The impact of brand activism on brand equity among Generation Z consumers

• Autor(a) principal: Kubetzek, Paula
• Data de Publicação: 2022
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.14/40083
• topic: Brand equity; Consumer-brand relationships; Communication trends; Brand activism; Generation Z; Relações consumidor-marca; Tendências de comunicação; Ativismo de marca; Geração Z; Domínio/Área Científica::Ciências Sociais::Ciências da Comunicação

With increasing global competition due to the diffusion of information and communication technologies, enhancing value for the customer is critical to build and maintain a unique and competitive position as a brand. One communication trend that has been frequently discussed recently and is seen as adding value in various ways is brand activism. Brands that take a stand on political issues not only drive social change, but can also build a closer bond with their customers through brand identification. One target group that is expected to value social engagement and place even more emphasis on value identification in their interactions with brands is Generation Z (Gen Z). Given the relevance of brand activism as a current communication trend and Gen Z seemingly different in their consumer behaviour, this thesis aims to contribute to the ever-growing stream of research investigating influences on brand equity. Based on a literature review of different brand equity models, the consumer profile of Gen Z and relevant concepts related to brand activism, an empirical experimental pretest-posttest study design was conducted with brand activism campaigns from two well-known brands and focus on Gen Z consumer (N=194), to explore the influence of brand activism on four brand equity dimensions among Gen Z consumers. The study concludes that while a significant generational difference in favouring brand activism was found between Gen Z consumers and other generations (N=277), exposure to an activism campaign does not reliably increase brand equity, but depends on several factors. First, the impact of exposure to brand activism appears to vary between the different dimensions of brand equity. Second, the study sample suggests that an activism campaign does not seem to be as effective in improving brand equity for brands with already high levels of brand equity prior to stimuli exposure. Third, authenticity seems to play a key role in how brand activism is perceived and how it affects brand equity.