THE PASSION OF YOUNG CUSTOMERS TOWARD BRAND COMMITMENT IN

INTERNATIONAL FRANCHISE RESTAURANT: THE ROLE OF BRAND PASSION

AS AN MEDIATION VARIABLE

Aditya Chris Nuardhana Pandowo Aditya.pandowo@unima.ac.id

Nova Christian Mamuaja chrismy_college@yahoo.com

UNIVERSITAS NEGERI MANADO

Abstract

The research aim is to explore the antecedents and consequences of brand passion. Brand passion

is identified by building brand prestige and brand trust. Further, a customer who has passion to

consume the brand may love and committed to the brand. 232 representative young participants

are taken by purposive sampling method. Respondents are regular young customers who viewed

consumption in fast food restaurant as hedonic behavior. The result shows that both brand

prestige and brand trust are influencing brand passion. In advance, brand commitment is

determined by brand passion. Surprisingly, brand passion plays a role as an intervening variable

from brand prestige to brand commitment whille brand trust failed to perform the same role.

Keywords: brand prestige, brand trust, brand passion, brand commitment

INTRODUCTION

One of the main challenges for marketer is to create consumers’ passion to engage them

with the brand. Customers who have passion in mind, would pushing themselves to buy a brand.

Passionate consumers are driven by desires that are overpowering and may dominate consumers'

thoughts, feelings, and actions, and often come alive in a social context (Belk et al, 2003). A

positive result will bring them to continuity and permanent purchaser. In advance, if they

success, then consumer-brand relationship is built. In other words, a highly emotional link

between customer and brand is the main key in consumer marketing (Fournier, 1998).

Brand prestige is one of many reasons why customers have passion to buy a brand. For

some customers, a prestigious brand is viewed as a tool or media to demonstrate their status. The

more luxury and expensive the brand, the more prestige they get. Some consumers perceive a

highly reputation brand with quality and exclusive.

Brand trust may occur easily in a high profile brand. Especially if the brands offering

combination of high cost, high end feature, and high durability. A well-known brand, positive

past experience, and good reputation are also lead to brand trust. It is an easy way for customers

in acquire new products or something they never tried before. Moreover, brand trust is essential

for hedonic customers rather than utilitarian.

Young customer is the most customer group who tend to have passion in trying many

things. They prefer to try a new products/services than others age group. Further, this age group

are also seeking for the acceptance for their social status from their peers or relatives by retaining

their purchasing power to express their personal taste, self-regard, and pride.

International chain restaurants offering instant outlook for their consumers. They offer

comfy, tasty, and quickly services. Moreover, they offer reachable price, whereas a great deal for

young consumers. It is much more mutual exclusive for those parties.

Once consumers notice the brand and seeing it as a prestigious brand, they tend to buy

emotionally rather than used their rational mind. Further, as a prestigious brand, it is easy way

for consumers to trust the brand and being hedonic. Hence, the passion emerges for consumers to

buy the brands. Thus, brand commitment is take place if they have positive experience.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the antecedents of brand passion. We also

explore the application of brand passion in international chain franchise restaurant. This article is

organized started by analyzes the theoretical framework of brand passion and its antecedents.

Next, we exposed the methodology and instrument used in the study, and presented the statistical

analyses made as well as the principal findings. And lastly, we will offer the conclusions,

limitations of this study and directions for future research.

LITERATURE REVIEW

1. BRAND PRESTIGE

Brand prestige is defined as the product’s level status associated with a brand (Steenkamp

et al, 2003) where consumers related it with their own identity in order to increase their self-

esteem (Bizman and Yinon, 2002). Further, prestige become a crucial mark for customers to

enhance their social status.

The prestigious of a brand comes from a unique, exceptional accomplishment inherent to

the brand whereas luxury is related to comfort, beauty, and refinement (Dubois and Czellar,

2002), interaction among users, product attributes, and symbolic value (Vigneron and Johnson,

1999). It also can lead to enthusiastic and passionate feelings (Belk, 2004), consumers’ value by

status recognition and role position (Lynn and Jane, 2010), and utility by obtaining and using the

brand (Erdogmus and Burdery-Turan, 2012).

Earlier study suggested that brand prestige formed by brand experience and brand

personality (Erdogmus and Burdery-Turan, 2012), brand excellence (Prince and Davis, 2009),

product quality and performance (Dubois & Czellar, 2002), higher price (Truong et al, 2009) and

the influence of reference groups (e.g., Bearden & Etzel, 1982).

As antecedent construct, brand prestige is well-known as a good predictor for customer

satisfaction, brand trust, brand loyalty, purchase intention (Steenkamp et al, 2003), perceived

quality (Erdogmus and Burdery-Turan, 2012), and brand passion (Belk, 2004). When consumers

seeing a brand is prestigious, then their desire to purchase may occur and believe that the brand

will improve their social and how community look at them.

Brand prestige is related to customers’ own identity and represents as their personal

standing. Prestige is also lead to enthusiastic and passionate feeling to the brand (Belk, 2004).

The argument is supported by the theory of self-esteem and theory of social identity. Therefor:

Hypothesis 1a: brand prestige leads to brand passion.

Brand trust describes as consumer’s willingness to depend on the capability of the brand

(Chaudhuri & Holbrook, 2001). If a customer perceived a brand may increase their prestige and

status, they will depend on the brand. It means customers’ perception of upscale, prestige, and

high status on a particular brand will affect to brand trust. Hence, we propose brand prestige

leads to brand trust.

Hypothesis 1b: brand prestige leads to brand trust.

2. BRAND TRUST

Brand trust refers to consumers’ expectation about brand’s reliability in a risky situation

(Delgado-Ballester et al, 2001) to decline uncertainty, consumers’ comfort (Chiu et al, 2010),

enhance brand performance (Carrol and Ahuvia, 2006). Trust is a dynamic element. It can be

unidimensional (Morgan and Hunt, 1994), bidimensional (Ganesan, 1994), tridimensional (Hess,

1995), even multidimensional. If multidimensional, trust consist of ability, honesty, and altruism.

In addition, brand trust consists of adequacy, philanthropy, and honesty as trust indicators (Suh

and Han, 2003).

Some studies verify that repeated interaction is the key to build brand trust (Schau et al,

2009). Further, some antecedents are also significantly influence brand trust such as: brand

experience and brand satisfaction (Chinomona, 2013), perceived quality (Ercis et al, 2012), and

brand personality (Louis and Lombart, 2010).

Prior study proved that brand trust play a significant role as an antecedent of brand

passion (Thomson et al, 2005, Albert and Merunka, 2013). Based on above discussion, thus, we

proposed:

Hypothesis 3a: the more individual trust the brand, the bigger they have brand passion

Brand trust also plays crucial role in relational marketing because it involved in highly

valued relationship (Chaudhuri and Holbrook, 2001). Consumers need to trust the brand before

being committed (Garbarino and Johnson, 1999). In contrast, consumers will less committed

when trust is not well established. Therefore, brand trust is a basic element to create brand

commitment. Previous research suggested that brand trust is linked to brand commitment

(Chaudhuri and Holbrook, 2001; Ercis et al, 2012). As a result, we propose:

Hypothesis 3b: the more individual trust the brand, the more possible they commit to the

brand

3. BRAND PASSION

The construct of brand passion mainly designed from triangular theory of love

(Sternberg, 1986) consist of: intimacy, commitment, and passion. Further, marketing researchers

applied Sternberg’s theory into marketing context by examining customers feeling toward a

brand. Then, some studies in consumer’s passion had result in brand passion definition.

Previously, brand passion is defined as a primarily affective, extremely positive attitude toward a

specific brand that leads to emotional attachment and influences relevant behavior factors (Bauer

et al, 2007). In recent years, definition of brand passion has become more reliable under Albert et

al (2013), where they stated as psychological construct comprised of excitation, infatuation, and

obsession for a brand and a feeling which few consumers embrace.

A dualistic approach of passion activities is divided into harmonious brand passion and

obsessive brand passion (Vallerand et al, 2003; Swimberghe et al, 2014). Harmonious brand

passion is a result from autonomous internalization when individuals without any outside

simultaneous like, find, and decide to buy and keep relationship with the brand. In contrast,

obsessive brand passion is a result from internalization controlled by socio-intern pressures.

Hence, the relationship with the brand is out of individual’s control but contingencies issues such

as social acceptance, self-esteem or social class. Therefore, the individual become obsessed to

the brand.

Prior studies prove that brand passion linked to some antecedents, such as brand

identification and brand trust (Albert et al, 2013), brand uniqueness, brand prestige, and hedonic

brand (Bauer et al, 2007; Sarkar et al, 2012)), brand experience (Sarkar et al, 2012) However,

extraversion is still arguable predictor reminding that Bauer (2007) failed to relate it to brand

passion while Matzler et al (2007) did it.

In the meantime, brand passion also plays an essential role into consumer loyalty

(Whang, Allen, Sahourny, & Zhang, 2004), consumer's willingness to pay a price premium for

the brand (Albert et al., 2013; Bauer, 2007), brand knowledge (Fuller et al, 2008), word of mouth

and purchase intention (Bauer et al, 2007; Sarkar et al, 2012).

Previous study shows the relationship between brand passion and brand commitment is

existed (Albert et al, 2013). Therefore, we propose:

Hypothesis 4: The more consumer passionate to the brand, the more possible to commit to

the brand

4. BRAND COMMITMENT

Brand commitment is a reflection of how strength consumers’ relationship with the

brand. Brand commitment is defined as an enduring desire to maintain valued relationship

(Moorman et al, 1992). Once consumers feel warm, satisfy, and love, they tend to attach with the

brand, commit to rebuy, and tie with the brand.

As a psychological attachment, brand commitment is divided into two dimensions,

attitudinal and behavioral (Shuv-Ami, 2012). The attitudinal dimension consists of evaluation

attachment and emotional attachment (Klein et al, 2009) while behavioral dimension is

customer’s experience with brand’s perceived benefit. The attitudinal dimensional reflected to

affective commitment which is related to emotional attachment and engagement attachment.

Emotional attachment lead to brand loyalty while engagement attachment lead to involvement.

In contrast, behavioral dimension refers to calculative commitment, also called cognitive, which

is related to evaluation attachment and experiential attachment. Evaluation attachment will lead

to performance while experiential attachment lead to satisfaction.

Some predictors are associated with brand commitment, for instance: brand trust and

brand love (Albert and Merunka, 2013), brand experience (Iglesias et al, 2011), brand

personality and brand attachment (Louis and Lombart, 2010).

METHODOLOGY

1. POPULATION AND SAMPLE

As a field research, survey method was used to gather primary data. All questions were

made in closed structure and respondents will choose on provided answer. It is need less than 10

minutes to answer all questions. Meanwhile, secondary data is collected through literature

review, data related to product category, previous researches, and journals and books.

The sample taken by purposive sampling, which a sample taken based on specific criteria

(Cooper and Schindler, 2003). In this research, the respondents are regular consumer in

international franchise restaurant. So, the respondents will perceive the brand based on their

experiences. Sample is taken fit to the item parameters as much as 16 questions.

RESULTS

1. DATA

The data were gathered as much as 239 from 250 questioners. 232 questioners are

feasible to assess and qualified to be examine, while the rest is unfeasible because of respondents

did not complete the answer.

2. RESPONDENTS’ CHARACTERSITIC

Respondents’ characteristics are described in age, sex, education, brand, and purchase

intention.

Table 1. Respondents’ Characteristic Based on Demographics

Demographic Category Quantity Demographic Category QuantityAge 17

1819202122

308341332124

Resto & Cafe McDKFCA&W

Pizza Hut J’Co

StarbucksExcelso

647414507185

Sex Male 100 Female 132Education High School

CollegeWorkingOthers

551006314

Frequency AlwaysOften

SometimesRarely

68933833

Table 1 shows the respondents characteristic based on their ages. The youngest

respondent is 17 years old as much as 30 persons. In the meantime, the biggest age group is 18

years old consists of 83 respondents, followed by 19 and 20 years old which recorded 41 and 33

respondents respectively. The others age group are 21 and 22 years old almost noted the same

number, 21 and 24 respondents.

The table also point out 100 respondents are male and the rest are 132 are female. Almost

50% are college students while the rest confess themselves as high school students (55), working

employee (63), and others (14). Most of them are likely to purchase at Kentucky Fried Chicken,

McDonald, and Pizza Hut by 74, 64, and 50 respondents respectively, while the others choose to

spend their time at Starbucks, A&W, J.co, and Excelso as much as 18, 14, 7, and 5 respondents

respectively.

The table also mention about respondents purchase behavior where 93 respondents admit

spend often times and 68 persons declare always buy their products. Meanwhile, 38 and 33

persons stated sometimes and rarely.

3. VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY TEST

3.1 Validity & Reliability Test

Validity test on each construct is used to examine to what extent indicators measure

theme the construct. Validity testing is used to measure how well the item parameter may

predict its construct (Hair et al, 1998).

Table 2. Validity Testing

Variable Brand Prestige

Brand Trust

Brand Passion Brand Commitment

BPrestige1BPrestige2BPrestige3BPrestige4

0.6790.7350.7430.765

BTrust1BTrust2 BTrust3 BTrust4

0.7700.7610.7800.772

BPassion1BPassion2 BPassion3 BPassion4 BPassion5

0.7740.7300.8140.6780.675

BCommitment1BCommitment2 BCommitment3

0.8360.8290.855

The table 2 shows the exhibit the results of validity test conducted for the 16 items. Since

all parameters are above 0.4, means that all parameters are acceptable.

3.2 Reliability Test

Reliability test on each construct is used by Cronbach’s Alpha Coefficient and item-to-

total correlation to eliminate item parameter that may reduce Cronbach’s Alpha. The

requirement value of Cronbach Alpha is no less than 0.6.

Table 3. Reliability Results

Variable Alpha

Brand Prestige 0.771

Brand Trust 0.774

Brand Passion 0.777

Brand Commitment 0.791

Table 6 shows that all variables’ alpha are higher than the minimum Cronbach Alpha

value. However, brand prestige shows the lowest Cronbach-alpha while Brand commitment is

the highest one.

4. CAUSALITY EVALUATION

Hypothesis testing to estimate the influence of a construct to another constructs can be

seen in regression weight estimate with significant level on alpha 0.05 with C.R > 2.

Figure 1 Causality Relationships among Constructs

Brand Prestige

Brand Passion

Brand Commitment

Brand Trust

4.392

1.494

2.069

2.296

2.477

2.136

5. HYPOTHESIS TESTING & DISCUSSION

Hypothesis testing is made by two ways, first, we analyzing significant causal

relationship among constructs in the research model which can be seen in Critical Ratio (CR),

second, it can be seen in standardized structural (path) coefficients on each hypothesis where the

relationship has an appropriate direction as like as we hypothesized. If the relationship and C.R

value meet the requirements of hypothesis, it means the result is support the hypothesis.

1) Hypothesis 1

The objective of this hypothesis is to analyze the relationship of brand prestige to brand

passion and brand trust. The result show a significant effect from brand prestige to both

brand passion (2.296) and brand commitment (2.136). Moreover, those findings are

supported prior research when both Belk (2004) and Chaudhuri & Holbrook (2001) found the

same result. Further explanation in this finding is customer may see the product as a prestige

brand. The prestige brands drive customers’ passion to consume. In the meantime, the higher

level a prestige brand, the higher customers trust to the brand.

2) Hypothesis 2

In this study we examine the relationship of brand trust to brand passion and brand

commitment. We found that brand trust is significantly related to brand passion (2,477) while

the relationship between brand trust to brand commitment (1,494) show insignificant. The

findings supported the previous study by Thomson et al (2005) and Albert and Merunka

(2013) in linking brand trust and brand passion. In contrast, the other hypothesis is failed

consider that the respondents are young hedonic customers who likely to try new products or

dynamic in buy option. They avoid committed to the restaurant as they want more variant in

menu deals.

Further, the more product available in option market, the less they committed to the brand.

3) Hypothesis 3

We also measure the relationship of brand passion and brand commitment. We found that

brand passion effects to brand commitment is significantly positive. It also confirm the prior

research by Albert et al (2013) who found the same result. Customers who have passion in

their mind will declare committed to the brand. The bigger their passion to the brand, the

higher their commitment to the brand.

6. ADDITIONAL FINDING

In order to explore the relationship between those variables, we also examine the

probability of some variables that could play as intervening variable. Based on Baron and Kenny

(1986), the requirement in intervening examination may apply if the relationship between three

or more variables are existed. Since the relationship between brand trust and brand commitment

is not significant, then we can’t examine the relationship from brand prestige and brand

commitment through brand trust. In contrast, we found that brand passion plays as mediation

variable from brand prestige to brand commitment. Therefore, the final model in our research as

follow:

Figure 2 Final Model

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

1. CONCLUSION

Based on the analysis and models measurement with Structural Equation Model, it shows

that goodness of fit indicator as much as 0.923, Tucker Lewis Index constitute 0.924, and

Root Mean Square Error of Approximation are suitable, although the others indicator are

marginal.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

1. CONCLUSION

Our research proved that some hypothesis are accepted. First, there is significant relation

between brand prestige to both brand passion and brand trust. Second, we also noted that brand

trust is influencing brand passion but insignificant to brand commitment. Three, there also an

evidence that brand passion is positively effect to brand commitment. Moreover, we also

investigate the possibility of mediation effect of those variable. Although brand trust can’t

mediate from brand prestige to brand commitment, but brand passion did it well.

Brand Trust

Brand Commitment

Brand Passion

Brand Prestige

2. MANAGERIAL IMPLICATION

Marketers may use these findings as their groundwork to increase customers’

commitment to the brand. First, we find brand passion as consequence of brand prestige and

brand trust. If the brand seen to be a high level prestigious brand, than it would be easy for

customers to trust the brand. Moreover, a prestigious brand also occurs curiosity from customer

and passion to consume. Second, the relationship between brand trust and brand passion also

consider that a trusted brand will drive consumers’ passion to buy. In order to resist product’s

risk, customer will choose the trusted brand than any other brand. Finally, customer commitment

to the brand is exist when the brand passion and brand prestige are built. Their combination may

attract customers’ willingness to stay on the same brand rather than switch to other brand.

3. RESEARCH LIMITATION & SUGGESTION

This research carried only one industry so it cannot be generalized. Another

consideration is the samples are taken from young hedonic customers and may not represent all

residents’ demographic characteristics. We suggest some crucial elements for further research.

First, we can compare two or more product categories in future research. Second, a new launch

product or brand would be more interesting since the customers inexperience in consume the

brand before. At last, we propose more additional variables like information searching, brand

knowledge, or brand loyalty in future.

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