Jorge Matute, Ramon Palau-Saumell and Nicoletta Occhiocupo
The purpose of this study is to provide a better understanding of customer brand engagement (CBE) by proposing and empirically testing a model of antecedents and consequences of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to provide a better understanding of customer brand engagement (CBE) by proposing and empirically testing a model of antecedents and consequences of CBE for user-initiated online brand communities (OBCs).
Design/methodology/approach
The model is tested using a sample of 584 participants in two relevant OBCs created and managed by brand fans. Specifically, data were collected from two communities in the photography products category: Nikonistas and Canonistas.
Findings
The results indicate that community and brand identification positively and significantly influence CBE. Furthermore, the supporting role of OBCs’ moderators facilitates CBE and moderates the influence of community identification on CBE. Regarding the outcomes of CBE, the results show that higher levels of engagement are positively, directly and significantly associated with favorable intentions towards the brand and the community. These effects are then mediated by brand affective commitment.
Research limitations/implications
The study has been conducted in two Spanish OBCs of two specific high-involvement products category: it is cross-sectional and focuses on a limited number of antecedents and consequences.
Practical implications
Evidence from this research supports and emphasizes the potential that these platforms have for brand management such that firms’ resources could be best allocated on those elements that lead to superior CBE.
Originality/value
The study endorses the role of CBE in fostering brand and community-related favorable outcomes in the context of user-initiated OBCs. It shed lights on the potential that these online platforms have for brands and on the role that brand management should play in digital contexts that are outside the direct control of the company.
Details
Keywords
Belén Derqui, Teresa Fayos and Nicoletta Occhiocupo
This paper aims to shed light on features of successful innovation and on the role played by downstream open innovation (OI) dynamics in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to shed light on features of successful innovation and on the role played by downstream open innovation (OI) dynamics in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry. It also explores the reasons for the decline in the number of disruptive innovations in this industry in the European Union (EU).
Design/methodology/approach
The authors interpret the data in a Kantar consumer panel dataset on disruptive innovations in Spain through an exploratory research including in-depth interviews with 19 managers in the industry.
Findings
Results show that downstream open innovation in this industry is mostly limited to the executional stage in the process and highlight the crucial role played by the point of purchase in the success of innovations. The authors build up a virtuous circle of innovation based on features such as the use of OI processes, company focus and marketing support, transparency and collaboration with retailers, as well as the product's uniqueness and its potential to become viral.
Research limitations/implications
The paper focuses on Spain and, thus, results cannot be generalised. Further research in other countries would be interesting.
Practical implications
The study describes the features of disruptive innovators and develops an extensive list of success factors.
Social implications
The development of disruptive innovation is a source of competitive advantages and one of the most relevant activities of managers today. Nevertheless, the number of disruptive innovations is in decline, and only a few succeed, negatively affecting consumer welfare.
Originality/value
Through this study, the authors provide insights on the features of successful innovators in FMCGs and describe the factors affecting the decreasing trend in the number of breakthrough innovations. Further, this paper fulfils an identified need to study OI in low-tech industries.
Details
Keywords
Nikolay Korotkov, Nicoletta Occhiocupo and Lyndon Simkin
The world's leading manufacturers of fast moving consumer goods (FMCGs) generate up to 50 per cent of their revenues in emerging markets. Simulated test marketing (STM) is a…
Abstract
Purpose
The world's leading manufacturers of fast moving consumer goods (FMCGs) generate up to 50 per cent of their revenues in emerging markets. Simulated test marketing (STM) is a common practice deployed by these companies to forecast new product sales. Emerging markets represent only a small portion of the global STM business. The purpose of this paper is to incorporate and further explore some key trends anticipated in the development of the future generation of STM models by drawing specific attention to the issues currently experienced in one of the emerging markets, Russia.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative survey of Russian client-side marketing experts provides strong evidence for the need to further improve and modify STM methods, addressing new challenges in rapidly developing markets of Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America and Africa.
Findings
Marketers in Russia believe many STM approaches poorly reflect the nuances and characteristics of their markets. This has implications for global players targeting emerging markets based on assumptions formed for STM in their home markets.
Research limitations/implications
This is a preliminary study which warrants following up. Its basis in Russia arguably has implications for other emerging markets, but whether these findings are evident in other markets needs to be tested.
Practical implications
FMCG companies in Russia would appreciate a flexible, proactive, “client-oriented” approach as opposed to conservative, “model-centered” services based on “global” execution standards. This would lead to the co-creation of STM models that could achieve more accurate forecasts in emerging markets and achieve a greater level of confidence in the use of STM among multinational FMCG companies.
Originality/value
The research undertaken leads to a general conclusion that although traditional STM models have attained relatively high awareness among FMCGs in Russia, their use is still limited as there is a perception of this being a research instrument that would need adaptation to the Russian market. Instead, simpler, cheaper and less time consuming alternatives are often employed, such as expert assessments, basic quantitative or qualitative tests. Although the most commonly acknowledged advantages of STM are well understood in Russia, there are some key barriers to its widespread adoption: poor quality or insufficient market data, lack of local market experience and validations, lower forecast accuracy as compared to “western” markets, low flexibility in terms of design and cost.