CAUSE-RELATED MARKETING AND CONSUMER PREFERENCES: THE ROLE OF BRAND FAMILIARITY, DONATION FRAMING, AND BRAND ATTITUDES

Abstract

The success of cause-related marketing (CRM) campaigns depends on the company's ability to effectively manage a number of factors. In the existing literature, studies on which variables will yield more successful results in CRM campaign design have revealed conflicting results. This study examines effects of brand familiarity and donation framing on the effectiveness of CRM campaign (in terms of purchase intention and willingness to pay more) and the moderating role of attitude towards the brand. The study involves a 2x2 between-groups experimental design. Brand familiarity (high vs low) and donation type (direct monetary vs percentage of sales) were manipulated using vignettes.Hypotheses were tested with two-way analyses of variance and covariance. Data analyses revealed that attitude towards the brand significantly moderates the association between brand familiarity and campaign effectiveness. However, donation framing was found to exert no significant effect on campaign effectiveness. The findings are discussed, and theoretical and practical implications are presented.

Keywords

• cause-related marketing
• brand familiarity
• donation framing
• attitude towards the brand
• purchase intentions

Amaca Yönelik Pazarlama ve Tüketici Tercihleri: Marka Bilinirliği, Bağış Çerçevelemesi ve Markaya Yönelik Tutumun Rolü

Abstract

Amaca yönelik pazarlama kampanyalarının başarısı, firmanın pek çok değişkeni etkili bir biçimde bir araya getirmesiyle sağlanabilir. Kampanya tasarımında hangi değişkenlerin daha başarılı sonuçlar vereceğine yönelik mevcut çalışmalar çelişkili sonuçlar ortaya çıkarmıştır. Bu araştırmada, marka bilinirliği ve bağış çerçevelemesi değişkenlerinin amaca yönelik pazarlama kampanyasının başarısı (satın alma niyeti ve daha fazla ödeme isteği) üzerindeki etkisi ve bu etkide markaya yönelik tutumun düzenleyici rolü incelenmiştir. Marka bilinirliği (yüksek ve düşük) ile bağış çerçevelemesi (parasal ve oransal) değişkenleri kısa bir hikâye ile manipüle edilerek 2x2 gruplar arası deneysel bir tasarım kurgulanmıştır. Hipotezler iki yönlü varyans ve kovaryans analizleri ile test edilmiştir. Analizler sonucunda, markaya yönelik tutumun, marka bilinirliği ile kampanya başarısı arasındaki bağıntıyı anlamlı bir şekilde değiştirdiği belirlenmiştir. Ancak, bağış çerçevelemesi ile kampanya başarısı arasında anlamlı bir bağıntı saptanamamıştır. Bulgular tartışılmış, firmalara ve araştırmacılara önerilerde bulunularak çalışma tamamlanmıştır.

Keywords

• amaca yönelik pazarlama
• marka bilinirliği
• bağış çerçevelemesi
• markaya yönelik tutum
• satın alma niyeti

References

1. Bigne-Alcaniz, E., Curras-Perez, R., Ruiz-Mafe, C. ve Sanz-Blas, S. (2012). “Cause-related marketing influence on consumer responses: The moderating effect of cause–brand fit”. Journal of Marketing Communications, 18(4): 265-283. doi.org/10.1080/13527266.2010.521358
2. Chang, C. T. (2008). “To donate or not to donate? Product characteristics and framing effects of cause‐related marketing on consumer purchase behavior”. Psychology & Marketing, 25(12): 1089-1110. doi.org/10.1002/mar.20255
3. Cui, Y., Trent, E. S., Sullivan, P. M. ve Matiru, G. N. (2003). “Cause‐related marketing: How generation Y responds”. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 31(6): 310-320. doi.org/10.1108/09590550310476012
4. Eastman, J. K., Smalley, K. B. ve Warren, J. C. (2019). “The impact of cause-related marketing on millennials’product attitudes and purchase intentions”. Journal of Promotion Management, 25(6): 799-826. doi.org/10.1080/10496491.2018.1536625
5. Fan, X., Deng, N., Qian, Y. ve Dong, X. (2020). “Factors afecting the effectiveness of cause‑related marketing: A meta-analysis”. Journal of Business Ethics, 175:339-360. doi.org/10.1007/s10551-020-04639-6
6. Fazio, R.H. ve Williams, C.J. (1986). “Attitude accessibility as a moderator of the attitude- perception and attitude-behavior relations: An investigation of the 1984 presidential election”. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(3), 505–514. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.51.3.505
7. Fornell, C. ve Larcker, D. F. (1981). “Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error”. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1): 39-50. doi.org/10.1177/002224378101800104
8. Hair, J. F., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J. ve Anderson, R. E. (2014). Multivariate data analysis. Pearson New International Edition. Seventh Edition.

9. Hou, J., Du, L. ve Li, J. (2008). “Cause's attributes influencing consumer's purchasing intention: Empirical evidence from China”. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 20(4): 363-380. doi.org/10.1108/13555850810909704
10. Koschate-Fischer, N., Stefan, I. V. ve Hoyer, W. D. (2012). “Willingness to pay for cause-related marketing: The impact of donation amount and moderating effects”. Journal of Marketing Research, 49(6): 910-927. doi.org/10.1509/jmr.10.0511
11. Kuo, A. ve Rice, D. H. (2015). “The impact of perceptual congruence on the effectiveness of cause-related marketing campaigns”. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 25(1): 78-88. doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2014.06.002
12. Kureshi, S. ve Thomas, S. (2020). “Testing the influence of message framing, donation magnitude, and product category in a cause-related marketing context”. Journal of Marketing Communications, 26(3): 268-289. doi.org/10.1080/13527266. 2018.1528475
13. Lafferty, B. A. (2009). “Selecting the right cause partners for the right reasons: The role of importance and fit in cause–brand alliances”. Psychology & Marketing, 26(4): 359-382. doi.org/10.1002/mar.20277
14. Lee, J. ve Rim, H. (2017). “Consumer evaluation of cause-brand alliance in cause-related advertising: The role of brand familiarity and personal relevance”. Business Management and Strategy, 8(1): 103-122. doi.org/10.5296/bms.v8i1.11227
15. Luan, C. C. ve Phan, T. A. (2024). “The effect of emotion type and similarity of experience on consumers' willingness to pay for cause‐related products: Construal level perspective”. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 23(2):808-824. doi.org/10.1002/cb.2245
16. Melero, I. ve Montaner, T. (2016). “Cause-related marketing: An experimental study about how the product type and the perceived fit may influence the consumer response”. European Journal of Management and Business Economics, 25(3): 161-167. doi.org/10.1016/j.redeen.2016.07.001
17. Moosmayer, D. C. ve Fuljahn, A. (2010). “Consumer perceptions of cause related marketing campaigns”. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 27(6): 543-549. doi.org/10.1108/07363761011078280
18. Moosmayer, D. C. ve Fuljahn, A. (2013). “Corporate motive and fit in cause related marketing”. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 22(3): 200-207. doi.org/10.1108/JPBM-04-2012-0125
19. Müller, S.S., Fries, A.J. ve Gedenk, K. (2014). “How much to give? The effect of donation size on tactical and strategic success in cause-related marketing”. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 31: 178-191. doi.org/ 10.1016/ j.ijresmar.2013.09.005
20. Myers, B., Kwon, W. S. ve Forsythe, S. (2012). “Creating effective cause-related marketing campaigns: The role of cause-brand fit, campaign news source, and perceived motivations”. Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 30(3), 167-182. doi.org/10.1177/0887302X12452339
21. Netemeyer, R. G., Krishnan, B., Pullig, C., Wang, G., Yagci, M., Dean, D. ve Wirth, F. (2004). “Developing and validating measures of facets of customer-based brand equity”. Journal of Business Research, 57(2), 209-224. doi.org/10.1016/S0148-2963(01)00303-4
22. Petty, R. E. ve Cacioppo, J. T. (1986). The Elaboration Likelihood Model of Persuasion. Springer. Communication and Persuasion, Springer Series in Social Psychology, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-4964-1_1.
23. Pinto, R. ve Mekoth N. (2013). “Customer response to message framing in cause related marketing”. Revista Portuguesa De Marketing, 31: 67-81. http://irgu.unigoa.ac.in/drs/handle/unigoa/3318
24. Pracejus, J. W., Olsen, G. D. ve Brown, N. R. (2003). “On the prevalence and impact of vague quantifiers in the advertising of cause-related marketing (CRM)”. Journal of Advertising, 32(4): 19-28. doi.org/10.1080/00913367.2003.10639146
25. Robinson, S. R., Irmak, C., ve Jayachandran, S. (2012). “Choice of cause in cause-related marketing”. Journal of Marketing, 76(4): 126-139. doi.org/10.1509/jm.09.0
26. Schamp, C., Heitmann, M., Bijmolt, T.H.A. ve Katzenstein, R. (2023). “The effectiveness of cause-related marketing: A meta analysis on consumer responses”. Journal of Marketing Research, 60(1): 189-215. doi.org/10.1177/00222437221109782
27. Singh, S. ve Duque, L.C. (2020). “Familiarity and format: cause-related marketing promotions in international markets”. International Marketing Review, 31(5): 901-921. Doi.org/10.1108/IMR-10-2018-0307
28. Subrahmanyan, S. (2004). “Effects of price premium and product type on the choice of cause‐related brands: a Singapore perspective”. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 13(2): 116-124. doi.org/10.1108/10610420410529744
29. Terblanche, N.S., Boshoff, C. ve Human-Van Eck, D. (2023). “The influence of cause-related marketing campaign structural elements on consumers’ cognitive and affective attitudes and purchase intention”. International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, 20: 193-223. doi.org/10.1007/s12208-022-00338-2
30. Thomas, S., Kureshi, S. ve Vatavwala, S. (2020). “Cause-related marketing research (1988–2016): An academic review and classification, Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing, 32(5): 488-516, doi.org/10.1080/10495142.2019.1606757
31. Topuz, E., Özbek, V., Alnıaçık Ü. ve Koç, F. (2022). “Z Kuşağında Kurumsal Sosyal Sorumluluk Algısı Üzerine Bir Araştırma”. Boyko Ranguelov, Sabriye Çelik Uğuz (Ed.). Academic Researches and Studies in Sciences (s. 275-293). Sofia: St. Kliment Ohridski University Press.
32. Tsai, S. P. (2009). “Modeling strategic management for cause‐related marketing”. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 27(5): 649-665. doi.org/10.1108/02634500910977872
33. Varadarajan, P. R. ve Menon, A. (1988). “Cause-related marketing: A coalignment of marketing strategy and corporate philanthropy”. Journal of Marketing, 52(3): 58-74. doi.org/10.1177/002224298805200306
34. Vlachos, P.A., Koritos, C.D., Krepapa, A., Tasoulis, K. ve Theodorakis, I.G. (2016). “Containing cause-related marketing skepticism: A comparison across donation frame types”. Corporate Reputation Review, 19(1): 4-21.
35. Yuen, K. F., Thai, V. V. ve Wong, Y. D. (2016). ”Are customers willing to pay for corporate social responsibility? A study of individual-specific mediators”. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 27(7-8): 912-926. doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2016.1187992
36. Zasuwa, G. (2017). “The role of company-cause fit and company involvement in consumer responses to CSR initiatives: A meta-analytic review”. Sustainability, 9(6): 1016. doi:10.3390/su9061016