Creating green consumer loyalty; How to strategically market CSR and obtain consumer preference

Sustainability is an important social theme that is taking on increasing significance in many areas, including the supermarket sector. This report presents the findings of a literature study looking at the opportunities available to supermarkets to gain a preferential position in the eyes of consumers for their efforts regarding sustainability. Duurzaamheid is een belangrijk maatschappelijk thema, dat ook in de supermarktbranche van steeds grotere betekenis wordt. Dit rapport presenteert de bevindingen van een literatuurstudie naar de aangrijpingspunten die supermarkten hebben om voor hun duurzaamheidsinspanningen een voorkeurspositie bij de consument te verkrijgen

IMC customer-based perception: strategic antecedents and consequences on post-purchase customer behaviour

Last decades Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) have been mainly analysed from a managerial perspective, overlooking the customer opinion. Thus, this research studies IMC customer-based perception, its strategic antecedents and consequences on post-purchase customer behaviour (satisfaction, word-of-mouth recommendations, and repurchase intention), from a multi-country perspective. The structural equation modelling and multi-group analysis are based on the customers´ survey data in Belarus and Spain. The results suggest that technology orientation positively affects IMC, and, customer orientation does not. IMC positively affects customer satisfaction, which in turn positively impacts on WOM and repurchase intention. WOM does not influence on repurchase intention. IMC directly affects WOM and repurchase intention in Spain and does not in Belarus, which is the significant country difference

The Dilution Effect: A Barrier to Sustainable Consumption in B2B Markets? An Experimental Study of B2B Decision-Makers' Evaluation of a Sustainable Printer

Previous research indicates that individuals have a tendency to perceive sustainable and functional attributes as mutually exclusive, even if this perception does not objectively reflect reality. This misconception can lead them to prefer conventional products over green alternatives, under the belief that businesses prioritizing sustainability might compromise the functionality of the product. This perception has contributed to a discrepancy where individuals express a demand for green products, but this is not necessarily reflected in their purchasing decisions. In this research, we propose the psychological phenomenon known as the ‘dilution effect’ as a possible explanation for this misconception. It suggested that individuals may categorize the functional attribute of a product as ‘diagnostic’ or relevant information, while perceiving the sustainable attribute as ‘nondiagnostic’ information (irrelevant). As a result, when marketers present both attributes, the nondiagnostic information dilutes the diagnostic information, leading to the perception that the product’s functionality is diminished. We conduct a single study to investigate the presence of a dilution effect and a potential method to avoid it within the business-to-business (B2B) market by testing the relationship between communication types and brand attitude. We use an A/B/C monadic testing approach ( n = 100) and ask respondents to evaluate an advertisement of a fictional printer. We first examine the presence of the dilution effect by testing whether communicating a mix of unrelated functional and sustainable attributes lowers the brand attitude compared to the presentation of only the functional attribute. Within the same study, we also explore whether communicating that the sustainable benefits support the functional benefits can be a method to prevent decisions-makers from experiencing the dilution effect. Our findings challenge our predictions; in fact, they are inconsistent with our initial expectations. The results suggest that when companies in B2B markets communicate a mix of unrelated functional and sustainable, the effects of the functional attributes on brand attitude are higher than communication focusing only on functional benefits. Interestingly, communicated related benefits seems to result in the lowest brand attitude.nhhma

The role of effective communication and trustworthiness in determining guests’ loyalty

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.This study investigates the role of trustworthiness and effective communication in the development of guests’ loyalty within the hotel sector. We propose and test a conceptual model that differentiates between two types of loyalty: attitudinal and behavioral. As hotels can control and manage how they communicate their desired characteristics to guests, we posit effective communication and a hotel’s trustworthiness as the key concepts in building loyalty. This study reports on the findings of a study based on 322 hotel guests. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results reveal that implementing effective communication methods leads to a trustworthy image, which in turn has a positive impact on attitudinal and behavioral loyalty. This research provides hotel managers with strategic directions for cultivating guest loyalty

Brand Information Mitigating Negative Shocks on Animal Welfare: Is It More Effective to “Distract†Consumers or Make Them Aware?

To create and sustain a competitive advantage in markets that increasingly value animal welfare attributes, meat companies need to meet public and private production standards while communicating to final consumers through their brands. Data are collected from a representative sample of 460 U.S. residents through an on-line experiment on McDonald’s chicken breast sandwiches and analyzed with Latent Growth Modeling. This study assesses which content of positive brand information effectively mitigates the risk of negative information shocks on animal welfare. On average, brand information has the same positive impact on consumers’ beliefs and attitudes, regardless of whether it is related or unrelated to animal welfare. However, there is strong market segmentation in terms of consumers’ response when exposed to brand information, suggesting that brand managers would benefit from tailoring brand information according to consumers’ age, education, gender and income.animal welfare, brand, information, consumer behavior, multivariate statistics, Agribusiness, Livestock Production/Industries, Q1,

Effects of Sustainability Messages and Origin Cues on the Perceived Green Brand Equity of Norwegian Salmon

This study contributes to research on how sustainability communication affects a brand’s perceived green brand equity. This builds upon findings in earlier research and theory stating that integrating sustainability with other drivers of choice in communication messages could generate a positive effect. Furthermore, the use of country-of-origin cues of a salient sustainable country is expected to enhance the sustainability associations and create spillover effects for the presented brand. The purpose of this study is therefore to gain a deeper understanding of how the integration of sustainability and country-of-origin cues could be used in communication to create positive effects on green brand equity. First, the study tested the effects of using messages that integrated sustainability aspects with a major driver for choice (taste). Secondly, hypotheses regarding whether adding a cue to an origin with salient sustainability associations (Norway) strengthens the effect of the sustainability message was tested. A 2 x 2 between-subjects design with message and origin as variables was used to test these hypotheses. Neither message (integrated vs separated sustainability message), the country-of-origin cue (Norwegian vs European), nor the interaction between the factors, had significant effects on the perceived green equity. One possible explanation for these lacking effects could be insufficient manipulations of the variables. However, unexpectedly, it was found that the country-of-origin cue had a positive effect on the perceived sustainability of the seafood category. These findings and further elaboration on the lack of support for the hypotheses are discussed. Lastly, directions for future research are suggested.nhhma

Eco-Friendly Marketing: Beyond the Label

The science is unequivocal: every ecosystem in the world is in decline. Without significant intervention, the world’s inhabitants of almost 7.3 billion are in peril. In light of this imminent threat and as a response to market pressures, public outcry, and changing national and international policies, businesses are seeking to rebrand their products by adopting a more environmentally-friendly approach. From various certification processes to other forms of green marketing, eco-labeling has been trending and consumer engagement rising. But without a thorough analysis of a particular product, the consumer’s belief that he/she is helping to contribute to a solution, may be misplaced

Understanding ethical consumer decision making : the relationship of perceived sustainability and perceived efficacy in ethical consumption

Businesses hope that consumers reward their corporate social responsibility with higher brand loyalty and increased willingness to pay. Yet, contrary to these expectations recent research has revealed that in certain situations consumers shun ethical products as they assume a trade-off between ethicality and performance. To understand more about how ethical consumption decisions are made, this thesis analyzes the impact of perceived sustainability and perceived efficacy on purchase intentions under the moderating influence of locus of control (LOC). To this end, a quantitative experimental study was conducted via an online survey in the category of laundry detergents. Respondents were shown either a laundry detergent with an environmental message or with a message promoting functionality. The data does not support that there is an overall negative effect of sustainability on perceived efficacy; however, it suggests that there is a cross-over interaction effect with LOC: People with an external LOC assume that there is a trade-off between sustainability and efficacy whereas respondents with an internal LOC actually perceive products to have a better performance when they are sustainable. We also find that LOC moderates perceived sustainability. Both variables have a direct impact on purchase intentions, yet, perceived efficacy has a stronger influence. We conclude that businesses should use LOC in their customer segmentation strategy and aim to strike a balance in communicating the green appeal of the product while highlighting its performance at the same time.As empresas esperam que os consumidores recompensem a sua responsabilidade social corporativa com maior fidelidade à marca e maior disponibilidade para pagar. No entanto, ao contrário das expectativas, pesquisas recentes revelaram que, em certas situações, os consumidores evitam produtos éticos ao assumirem um trade-off entre a ética e o desempenho. Para entender mais sobre como as decisões de consumo ético são tomadas, esta tese analisa o impacto da sustentabilidade e eficácia percebida nas intenções de compra sob a influência moderadora do locus de controlo (LOC). Para este fim, um estudo experimental quantitativo foi realizado através de uma pesquisa online na categoria de detergentes para a roupa. Aos entrevistados foi mostrado um detergente para a roupa com uma mensagem ambiental ou com uma mensagem que promove a funcionalidade. Os dados não sustentam que exista um efeito negativo na sustentabilidade sobre a eficácia percebida; no entanto, sugere que há um efeito de interação cruzada com LOC. Pessoas com um LOC externo assumem que há um trade-off entre sustentabilidade e eficácia, enquanto os entrevistados com um LOC interno percebem que os produtos têm um melhor desempenho quando são sustentáveis. Também foi descoberto que o LOC modera a sustentabilidade percebida. Ambas as variáveis têm um impacto direto nas intenções de compra, no entanto, a eficácia percebida tem uma influência mais forte. Concluímos que as empresas devem usar o LOC na sua estratégia de segmentação de clientes e procurar um equilíbrio na comunicação da ecológia do produto, ao mesmo tempo em que destaca seu desempenho

Corporate branding in the retail sector: a practitioner’s perspective

It can be argued that corporate branding is essentially a strategic task spanning across functional boundaries and internal and external sphere of the organisation. What is the opinion of practitioners on the concept? This paper presents the findings from a study in the UK retail sector. The purpose of the study is to assess whether the practitioners share the view that the corporate brand is an integrative device and the process of corporate branding is holistic in nature