Search Results (18)

Brand personality is a strategic lever for higher education institutions facing intense competition. Although institutions commonly use social media video content to reach students, evidence on how content design affects brand personality perceptions is scarce. This study examines whether informational and entertaining Instagram videos differentially influence enrolled students’ brand personality perceptions and whether attitude toward the post mediates these effects. A between-subjects online experiment was conducted with enrolled students (N = 184) in Germany, a mature higher education system. Participants were randomly assigned to view a professionally produced video for a fictitious institution, either informational or entertaining. They then evaluated the post and the institution’s brand personality, measured with the University Brand Personality Scale and analyzed as vertical (prestige, sincerity, conscientiousness) and horizontal (appeal, liveliness, cosmopolitanism) facets. Effects were tested using simple mediation analyses. Informational content produced more favorable post attitudes than entertaining content. It had a large positive direct effect on vertical brand personality, complemented by a positive indirect effect via post attitude. For the horizontal facet, only the indirect effect was significant. The study provides the first experimental evidence on content-type effects on higher education brand personality in a mature system, guiding institutions’ social media communication. Full article

The grocerant represents an emerging hybrid retail–foodservice format integrating grocery shopping, prepared meals, and in-store dining. Although practically significant, the academic literature remains limited and dispersed. This PRISMA-informed semi-systematic review synthesizes 16 studies—including direct grocerant research and adjacent work on retail innovation, prepared foods, and digital food retail—to clarify the current state of knowledge. The review followed structured database searches, citation tracking, title/abstract screening, and full-text eligibility assessment. Three main perspectives emerged. First, consumer-focused studies emphasize customer experience, food healthiness, multidimensional perceived value (functional, hedonic, social, and financial), brand prestige, in-store dining behavior, and loyalty. Second, strategic research positions grocerants within retail format innovation and competitive convergence between grocery and restaurant sectors. Third, operational perspectives link grocerants to prepared-food systems, retail food environments, and omnichannel transformation. Major gaps include limited operational and comparative research, geographic concentration, and weak digital integration. The review suggests that grocerants function as evolving systems where convenience, experience, branding, and digital transformation converge. Full article

The green economy has become an economic necessity and a cultural discourse due to the rapid global movement towards sustainability. This paper discusses the representation of green economy in Qatar and Malaysia, two countries with different political and cultural background but similar ambitions to attain sustainable development on social media. Through the application of qualitative techniques, namely thematic analysis and critical discourse analysis, the re-search analyzed Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn posts discussing sustainability, renewable energy, and green innovation by using hashtags and stories on the topic. The results indicate that four major themes exist in both settings, and they are sustainability as national pride and identity, corporate–government branding of green efforts, grassroot and citizen involvement, and conflicts around contradictions and skepticism. Green economy in Qatar is constructed as a symbol of prestige and international presence, which is directly connected to the Qatar National Vision 2030, and popularized at the state and corporate levels. Big projects, financial solutions like green bonds, and sustainable infrastructure are mentioned in narratives and criticism is afforded little space. The environmental sustainability is part of cultural representation and collective accountability, grassroots mobilization, youth activism, and defiance of official and corporate language in Malaysia. A dynamic and critical digital discourse is often criticized by the citizens when they face perceived greenwashing. The research adds to the theoretical knowledge of understanding of framing theory that civic space plays a role in the development of sustainability discourses and the importance of critical discourse analysis in studying power relations in environmental discourse. In practice, the study recommends that Qatar should engage its citizens in more than just symbolic branding; Malaysia should enhance transparency and consistency of its policies to curb the skepticism of its people. In general, the paper highlights the fact that social media is not simply a medium of communication but rather a controversial field on which the definitions of sustainability are actively discussed. Full article

This longitudinal study examines how perceived brand globalness (PBG) influenced sustainable purchase intentions (SPI) between 2021 and 2024, incorporating factors such as perceived brand quality (PBQ), perceived brand prestige (PBP), brand–cause fit (BCF), and the moderating effect of consumer ethnocentrism (CE). Using survey responses from 415 participants, the study employed partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) via SmartPLS4. The findings reveal that CE emerged as significant in 2024, while PBP’s impact on SPI weakened—suggesting a growing consumer association of prestige with sustainability. Heightened post-pandemic ethical awareness further underscores the importance of brand values. Contrary to earlier research indicating low CE in developing markets, the 2024 results demonstrate an unexpected rise in CE, highlighting its evolving significance. Overall, the study emphasizes the necessity for global brands to adopt sustainable, locally attuned strategies to succeed in developing countries. Full article

Masstige fashion brands present a promising alternative to both luxury and fast fashion in the context of sustainability, offering an affordable yet prestigious option. However, these brands face the challenge of leveraging digital transformation tools while balancing prestige and accessibility. With its visual appeal, interactive features, and daily usage, Instagram Stories is a highly engaging communication tool for masstige brands. Despite its importance, ephemeral brand communication remains an underexplored area. This study investigates how young consumers interpret and decode Instagram Stories featuring human models from masstige fashion brands that represent identitary values Sexuality and Seduction, Seasonality, and Renewal. Using mind mapping and focus group discussions with 75 frequent Instagram users, findings reveal that audiences actively reinterpret brand messages, sometimes reshaping their intended meaning. Highly stylized celebrities led to skepticism or disengagement, while authentic, everyday portrayals fostered positive engagement. Sexualized imagery was often reframed as functional rather than aspirational. The study reveals that while brands aim to communicate identitary values such as Sexuality and Seduction, these are usually reinterpreted or even rejected by users in favor of values like comfort, simplicity, or emotional authenticity. Conversely, values like Seasonality, Renewal, and Quality were more consistently recognized and positively decoded, suggesting a more substantial alignment between brand encoding and audience perception in those domains. Full article

Given their functionality, all smartphone brands are the same. Their similarities notwithstanding, they supply the same product at different prices in the same market. Strangely enough, the consumers do comply and willingly pay such price premiums. This study examines the mediation effect of price premium and brand preference on the causal impact of brand equity on sustainable purchase intention. The novelty of this study is in transforming the initial measures in a 5-point Likert scale into continuous values through a fuzzification and defuzzification process. Brand equity comprises three factors: brand awareness, perceived quality, and prestige value. Standardized questionnaire collected data in two countries (Taiwan and Indonesia) on two brands of smartphones (iPhone and HTC). Overall, 404 questionnaires were distributed in Taiwan, and 434 questionnaires were distributed in Indonesia. The data were analyzed by applying a structural equation model after conducting an exploratory and confirmatory factors analysis. In order to improve the estimations’ accuracy, the initial measures in a 5-point Likert scale were transformed into continuous values through a fuzzification and defuzzification process. The former consisted of assigning triangular fuzzy numbers, and the latter entailed assigning a center of gravity to each triangular fuzzy number and then extracting a random number from a normal distribution function based on the center of gravity. According to the results, price premium and brand preference exhibited significant mediation effects, with price premium having stronger effects than brand preference. Furthermore, the mediation effect was strongest for perceived quality and weakest for perceived prestige value. Full article

Universities play a significant role in the economic development of society as they provide knowledge and skills that are essential for social sustainability. In recent years, universities shifted their focus towards student-centered education and need to reconsider their sustainable strategies to become more competitive by encouraging student co-creation behaviors. To create a unique experience, universities aim to involve students in creating and delivering their educational experiences. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the perceived quality of educational service and the institutional image of a university influence students’ value co-creation behavior, and the role of loyalty in this process. The study is based on two complementary studies conducted in an Italian public university. The first study involved 720 undergraduate students with one business management bachelor’s degree who completed a questionnaire to collect primary data. The second study used six focus groups to identify which specific students’ experiences and university activities stimulated co-creation behaviors. The results show that student loyalty plays an important mediating role between university image, students’ quality perception, and co-creation behavior. Additionally, only three dimensions of quality, namely quality non-academy aspects, quality reputation, and quality access have an impact on students’ loyalty. Therefore, only two dimensions of brand image, university brand knowledge (UK), and university brand prestige (UPR) have a direct effect on value co-creation behavior. These findings have important implications for higher education institutions (HEIs) to develop managerial strategies that increase students’ co-creation behavior. The co-creation process should be considered as part of HEIs’ image-building and quality policy-enhancing strategy. Despite the value co-creation approach being overlooked in studies on HEIs governance, this study highlights its potential as a strategic approach for improving service quality and university image. Full article

The objective of this study is to identify the role of Chinese tourists’ shopping values in the formation of their outcome variables. This study more specifically proposes that two dimensions of shopping values, which include utilitarian and hedonic shopping values, positively affect brand prestige. In addition, it was hypothesized that brand prestige helps in regard to enhancing well-being perceptions and brand preference. It was also proposed that well-being perceptions and brand preference have a positive influence on word-of-mouth. This study also hypothesized the moderating role of country image in the proposed model. The survey responses were collected from 634 Chinese duty-free tourists. The data analysis results showed that both utilitarian and hedonic shopping values significantly affect brand prestige. Moreover, brand prestige was found to be a significant determinant of well-being perceptions, and well-being perceptions positively affect brand preference. Brand preference is a critical factor affecting word-of-mouth. Lastly, country image played a moderating role in the relationship between brand prestige and well-being perceptions and brand preference and word-of-mouth. Full article

Profitable and dynamic, the cosmetics industry strives to conform to the environmental ideals and practices of the 21st century. For years, NGOs, the media, and consumers have accused cosmetics brands of pollution, environmental disasters, and safety concerns. These allegations can spread faster in the online environment and cause genuine brand crises. Many cosmetic company managers continue to assess the necessity of accelerating their business toward sustainability initiatives and being more consumer centric. Therefore, this paper aims to examine the impact of economic, social, and environmental sustainability on brand attachment and brand attractiveness, which may result in a positive WOM, enhance purchase intention, and finally lead to the intention to join online brand communities. To implement the research scope, the authors developed a conceptual model based on the triple bottom line (TBL) and the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) approach. To assess the conceptual model, the authors have conducted quantitative research, through an online questionnaire, with data being collected from consumers via an online survey platform. The snowball sample comprised 1632 valid responses from consumers of sustainable cosmetics brands. Further on, the conceptual model was assessed employing structural equations modelling via SmartPLS. The results confirm the impact of the three pillars of TBL (i.e., economic, social, and environmental sustainability) (stimuli) on brand attachment and brand attractiveness (organism), which finally generates positive WOM, triggers purchase intention, and enhances consumers’ intention to join an online brand community (response). From a theoretical perspective, our research contributes to extending knowledge based on the SOR approach and TBL applied to sustainable cosmetics brands. Considering the significant effects of economic, social, and environmental sustainability on consumer perception and intention, the study also pinpoints some major management implications for the cosmetic industry. Full article

Introduction: Over the last decades, the university system has experienced huge growth, facing several challenges. Accordingly, the University of Pisa recognizes the value and opportunities deriving from research and fully supports collaboration with the world of entrepreneurship and industry, as well as local communities. Study programs, teaching methods and technologies, learning environments, quality assurance, programmed student numbers, and research results are key features of the prestige of the scientific community. Aim: In this respect, “Sport and Anatomy”, a brand that includes an academic organization at the University of Pisa, holds two main goals: (i) to offer the top level in both educational and professional fields; and (ii) to optimize the fine-tuning among all these sections, thus becoming a reference point for sports management. Methods and results: Indispensable links between basic and specialist sciences through different Masters’ and schools were created. In addition to didactic activity, research activity, medical assistance, and rehabilitation were coordinated. Two main outcomes emerged from this experience: (i) improved stakeholder performances and (ii) optimized cooperation between university and local communities. Conclusions: “Sport and Anatomy” plays a key role in supervising and accomplishing in an innovative way all the three missions of the university (i.e., teaching, research, and dissemination of knowledge), thus strongly fulfilling the aims of modern university targets. Full article

It is indisputable that technology is present in everyday life. In this digital era, brands need to adapt to the changing pace of the needs and desires of society to distinguish themselves from their adversaries, especially in the electronic environment. Hence, they must have well-defined and successful marketing and advertising strategies to achieve a place on the podium of preference of consumers. This work intends to understand how the communication strategies of Apple and Samsung affect the decisions of consumers in Portugal to buy electronic devices. To this end, a survey was conducted, and the responses of 700 individuals who reside in Portugal were analysed through descriptive and inferential (chi-square test of independence) statistics. The survey results show that cost-benefit, price, technical specifications, and performance are the characteristics that weigh the most when purchasing electronic devices, as well as the perceived prestige of the brand. Additionally, an association was found between having only one device and having more products of the brand, with Apple users having more frequently more than one of the brand’s products than Samsung users. We thus concluded that Apple consumers are more loyal. It was also found that the store where the devices are brought is not independent, in Portugal, of the brand of the devices. Apple users buy more brand products from the brand store, both physical and online, than Samsung users. Finally, advertisements and word-of-mouth were found to be fundamental for consumers to acknowledge brand devices, and the degree in which this happens is also not independent of the brand, in Portugal, as a chi-square independence test showed. Full article

Given that the market is becoming more competitive, it is imperative to understand what influences purchasing decisions of global consumers as consumer trends change regarding botanic cosmetics for anti-aging, maintaining appearance and skin health. This study considers and examines susceptibility to global consumer culture (SGCC) (conformity to consumer trend, social prestige, and quality perception) and its effect on affective commitment, which in turn influences behavioral commitment and loyalty in the context of the botanic cosmetic industry. In addition to examining the structural relationships among the variables, we test whether purchase experience moderates the proposed relationships. The results are as follows. First, conformity to consumer trends has a significant effect on emotional commitment, but is not positively associated with behavioral commitment. Second, social prestige has no significant direct effect on either emotional or behavioral commitment. Third, quality perception has a significant impact on emotional commitment, but no positive impact on behavioral commitment. Fourth, both emotional commitment and behavioral commitment affect brand loyalty, and behavioral commitment in particular has a significant effect on brand loyalty. Finally, through the analysis of the moderating effect on the cosmetic purchasing experience, first, it was confirmed that the less purchasing experience, the stronger the effect of conformity to consumption trend (CCT) on emotional commitment and behavioral commitment. Full article

Many individual differences affect consumers in the decision-making process (i.e., what to purchase; when to purchase). Face consciousness and public self-consciousness affect when in the fashion life cycle consumers decide to purchase, as well as what to purchase. Both face consciousness and public self-consciousness are concerned with consciousness (i.e., awareness; mindfulness) and both depend on social comparison processes. But the motivation underlying the social comparisons is different: with face consciousness, social comparisons yield appraisals of prestige and social status; with public self-consciousness, social comparisons yield assessments of situational appropriateness. The purpose of this study was to examine links among face consciousness; public self-consciousness; brand prestige; self-expressive brand (inner; social), and fashion leadership. Participants were 221 university students who completed a questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s alpha reliability, and multivariate/univariate analysis of variance (M/ANOVA) were conducted to analyze data. Results showed that face consciousness and public self-consciousness similarly affected ratings of the social self-expressive brand. However, face consciousness (but not public self-consciousness) influenced ratings of brand prestige and inner self-expressive brand. Public self-consciousness (but not face consciousness) influenced fashion leadership. Thus, while face consciousness and public self-consciousness are both concerned with consciousness, they independently influence consumer decision-making in different ways. Theoretical and practical implications are provided. Full article

Universities are becoming aware of the importance of social networking sites for the reinforcement of their institutional brands. This study was conducted to analyze the extent to which best-ranked universities use social networking sites. A quantitative methodology and digital methods were used to measure the social media presence of the first 400 universities listed in the QS (Quacquarelli Symonds) World University Ranking 2018. The results reveal a high degree of involvement of those universities on social media; some factors that are associated with significant differences in the adoption of social networking sites include the public versus private management model, the level of academic prestige, and the region of origin. Full article

The study aims to investigate the formation of customer loyalty among luxury restaurant patrons in Korea. Moreover, the study investigated how the restaurants’ performance could contribute to the trust and sustainability of the Michelin restaurant guide’s reputation. The study identified meal experience, brand credibility, and brand love to influence customers’ revisit intention and willingness to pay a premium. The study surveyed 400 luxury restaurant patrons in Korea. The Michelin restaurant guide was used to classify fine dining restaurants. Measurement items from previously validated studies were adopted. The results of the study showed the meal experience scale satisfactorily measures service performance and leads to the formation of brand credibility. Subsequently, brand prestige and brand love significantly predicted customers’ loyalty intentions. Additionally, brand credibility helps form the trust of the Michelin guide and eventually predicts the long-term reputation of the guide. Full article