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Product category involvement and relationship proneness are crucial in explaining relationship outcomes. Nevertheless, the authors know little about their roles in the formation of loyalty, especially in the retail industry. Individual consumer traits and preferences are likely to play a critical role in the success of relationship marketing. Yet, relationship marketing studies have fallen short of considering such individual differences. The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating effects of product category involvement and relationship proneness on the relationship between satisfaction and loyalty in retail clothing stores.

Data were obtained using a survey of 220 consumers. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was employed to test the proposed theoretical model.

The results show that satisfaction significantly affects product category involvement and relationship proneness, which, in turn, significantly affect purchase intention and word-of-mouth (WOM). The results also show that product category involvement and relationship proneness partially mediate the impact of satisfaction on purchase intention and WOM.

Product category involvement and relationship proneness play a critical role in explaining the satisfaction–loyalty link. Future research could consider the role of potential moderating variables.

Retail managers should not only focus on improving customer satisfaction to achieve customer loyalty, but should also consider the importance of product category involvement and relationship proneness, and their role in the formation of customer loyalty both in traditional and online environments.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to explore the mediating effects of product category involvement and relationship proneness on the relationship between satisfaction, purchase intention and WOM in the retail industry.

A behavioural measure is used to describe loyalty in different product areas. The measures derived from a study comprising more than 600 branded consumer goods, for which information about purchasing, place of purchase, brand awareness, brand preference, relative importance of price and quality was collected. An analysis was conducted of the way in which loyalty varies across product areas and how loyalty patterns vary depending upon the degree of penetration of the product class. A summary model of variables is proposed showing how average and leading brands behave, for each of the brands measures of their perceived price and quality are available.

There is limited literature linking e-fulfillment and product type with postpurchase consumer behavior measures like loyalty, even though there has been a rapid increase in e-tailing. E-fulfillment is defined in literature as a sequence of processes. Each process in this sequence is expected to have a different impact on consumer loyalty across product type. Thus relative importance of e-fulfillment processes leading to consumer loyalty. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of e-fulfillment on consumer loyalty across two product types: “standard, regular” and “physical product” (e.g. book, clothing, etc.) and “standard, nonregular” and “physical product” (e.g. computer, refrigerator, etc.) using the peak-end rule theory for an e-tailer.

To know the consumer loyalty for e-fulfillment across the two product types, the partial least square-structural equation modeling approach aided by the SmartPLS 3 tool was used for data analysis as it avoids biases in the parameter estimation in regression analysis. A total of 603 consumer responses through an online and physically administered questionnaire were obtained and were used for the empirical analysis.

Results indicate that for standard, nonregular and physical products, all the e-fulfillment components (customization strategy, website quality, distribution strategy, last mile delivery and return management) positively impact consumer loyalty. Except for the customization strategy, for standard regular and physical product types, all other e-fulfillment components positively impact consumer loyalty.

This study will be helpful to e-tail managers to configure the e-fulfillment components according to product types, thereby increasing consumer loyalty.

While some e-fulfillment components have been linked to consumer loyalty in literature, there is no study establishing linkages between e-fulfillment as a construct and consumer loyalty across product types. This has implications for decision makers in e-tail as the study provides e-fulfillment strategy customization across product types for achieving consumer loyalty in e-tail, a key marketing metric.

This study aims to question the conventional wisdom that brands compete for customers, especially in mature industries such as soft drinks. Rather than engaging in price wars or promotion wars, brands coexist in the markets by focusing on their own brand loyal customers.

Consumer panel data of carbonated beverages are examined using Markov chains to measure switching between two brands: Coke and Pepsi. Switching rates are conducted for all Coke households (n = 10,474) and Pepsi households (n = 7,227). This is further examined with respect to heavy half (upper median) consumers of each brand who make up approximately 86 per cent of volume purchases.

Households that made a majority of their purchase volume in either Coke or Pepsi products stayed with their preferred brands in subsequent quarters: 85 to 97 per cent of households. These findings are validated at all levels of the brand architecture (family brands, product brands and modified brands), even though both brands engage in similar marketing mix tactics (advertising, price cuts, distribution, product offerings). Loyalty was even higher among the heavy user households.

The research was conducted using two well-known brands in a mature industry. Services or non-mature markets may exhibit different loyalty patterns.

The study extends prior research on competition, loyalty and branded offerings to show that brand loyalty remains high despite marketing efforts to switch the brand buying behavior.

In an empirical examination of the link between product involvement and brand loyalty, a convenience sample of 253 students were asked to complete a questionnaire relating to two products which had been found in preliminary qualitative research to be associated with contrasted levels of involvement. The factor structure of involvement was found to vary between the two product categories (sneakers and pens). Furthermore, the link between product involvement and brand loyalty was found to involve different aspects of product involvement for each of the products concerned. Hence, future researchers in the area should be mindful that product involvement and brand loyalty are not universal constructs: they should be examined within specific consumer and product parameters.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of product and customer dimensions in the contribution of brand experience to the formation of true brand loyalty. The dimensions included are brand credibility, affective commitment and involvement. Synthesising past studies, the researcher proposes brand credibility and affective commitment to mediate the relationship between brand experience and true brand loyalty. Furthermore, the researcher investigates the variation in hierarchical pattern, i.e. brand experience-brand credibility affective commitment-true brand loyalty, under different levels of involvement.

The variations in hierarchy were compared by design. The authors investigated the variations in hierarchy on the basis of products which belong to different level of involvement, on the basis of individual differences in involvement, and on the basis of the interaction of product involvement and subject involvement. Multi-group invariance tests in SEM were used to explore model variations.

The hierarchy-of-effect model was found to vary based on the level of product involvement, subject involvement and interaction involvement. Three patterns of hierarchy have been observed: the first pattern was observed in high-high groups (both product involvement and subject involvement were high), the second pattern was observed in low-low groups (both product and subject involvements were low) and the third pattern among high-low or low-high groups.

The variation observed highlights the need to segment the market by interaction involvement. This would be useful for managers engaged in building sustainable consumer-brand relationships.

This study considered the interaction of product approach and subject approach in defining involvement which is rarely attempted in research. The study also integrates the variations in the role of customer dimensions, namely involvement, brand credibility and affective commitment with the relationship between the central constructs brand experience and true brand loyalty. The variations observed are among a socio-economically homogeneous sample of respondents.

This paper aims to investigate to what extent core, technical and social components of relationship value influence customer satisfaction and loyalty in the high technology business to business (B2B) markets.

Seven attributes of a high-technology buyer-seller relationship are identified representing the core, technical and social nature of relationship value. A conceptual model is proposed in which customer satisfaction mediates between the relationship value components and the two aspects of customer loyalty – attitudinal and behavioural. The empirical study is conducted in India employing 127 high technology customers. Structural equation modelling and path analysis is used to test the hypothesized linkages and examine the impact of different components.

Technical and social components of value influence customer satisfaction to a greater extent than the core components. Whilst behavioural loyalty is more driven by core components, attitudinal loyalty is more influenced by the social component. Satisfaction mediates the links between relationship value components and the two aspects of loyalty.

Future research could test the modelled linkages in different countries and using larger samples and investigate the supplier perspective.

The paper provides useful implications for high tech product suppliers to improve their relationship with their customers. Suppliers must develop collaborative product/technology development projects and explore opportunities for personal relationships/rapport building with their customers, whilst delivering a quality product at a competitive price.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the paper is the first in B2B literature to provide an insight of how the different components of relationship value vary in influencing satisfaction and loyalty in a high technology B2B buyer-seller relationship.

This paper aims to contribute to the literature on brand loyalty by illustrating the mechanisms through which product involvement influences brand loyalty. In doing so, the study is original in considering the mediating role of the multidimensional price perceptions’ construct.

Two thousand questionnaires were distributed in two shopping malls, yielding a sample of 535 consumers, covering eight different grocery products. To test the hypothesized model, the authors relied on structural equation modelling.

Product involvement influences on brand loyalty are partially mediated by price perceptions. This is a novel finding. Moreover, product involvement relates positively to six price perceptions, and this is also original. As expected, value consciousness and sale proneness are detrimental to brand loyalty, whereas price – quality schema contributes to it. Unexpectedly, however, price consciousness, sale proneness and price mavenism are positively related to loyalty.

Managers can improve brand loyalty by increasing consumers’ product involvement, by reducing the reliance on a value-for-money orientation and on non-coupon promotions and by focusing on lower or higher prices and on coupon promotions and emphasizing a price – quality association.

The product involvement/brand loyalty relationship has been characterized by mixed findings. This paper contributes to this debate by clarifying the mechanisms through which involvement relates to loyalty. In doing this, this paper also innovates by investigating the relationship between involvement and the multidimensional price perceptions’ construct. In this process, this paper also inquires how seven price perceptions relate to brand loyalty, with novel findings emerging.

To examine the influence of the perceived quality of a protected designation of origin (PDO) product on consumer loyalty and buying intentions.

The study examines the relationships between intrinsic and extrinsic quality attributes, loyalty and buying intention. Information was obtained from an initial qualitative approach based on a group dynamic to allow the development of scales to quantify the different concepts. Personal interviews were then conducted with 251 consumers based on a structured questionnaire.

The study reveals the existence of a positive and significant relationship between the extrinsic attributes of a traditional food product and loyalty expressed by consumers. It also shows that the perceived quality associated with the intrinsic attributes of the product has a positive and significant influence on buying intentions.

The PDO should seek to foster the perceived quality of intrinsic attributes in order to enhance consumer buying intentions, which may be viewed as the pragmatic side of consumer behaviour, an expression of the behavioural side of their attitude, and a reflection of their actions and short‐term behaviour. It should also foster the perceived quality of extrinsic attributes so as to achieve greater loyalty which, in turn, will be expressed as an increase in repeat purchases. This loyalty may be considered from an attitudinal standpoint involving feelings and affects towards a product or brand, and is related with ideal images held by consumers about their own actions.

This paper shows that positive attitudes, feelings and affects towards symbolic factors are fundamental components of attitudinal loyalty. These aspects reflect the consumer ideal, because such attitudes are based on positive feelings and affects towards symbolic factors. This loyalty, in turn, constitutes the ideal behaviour with which the consumer identifies, although it is not necessarily his/her actual behaviour.

The term ‘strategy’ is one of the most frequently used terms in business, and its application in marketing is particularly common. Company strategy, market strategy, marketing strategy, sales strategy, promotion strategy, distribution strategy, low pricing strategy – it would take a long time to list all of them. Although this term is so commonly in use, its definition is not as straightforward and it can be interpreted in different ways. In comparison with tactical decisions, strategy is much more significant for an organisation as it brings long-lasting consequences. It is implemented by higher level managers on a regular basis, and it is based on external, often subjective information, so decisions – especially at the time they are made – are difficult to evaluate.

Taking into consideration the fact that strategy refers to a long-term rather than a short-term period, strategic decisions serve as the basis for undertaking operational activities. However, marketing refers to the market and the competition. It is possible to claim that marketing strategy is trying to find an answer to the question to which path an organisation should follow in order to achieve its goals and objectives. If, for example, a company has a goal to generate a profit of PLN 1 million by selling 100,000 pieces of a product, the market strategy should answer at least the following two questions:

1. Who will be our target group, for example, who will purchase the 100,000 pieces of the product?

2. Why is it us from whom a potential buyer should purchase the product?

Who will be our target group, for example, who will purchase the 100,000 pieces of the product?

Why is it us from whom a potential buyer should purchase the product?

The target market will be defined if a reply to the first question is provided. The second question identifies the foundations of competitive advantage. These two issues, that is, target market and competitive advantage are the strategic marketing issues. You cannot change your target group unexpectedly while competitive advantage is the basis for changing decisions regarding prices, promotions and sales.

This chapter describes the measures of marketing activities which refer to strategic aspects and testify a company’s market position – the measures of the performance of target groups and competitive advantage. Readers’ attention should be also focused on the indices that are less popular in Poland and, therefore, may be underestimated. It seems that some of them, for example, the index of marketing resources allocation and the marketing risk index, provide a lot of valuable information and, at the same time, make it possible to show the value of marketing investments. Their wider use in the near future is only a matter of time.