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1 – 10 of over 35000Mobin Fatma, Imran Khan, Vikas Kumar and Avinash Kumar Shrivastava
This study aims to analyse a proposed model depicting the direct and indirect relationship between consumer perceptions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and customer…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to analyse a proposed model depicting the direct and indirect relationship between consumer perceptions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and customer citizenship behaviour (CCB) in the banking industry.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, data was collected from banking consumers in India. The final sample included 505 responses. The hypotheses were tested using structural equation modelling.
Findings
The findings suggest that consumer perceptions of CSR are positively related to consumer identification with the company and CCB. Also, the relationship between consumer perception of CSR and CCB is mediated through consumer–company identification. This suggests that CSR activities are positively related with the consumer identification with their company, which encourages CCB.
Originality/value
This study contributes empirically and theoretically to expand the limited knowledge about the cognitive link between CSR and consumer behaviour. This study provides new insights about the proposed relationships related to the effects of consumer perception of CSR on CCB.
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Yeonsoo Kim and Nandini Bhalla
The study aims to examine the effects of proactive vs passive environmental corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the context of small and medium size enterprises (SMEs)…
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to examine the effects of proactive vs passive environmental corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the context of small and medium size enterprises (SMEs), factoring in the moderating effects of price and the mediating effects of company–consumer identification(C-C identification) on consumer responses.
Design/methodology/approach
An experiment with general consumer samples was conducted. A randomized 2 (CSR levels: proactive CSR vs passive CSR) × 2 (price as a CSR trade-off: higher price vs lower price) full factorial design was used.
Findings
The study findings revealed that proactive environmental CSR not only engendered more positive C-C identification but also resulted in more favorable consumer attitudes, stronger supportive communication intent and purchase intent. In addition, when a company demonstrates proactive CSR, consumers' C-C identification is generally positive irrespective of price differences, and in turn, more positive reactions follow. When a company takes a passive approach and offers lower prices, respondents showed significantly less positive C-C identification, and less favorable responses. This indicates that passive environmental CSR programs can potentially backfire, especially when combined with lower prices. This study also shows the important mediating impact of C-C identification on consumer responses.
Originality/value
This study is one of the few to explore consumer perceptions of and reactions toward the food industry's environmental CSR programs by degree of CSR involvement and price differences in the context of SMEs. This study's findings provide useful information to SME managers and public relations practitioners who work closely with SMEs, allowing them to make informed strategic decisions, especially when they evaluate the extent of their company's commitment to environmentally proactive CSR practices and its communication to consumers.
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Longinos Marín and Salvador Ruiz de Maya
The purpose of this paper is to examine how consumers' personality (i.e. motivation for affiliation) and their perceptions about the company (i.e. identity attractiveness) and the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how consumers' personality (i.e. motivation for affiliation) and their perceptions about the company (i.e. identity attractiveness) and the relation they maintain with the company's employees (i.e. personal connection with salesperson) influence their identification with the company. The research also considers the moderating effects of identity salience and salesperson identification with the company. In addition, the study proposes that salesperson identification may further enhance the positive influence of the consumer‐salesperson connection on the consumer's identification with the company.
Design/methodology/approach
In order to test the hypothesized model, this study uses a sample of customers from a financial institution with different levels of business involvement with the company. With a questionnaire formed with measures taken from previous literature, structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed model.
Findings
The results showed that all three determinants – i.e. identity attractiveness, need for affiliation, and personal connection – have direct and positive effects on consumer identification with the company. Moreover, the moderating effect of identity salience was also confirmed for the impacts of both identity attractiveness and need for affiliation on consumer identification, as well as the moderating effect of salesperson identification for the impact of personal connection between the customer and the salesperson on consumer identification.
Practical implications
This research offers important insights for marketing managers. Specifically, companies need to be aware of and to deliver a consistent and attractive identity of both their salespeople and their company. Moreover, marketing communications that attempt to connect a product or brand to a social identity should consider the extent to which target consumers value that social identity, and what aspects can be leveraged to increase perceptions of relevance associated with that identity. Therefore, all communication activities should provide cues about how the company or its products are related to an identity that is relevant to the consumer.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the literature on social identity and organizational identification as it examines the consumer‐company relationship in a consumer context. The main contributions are three. First, it highlights the importance of the non‐product aspects of a company in terms of building a consumer‐company bond. Second, it shows that consumers are more likely to adopt social identities (i.e. to identify with particular social groups) when they consider the company's identity to be personally relevant. And third, it demonstrates the impact of the salesperson identification with the company on his/her performance, a relationship that sales literature has not considered yet.
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Elif Karaosmanoğlu, Ayşe Banu Elmadağ Baş and Jingyun (Kay) Zhang
By drawing on theories of social identity, attraction, social comparison and consumer identification, this research seeks to examine how consumers' perceptions of other customers…
Abstract
Purpose
By drawing on theories of social identity, attraction, social comparison and consumer identification, this research seeks to examine how consumers' perceptions of other customers of an organisation (the other customer effect) may have an influence on corporate image and consumer‐company identification. This study aims to test a model integrating these constructs in two contexts, i.e. products and services. It also seeks to investigate the attitudinal and behavioural consequences of a favourable corporate image in order to provide more insights to the argument that a corporate marketing approach helps to enhance marketing performance.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey of a convenience sample of 383 adult consumers is conducted. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) is employed in order to test the proposed model. An alternative model is examined both in products and in services contexts.
Findings
The results indicate that perceptions about other customers influence customers' affective and behavioural reactions towards a company for both products and services. This finding suggests that corporate‐level marketing activities aiming to increase interaction among consumers lead to favourable corporate image and higher consumer‐company identification and hence desirable marketing outcomes. Furthermore, results show that for services the other customer effect is more prominent than for product offerings.
Originality/value
This study extends the concept of other customer effect to the context of corporate image and consumer‐company identification studies. It provides evidence that shifting towards corporate‐level marketing gives organisations another avenue for gaining a distinct position in the minds of consumers. Furthermore, by addressing both service and product contexts, it shows that other customer effect may exist beyond services studies.
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Wann‐Yih Wu and Cheng‐Hung Tsai
The purpose of this paper is to address the research issue of how companies manage their consumers' identification to compete effectively in intensely competitive market places…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to address the research issue of how companies manage their consumers' identification to compete effectively in intensely competitive market places. Drawing on theories of social identity and organizational identification, this study proposes that favorable consumer purchase intentions often result from the consumer‐company identification (C‐C identification) which depends on several identity judgments like identity prestige and identity attractiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
A research model and 13 hypotheses are derived in this study. LISREL models are employed to identify the validity of the entire model and data are collected from ten direct selling companies.
Findings
The results of empirical analysis show that identity judgments positively affect C‐C identification and the degree of C‐C identification positively influences consumer purchase intentions. The moderating effects of identity trustworthiness and embeddedness have mild influences on the relationship between identification and purchase intentions.
Practical implications
This study confirms that encouraging identification has not only been identified as a good employee retention strategy in organization management but also a good customer retention strategy in marketing management.
Originality/value
This study intends to go one step further to empirically test the viability of the C‐C identification model that is lack of empirical supported.
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Rohail Ashraf and Dwight Merunka
Customer‐company identification (CCI) refers to a social relationship between a company and its customers. Prior research highlights the positive consequences of CCI but does not…
Abstract
Purpose
Customer‐company identification (CCI) refers to a social relationship between a company and its customers. Prior research highlights the positive consequences of CCI but does not study the process by which CCI shapes both positive and negative consumer reactions to new company initiatives. This study aims to elaborate this process by modelling the mediating consequences of CCI (commitment to the company and feeling of belonging to an in‐group) on consumers’ responses to brand extensions.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 291 respondents, spanning two companies and four brand extension scenarios. The model parameters were estimated through partial least squares path modelling.
Findings
CCI leads to commitment to the company and to a related group, through identification processes. Both forms of commitment influence consumer reactions to new corporate initiatives. The effect of company commitment is stable; in‐group commitment is more influential in forming consumer responses but varies depending on the severity of the situation.
Originality/value
This research elaborates the mechanisms of identity‐based commitment and its effect on consumer responses to new company initiatives. The two‐tiered, identification‐based commitment model highlights how identified customers relate to both the company and in‐groups of consumers, as a result of CCI. It explains both positive and negative consumer reactions, an insight missing from prior studies.
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Paulo Alexandre de Oliveira Duarte and Susana C. Silva
The purpose of this paper is to extend prior research on the influence of consumer-cause identification on the intention to purchase products from the companies supporting the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to extend prior research on the influence of consumer-cause identification on the intention to purchase products from the companies supporting the cause and re-evaluates the role of attitude toward the cause as a mediator of the relationship between identification and intention to purchase.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a questionnaire, a sample of 156 Portuguese consumers evaluated their personal identification and attitude to one of four causes. Partial least squares path modeling was used to evaluate the proposed conceptual model.
Findings
The results reveal that more than identification, a positive attitude is vital to be able to predict the intention to purchase. Together, consumer-cause identification and attitude explain 35.1 percent of the variance in purchase intention. The findings show also that attitude acts as a mediator in the relationship between the identification with the cause and intention to purchase. Several differences regarding gender and age are also revealed.
Originality/value
While the majority of studies were single cause evaluations, the current results are based on the assessment of multiple causes. Consequently, the findings are more comprehensive and robust, providing important insights to researchers. The conclusions confirm within a wider context the role of attitude as a mediator of the identification and intention to purchase and can further assist companies in designing better targeted cause-related marketing campaigns.
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Lujun Su, Scott R. Swanson, Maxwell Hsu and Xiaohong Chen
This study aims to examine consumption emotions and customer–company identification as mediating variables to explore the association of perceived corporate social responsibility…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine consumption emotions and customer–company identification as mediating variables to explore the association of perceived corporate social responsibility (CSR) on green consumer behavior in a hospitality–lodging context.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a stimulus–organism–response framework, an integrated model is developed. The hypothesized relationships of the research model are tested using the structural equation modeling technique. Data were gathered from hotel guests at a UNESCO World Heritage Site in China.
Findings
Perceived CSR directly affects positive emotions, negative emotions and customer–company identification. Positive emotions significantly influence customer–company identification. Positive emotions and customer–company identification partially mediate the relationship between perceived CSR and green consumer behavior. Hotel type was not found to be a moderating factor.
Research limitations/implications
Perceived CSR can act to influence consumers’ behaviors more broadly via an increased likelihood of engaging in green consumer behavior. Implementing CSR strategies at the company level may provide additional benefits to society as a whole. The proposed relationships need to be replicated in other service organizations, segments and cultures to better assess the generalizability of the findings.
Originality/value
This study investigates the association between consumption emotions and customer–company identification, which has been missing in the tourism/hospitality literature. This study also extends previous CSR literature by examining the potential moderating role of hospitality type.
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Mobin Fatma, Imran Khan and Zillur Rahman
The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of two types of corporate associations – corporate ability (CA) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) – on consumer brand…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of two types of corporate associations – corporate ability (CA) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) – on consumer brand loyalty in retail banks in India.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey on 489 banking consumers was carried out. To achieve research objectives, test hypotheses and analyze data, structural equation modeling was used.
Findings
The findings show that CA and CSR associations were found to have positive and indirect influences on consumer brand loyalty through brand identifications. This indicates that the process of corporate association transforming into loyalty is much more complicated, and there are other factors influencing this process, making brand identification necessary for achieving customer brand loyalty.
Research limitations/implications
The results presented in this study have important managerial implications for banking companies in India. The findings demonstrate the importance of CA and CSR associations in the present business scenario and highlight the need to successfully implement them in management policies.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the existing body of literature by highlighting the influence of brand identification on brand loyalty through affective commitment and satisfaction.
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Andrea Pérez, María del Mar García de los Salmones and Ignacio Rodríguez del Bosque
In the present paper, the authors aim to study the relationship between corporate associations and loyalty by analyzing the role of identification with the company and…
Abstract
Purpose
In the present paper, the authors aim to study the relationship between corporate associations and loyalty by analyzing the role of identification with the company and satisfaction in this connection.
Design/methodology/approach
The effects of corporate associations on consumers' loyalty were tested through a structural equation model for a sample of 781 financial services users.
Findings
The results confirm the value of commercial expertise (CE) as one of the most important determinants of both consumer satisfaction and identification with their financial services provider. Besides, corporate social responsibility (CSR) contributes to building consumer identification with the company, which is positively correlated to satisfaction too. Satisfaction is thus presented as both an affective and cognitive consumer response in the financial industry, which, along with identification, finally determines the attitudinal loyalty a consumer shows towards their provider.
Originality/value
With this study, the authors try to contribute to a better knowledge of the consumer loyalty formation process as it begins with the perception of corporate associations for its commercial expertise and its social commitment. The researchers take into account the role of two variables – i.e. identification and satisfaction with the company – that had not been studied in depth in research analyzing the role of corporate associations in consumer loyalty. Moreover, CSR associations are also studied from a multidimensional point of view, as suggested in recent studies and in comparison to the vast majority of previous research, which has concentrated on specific and narrow dimensions of the concept, especially the social dimension.
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