Relationship qualities of brand heritage: warmth, competence and the moderating roles of anthropomorphic factors

Purpose Research has started exploring how brand heritage perceptions affect people. However, little attention has been paid to the underlying mechanisms and the link between brand heritage and relational outcomes. This study aims to integrate research on brand heritage with the stereotype-content model (SCM) to offer a novel explanation of why and when consumers identify with heritage brands. Design/methodology/approach Two quasi-experimental studies with consumers in Germany (N = 312 and N = 300) focus on multiple real brands to test the mediating roles of warmth and competence. Given the central role of anthropomorphism in brand applications of the SCM, two corresponding variables are examined as moderators, one relating to the brand (brand anthropomorphism) and the other relating to the individual (a person’s feeling of loneliness). Category involvement, state anxiety, brand familiarity, past orientation and consumer age are included as controls. Findings The findings indicate that warmth and competence mediate the brand heritage consumer–brand identification relationship. In addition, they highlight the moderating role of brand anthropomorphism and loneliness. Research limitations/implications This study offers a novel process explanation for how brand heritage perceptions influence consumer–brand relationships, contingent upon loneliness and anthropomorphism. Practical implications The findings help marketers better understand how and when warmth and competence transmit positive brand heritage effects, resulting in more favorable responses. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this work is among the first to adopt a stereotype-content and anthropomorphic perspective on consumer responses to brand heritage perceptions.

目的 研究已开始探索品牌传承认知如何影响人们。然而，对于潜在机制以及品牌传承与关系结果之间的联系关注甚少。本研究旨在将品牌传承研究与刻板印象内容模型（SCM）相结合，为消费者为何以及何时认同传承品牌提供一种新的解释。 设计/方法/途径 在德国针对消费者进行的两项准实验研究（样本量分别为N = 312和N = 300）聚焦多个真实品牌，以检验温暖和能力的中介作用。鉴于拟人化在SCM的品牌应用中具有核心作用，研究检验了两个相应的变量作为调节因素，一个与品牌相关（品牌拟人化），另一个与个人相关（个人的孤独感）。类别涉入度、状态焦虑、品牌熟悉度、过去导向以及消费者年龄作为控制变量被纳入研究。 研究结果 研究结果表明，温暖和能力在品牌传承与消费者 - 品牌认同关系中起中介作用。此外，研究结果还凸显了品牌拟人化和孤独感的调节作用。 研究局限性/启示 本研究针对品牌传承认知如何影响消费者 - 品牌关系提供了一种新的过程解释，这种影响取决于孤独感和拟人化。 实践意义 研究结果有助于营销人员更好地理解温暖和能力如何以及何时传递积极的品牌传承效应，从而引发更有利的反应。 创新性/价值 据作者所知，本研究是首批从刻板印象内容和拟人化视角探讨消费者对品牌传承认知的反应的研究之一。