This paper explores to what extent Instagram users in Sweden experience privacy concerns, and how their privacy concerns affect the three emotional factors of social media usage, namely social media trust, social media fatigue and privacy protection behavior. Additionally, this paper also aims to investigate the relationship between these emotional factors and social media usage. The data collection was done via online survey of 315 active users of Instagram in Sweden. Data analysis was performed using structural equation modelling. This paper suggests that there is a direct and positive relationship between privacy concerns and social media usage, but there are some mediating pathways that either reduce (through social media trust) or enhance (through privacy protection behavior) social media usage. This study is limited to Instagram users and cannot be generalized for other social media platforms. Moreover, it is the first to examine the relationship between privacy concerns and social media usage in the Instagram context. Moreover, this empirical study provides a more holistic perspective by investigating the direct and indirect relationship between privacy concerns and social media usage.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a clear conceptualisation of brand activism in contraposition to digital brand activism. Additionally, this paper aims to contribute to the development of branding and marketing theory, specifically by identifying the five key dimensions of brand activism as part of the brand-building process. The need to identify and examine the key dimensions of brand activism justifies the use of multiple case study methods. In total, eight brands born activists were selected for study. The brands were drawn from three different sectors in an attempt yo capture maximum theoretical variation. Relevant archival data about the brands was also collected in their websites, press and social media to provide triangulation. The preliminary findings of this research identify five key dimensions of brand activism as part of the brand-building process, namely: Purpose-Product Embeddedness, Profit-Cause Coexistance, Transformative Change, Provocative Behaviour, and Discussion Hubs. This paper advances the domain of brand activism by contributing to a clear conceptualisation of brand activism and the identification of its key dimensions.

This research investigates the mediating role of perceived brand authenticity (PBA) between brand experience (BE) and brand love (BL) of global high-tech brands Apple and Samsung. A quantitative study was conducted in Japan, India, and Portugal. The research found evidence that PBA is a multidimensional, reflective-formative higher-order construct composed of two lower-order components namely PBA Core and PBA Peripheral. The findings also contribute to understand how consumers are impacted by different BE and PBA dimensions using the lens of consumer culture theory and how BL is formed as a social-cultural phenomena. Finally, the study demonstrates for the first time that relationship intensity and self-authenticity moderate the effect of BE on PBA. Although limited to three countries and high-tech brands, the findings are of relevance to global brands by raising awareness that culture plays a key role in how consumers perceive authentic brand experiences and how passionate feelings for global brands can be strengthened.

While brands are among the most valuable assets for companies and serve as a basis for competitive advantage, limited research exists on how manufacturers in the luxury car segment interact with their stakeholders in the value co-creation process. A review of the main theories on brand co-creation, value creation, and sensory marketing is used together with a case study of a global car manufacturer in the premium segment to explore the co-creation of multi-sensory experiences within the car’s interior. Our findings show that co-creation of these experiences is achieved by employing a brand heritage theme in designing a value proposition. Suppliers contribute with competence, knowledge, and skills in ideating the car´s interior, while consumers assist the manufacturer to identify which factors contribute to an outstanding multisensory experience. A framework for understanding the co-creation of multi-sensory brand experiences is proposed reflecting the contribution of stakeholders in this process.

Purpose: Place branding is a discipline with high relevance for a city's policymakers and for hospitality and tourism management, and this is even more true in the context of creative cities. This article explores how the creative class contributes to a city’s brand identity and, by doing so, delivers valuable advice for marketing representatives of creative cities.

Design/methodology/approach: Our study builds on a qualitative study, interviewing 18 members of the creative class in 3 diverse European cities. Our methodology was based on grounded theory: We simultaneously collected and analysed data and created analytic codes and categories.

Findings: This article suggests that the creative class is an important enactment stakeholder in the identity formation process of a place, as well as destination marketing organizations (DMOs) and other stakeholders. Additionally, it is demonstrated that the creative class co-creates a city’s brand identity by bringing new rhythms and forms of expression to the cityscape.

Originality: This article contributes to the fast-growing place brand identity literature by exploring the role of the creative class in the context of cities. It also intends to provide a better understanding of how the creative class co-creates and contributes to their city’s brand identity. Since similar studies do not exist, our article fills an important research gap.

Research limitations/implications: Our study shares the limitations of qualitative studies, but the resulting conceptual model of brand management in the context of a creative city offers a springboard for future research in this regard.

Practical implications: City representatives and tourist managers need to understand what is the value-in-use generated by the creative class in the brand identity process and must be aware that the creative class plays a key role in delivering the brand message.

Purpose

This paper aims to the literature on negative consumer-brand relationships by advancing knowledge on the key triggers of brand hate of global and prominent brands. It investigates for the first time the role of brand in triggering brand hate, as well as behavioral and emotional brand hate outcomes, i.e. willingness to punish and negative brand engagement. Additionally, it explores the impact of product ownership and previous love feelings in the formation of brand hate.

Design/methodology/approach

The data collection was conducted on two Apple anti-brand communities after the given consent of its administrators. Data analysis was performed using structural equation modeling.

Findings

The paper suggests that brand hate is a construct with four first-order formative triggers (symbolic incongruity, ideological incompatibility, negative past experience and brand inauthenticity). It also demonstrates that brand hate is a dichotomous concept that comprises negative emotional dimensions (i.e. negative brand engagement) and behavioral dimensions (i.e. brand aversion, negative word-of-mouth and willingness to punish brands). Finally, it shows how brand hate differs among users vs non-users and passionate vs non-passionate consumers of Apple.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the literature on negative consumer-brand relationships by advancing knowledge on the key triggers and outcomes of brand hate of global and prominent brands. More importantly, it demonstrates empirically that brand hate does not occur at a specific point of time and may result in transient hatred motivated by emotion-eliciting events (e.g. using a product) or as a long-term consumer-brand relationship that changed from love to hatred.

This paper aims to investigate, for the first time, the mediating effect of brand love on word of mouth through brand experience, by using a comparative study of the IKEA brand in Sweden and Portugal. It also explores how the perceived functional and hedonic brand values mediate the effects of brand experience and brand love. The data collection was done via an online survey of real users of the brand IKEA in Portugal and Sweden. The paper suggests that brand love mediates the relationship between brand experience and word of mouth in both countries. This study also identifies differences in the effects of the sensory, affective, behavioral and intellectual brand dimension in brand love. Additionally, it is suggested that consumer-brand relationship duration, genre, and education levels influence brand love. This paper contributes to the fast-growing consumer-brand relationships literature by exploring the role of brand love in the context of retail brands. It also intends to provide a better understanding of how to build and nurture effective brand experiences in order to elicit intense and passionate feelings towards retail brands.

Purpose This paper aims to propose a dynamic and holistic framework that combines the brand portfolio audit with the brand architecture redesign. Design/methodology/approach Depicting from an extensive review on the frameworks of brand audit and brand architecture, a dynamic approach to brand portfolio audit and brand architecture strategy was developed, and later applied and tested in three B2B and B2C companies. Findings The paper suggests an eight-step framework to guide practitioners when auditing a specific brand portfolio and designing a revised brand architecture strategy. Additionally, a Brand Audit Scorecard was developed to enable and sustain brand portfolio audits, divided into three dimensions (brand equity, brand contribution and strategic options). Originality/value This paper contributes to the brand audit and brand architecture literature by proposing a holistic framework that is not static.

Using eye tracking, this chapter investigates if the visual attention varies according to the in-store displays message content (price, sensory, and price-sensory). Results show that participants are more responsive to cognitive content messages (price) than affective messages (sensory) alone. Nevertheless, it is demonstrated that participants are prone to devote more time processing in-store displays messages if prices (cognitive stimuli) are combined with sensory messages (affective stimuli), which increases the likelihood of choosing low involvement products. Finally, it was demonstrated that total fixation duration is predictive of low involvement product choice for all home décor products. This study suggests that shoppers might spend more time and effort searching for low involvement products if in-store displays captivate their visual attention and elicit their sensory imagery. Sensory messages can be used by retailers to highlight product intrinsic characteristics. At the same time, they are inducing positive feelings towards low-involvement products.

In this chapter, the author examines the most important research in the field of sensory marketing, brand equity and brand love, that has been published over the past thirty years. Firstly, the author accounts for the significance of the five senses and sensory marketing which is regarded as a new marketing paradigm for the 21st century. Secondly, brand equity is discussed as a multidimensional concept, highlighting the pivotal role of emotional and sensory associations in creating a positive brand image and strong brand equity. Thirdly, brand love is analysed as an emerging brand-relationship concept in the field of experiential consumption. Fourthly, the significance of multisensory brand experiences is discussed as a means of making brands stand out in a competitive environment and inducing feelings of love towards a brand. Finally, brand sensoriality is pointed out as central to conveying experiential brand values through multisensory brand experiences, in several encounters.