumers with low emotional intelligence feel more hate toward a brand and are unwilling to forgive it.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is among the first to shed light on the importance of managing hate by consumers. Findings will help managers understand the importance of consumer personality in a management strategy and explain why some consumers forgive brands while others participate in anti-brand activities.

This study aims to propose a conceptual framework for transition of brand trust to brand love in an uncertain market situation, from the perspective of cognitive-emotion theory (CET).

Since brand anthropomorphism is successfully established in branding research, this study takes cognitive characteristics of brand trust and emotional characteristic of brand love from extant literature to develop a conceptual framework for transformation of brand trust (cognition) into brand love (emotion). This study situates the relationship in the context of market uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It focuses in the development of the conceptual framework by taking cognitive components of brand trust and brand behavioural characteristics as moderator, in uncertain market situation.

Findings suggest that transition of brand trust (cognition) to brand love (emotion) is possible in uncertain situation, and brand behavioural characteristics moderate this relationship. Brand behavioural characteristics are brand innovativeness, brand ethicality, brand empathy, brand expertise and brand agility, which have the potential to further strengthen the relationship in the given situation.

This research proposes a conceptual model and propositions that add a rich understanding to the relationship of brand trust and brand love, which requires empirical testing in any brand category context. Through a richer understanding of conditions and the underlying psychological mechanism, researchers and marketers, brand managers, policymakers and so forth can gain insights that aid strategic decision-making. Trusted brands can leverage on the situation by highlighting unique behavioural characteristics to establish a strong and sustainable long-term relationship.

The current research is an attempt to provide deeper insights from the perspective of CET, into the relationship of brand trust (cognition) and brand love (emotion) by introducing conditions under which a trusted brand becomes a lovable brand in uncertain market situation, thereby adding new knowledge to branding, customer-brand relationship sustainability, in uncertainty literature. The new perspective, that is CET, puts forward a novice view on the advantage of brand love over brand trust that could help in formulating strategic decisions in managing brands in crisis situation.

The purpose of this study is to ascertain the effects of place attachment on brand loyalty. This study further ascertains whether the effects of emotion-based attachment on brand loyalty are stronger for customers who have a positive experience with a restaurant brand. Additionally, the authors investigate whether emotion-based attachment mediates the relationships between identity-based attachments, place dependence and brand loyalty in the restaurant setting.

The authors administered the questionnaire to customers (diners) of restaurants in Ghana, and they were completed via a paper and pencil/pen approach. The authors tested their hypotheses using structural equation modeling.

The findings show that identity-based and emotion-based attachment enhances brand loyalty within a restaurant setting. The results also show that place dependence attachment promotes emotional bonding with restaurant brands. The study's findings also show that place dependence attachment does not have a direct and positive significant effect on brand loyalty except when an emotional response is produced.

Place attachment studies in a restaurant setting are rare. This study thus contributes to the place attachment literature in restaurants setting.

This study aims to determine the main antecedents of customer engagement (market orientation, satisfaction, emotions and self-brand connection) and the relationship between customer engagement and customer loyalty in the retail-banking context.

A theoretical model of effects is tested using dyadic methodology, based on 225 dyads (bank branch manager–average of five branch customers). The authors use structural equation modelling (EQS 6.1) to test the relationships.

The results reveal a strong relationship between customer engagement and customer loyalty. Satisfaction is the main antecedent of customer engagement. Self-brand connection and emotions during the service also have a significant influence. Finally, branch market orientation has a positive influence on satisfaction and emotions.

The first concerns the transversal data used. Geographical context is the second limitation. Third, the study sample only included customers with experience of the financial services of a specific bank (online customers are not included). Finally, the dyads are based on the opinion of the branch manager, on one hand, and an average of five customers per branch, on the other.

The combination of the branding strategy at the corporate level and the relationship marketing strategy at branch office level creates a situation in which customer engagement and customer loyalty can thrive. The communication campaigns designed to promote the brand image and associate brand values with the personality of the banks’ current and potential customers help to create an emotional bond that represents a switching cost for the customer. The moments of truth in branch offices are crucial aspects in the retail bank strategy.

First, from the conceptual perspective, it establishes a direct relationship between customer engagement and customer loyalty. Second, it empirically tested Pansari and Kumar’s (2017) customer engagement framework, which establishes customer satisfaction and customer emotions as the antecedents of customer engagement. Third, the study took an innovative step in establishing two levels of customer emotions in the retail bank context: emotions generated by corporate branding and emotions that arise during the experience of purchase and consuming. Fourth, the study shows that the market orientation adopted not at the macro corporate level but at the individual branch level is crucial to the generation of positive relational outcomes in the service the customer receives. The fifth contribution is related to the fact that the research streams associated with market orientation and relationship quality have traditionally been studied in isolation.

Este estudio identifica los principales antecedentes del compromiso del cliente (orientación al mercado, satisfacción, emociones y conexión con la propia marca) así como la relación entre compromiso y lealtad en la banca minorista.

Se contrasta un modelo de efectos utilizando la metodología de diadas, basada en 225 asociaciones (director de la sucursal bancaria-promedio de cinco clientes por sucursal). Las relaciones se contrastan usando SEM (EQS 6.1).

El trabajo presenta diversas limitaciones como son el empleo de datos transversales, su aplicación en el mercado español, la inclusión de exclusiva de clientes con experiencia con un banco específico y no operan exclusivamente online. Por último, las díadas se basan en la opinión del director de la sucursal, por un lado, y de una media de cinco clientes por sucursal, por otro.

La combinación de la estrategia de marca a nivel corporativo y la estrategia de marketing relacional a nivel de sucursal crea una situación en la que el compromiso y la lealtad del cliente pueden desarrollarse. Las campañas de comunicación diseñadas para promover la imagen de marca y asociar los valores de marca con la personalidad de clientes actuales y potenciales ayudan a crear un vínculo emocional que supone un coste de cambio para el cliente. Los momentos de verdad en las sucursales son aspectos cruciales en la estrategia de la banca minorista.

Primero, se establece una relación directa entre el compromiso y la lealtad del cliente. Segundo, se contrasta la satisfacción y las emociones del cliente son antecedentes del compromiso. Tercero, se establecen dos niveles de emociones del cliente en banca minorista: las generadas por el branding corporativo y las que surgen durante la experiencia de compra. Cuarto, el estudio muestra que la orientación de mercado adoptada a nivel de oficina es crucial para generar resultados relacionales positivos con el cliente. Quinto, se combinan las corrientes de investigación asociadas con la orientación al mercado y la calidad de las relaciones.

Compromiso del cliente, Lealtad del cliente, Satisfacción, Emociones, Orientación al mercado, Banca minorista

Trabajo de investigación

The objective of this paper is to develop a better understanding of brand engagement by examining two of its antecedents: design benefits and consumer emotions. The authors explore the relationship between design and brand engagement and advance a model with emotional responses as mediator.

This paper integrates a range of theoretical works across design and marketing, including concepts of product design, types of design benefits, brand engagement, and brand communities.

The authors propose a conceptual model where emotional arousal, which differs across design benefits, mediates the relationship between design benefits and brand engagement. Brand engagement intensifies with emotional arousal as design benefits change from functional, to hedonic, to symbolic.

The conceptual model proposed in this paper can have significant applications in the areas of product design, branding strategies, and brand communications. However, it has not been tested empirically.

The resulting model improves understanding of how marketers can use design to elicit different forms of brand engagement. Implications for marketers include planning brand engagement outcomes early in the product or service development process; involving consumers in that process, clearly communicating the benefits of the design; and supporting venues where brand engagement of different types can be practiced.

Brand engagement is unique brand-related behavior that has received limited attention in the design and marketing literatures. The proposed model offers a look at brand engagement from a design perspective, while emphasizing the role of consumers' emotional responses to design benefits.

The study aims to synthesize the state of research on pride in consumer behaviour and marketing. Specifically, this study aims to understand the emergent themes of literature, the key theories, analytical techniques and methodologies used, as well as key variables associated with pride in consumer behaviour and marketing.

Using a systematic literature review process, the study analyses 59 research articles and structures its findings by using the theory–context–characteristics–methodology framework.

The review proposes a taxonomical classification of the multiple conceptualizations of pride. It identifies that the phenomenon and regulation of pride is explained using theories from psychological self-related research. Pride has been experienced in sustainable, advertising, luxury and digital consumption contexts. Reviewed articles showed an over-reliance on the quantitative methodology and the experimental method. The review identifies that pride is associated with positive outcomes and has considerable influence on consumer behaviour. Building on this analysis, 12 research questions are developed to encourage future research.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first structured review on the emotion of pride in the domains of consumer behaviour and marketing.

Sponsorships involving foreign brands are ubiquitous, but those involving a company from an animosity-evoking country can adversely affect rather than enhance domestic consumers' attitude towards the brand. This paper explains the mechanisms by which brand denigration occurs, introducing and validating a model of the animosity transfer process as well as considering if various framing and timing strategies attenuate or lead to adverse consumer responses.

Study 1 tests the animosity transfer model, utilizing a scenario in which English consumers respond to a German brand sponsoring the England soccer team. Study 2 assesses the generalizability of the model in the context of Indian consumers' responses to sponsorship of their cricket team by a Chinese company, and the extent to which an honest framing of the sponsorship choice through the announcement affects outcomes. Study 3 returns to an England–Germany country dyad, testing whether priming consumers with information about the sponsorship prior to a full announcement, attenuates or intensifies the impact of animosity on the studied outcomes.

The three studies demonstrate that when consumers learn of a sponsorship, it triggers an evaluation process in which the agonistic emotion (anger) they feel plays a pivotal role. More intense emotional appraisals weaken perceptions of sponsor-sponsee congruence, which together act as consecutive process variables mediating the relationship between animosity and sponsorship outcomes. Framing the sponsorship announcement with an honest justification for the partnership can improve outcomes but not amongst those with the highest animosity. Providing consumers with an advanced warning (preannouncement) of the sponsorship also amplifies consumers' unfavorable evaluations showcasing how difficult animosity is to manage in this context.

The animosity transfer model aids understanding of the mechanisms by which animosity affects brand attitude for foreign (out-group) sponsors. It identifies how animosity generates agonistic emotions and in turn weakens perceived fit between the sponsor and sponsee, leading to adverse consumer responses.