Brand trust
Brand trust is the willingness of the average consumer to rely on the fact that a brand has the ability to fulfill its promised function (brand promise). A distinction can be made between two dimensions of brand trust: On the one hand, the expectation that the brand meets and satisfies the needs of the consumer (reliability); on the other hand, the conviction that the brand or the respective company would act in the interests of the consumer in situations that appear risky to the consumer (e.g. complaint) (intention to solve problems).
Causes and consequences
In the German-speaking area there are so far only a few studies on brand trust (in the Anglo-American area: see literature). A survey of 317 car buyers initially shows that brand trust, along with other characteristics (e.g. brand sympathy, customer satisfaction , indolence on the part of buyers) significantly influences customer loyalty. In the second step, a more complex explanatory model reveals a multi-level relationship: According to this, the “brand trust” construct mainly contributes to the explanation of customer loyalty. Brand trust, on the other hand, grows primarily from the emotional "substructure": likeable (car) brands appear trustworthy to buyers. A manufacturer also creates trust when he repeatedly satisfies his customers and his brand differs from competing offers (brand uniqueness). In this respect, brand trust can be understood as an aggregate of several variables, as a meta-construct. The key finding that customers remain loyal to "their" brand when they experience it as trustworthy becomes even more striking when one concentrates on the group of extremely loyal customers: satisfaction , sympathy and uniqueness are only found in an effective network with trust as success factors (ie the proportion of loyal customers increases from approx. 20% to 66%). Brand trust is therefore a necessary condition for customer loyalty.
The investigation also enables statements to be made about individual automobile brands. As a result, the Mercedes-Benz brand has a clear credit of trust . BMW and Audi follow at a considerable distance . Four other brands, Volkswagen , Ford , Opel and Renault , are only considered trustworthy by less than a third of their customers each. What is the result of this “good star” lead in confidence? Above all, Mercedes benefits from the unique positioning of the brand. At Audi, on the other hand, satisfaction and sympathy are the primary drivers. In contrast to Mercedes customers, the trust of Audi customers is rooted in a strong emotional basis. BMW also has this to a large extent. However, this brand has problems with the particularly high expectations of its customers: They ensure that only a comparatively few of the blue / white sympathizers are "completely" satisfied with their vehicle.
What can or should automobile manufacturers do to build brand trust? Despite the alleged advertising fatigue of the majority of consumers, even traditional advertising is still able to arouse brand sympathy. As our study shows, high advertising pressure does not contradict brand trust, but indirectly promotes this feeling. This is especially true when the campaigns give the brand an image that signals both emotion and innovation. Such a double positioning is not only pleasant, but also unique. Providers who are considered innovative even forgive their customers for one or the other shortcoming, as the positive satisfaction effect of this variable shows. In addition, this study refutes a further prejudice, according to which in today's “ cheap is cool times” only permanently low or special prices lead to success. The image attribute "cheap" creates the extremely counterproductive impression of interchangeability, while automobile brands that are considered "expensive" are perceived as something special. Last but not least, a varied range of products also has a confidence-building effect .
Since 2008 the management consultancy Musiol Munzinger Sasserath has been questioning the confidence of Germans in industries and brands in a representative study (2010: n = 1000). It shows that the confidence of Germans in industries and companies in 2010 increased significantly compared to the previous year. After two years of massive losses of confidence as a result of the bank crash and the financial and economic crisis, the confidence of Germans in the context of positive news - strong economic growth, falling unemployment figures - has risen again in companies and industries.
While almost all brands that were also measured in previous years were able to increase or at least maintain trust compared to 2009, trust in Google has fallen by 8 percentage points to 42%. This is where the discussions about Street View and dealing with privacy and data protection are clearly reflected. Another internet giant, on the other hand, is strikingly positive: Amazon enjoys the highest level of trust among the 49 brands surveyed with 67% - ahead of the classic Nivea (61%), the discounter Aldi (55%) and the automotive brands Audi and Volkswagen (52% each) ).
The latest survey in 2013 shows that Amazon's trust has fallen after scandals (−20 percentage points), although the brand was in first place from 2010 to 2012. This shows that brand trust is not unconditionally stable over time. Overall, brand and industry values are falling slightly after confidence increased in the context of a solid German economy and stable unemployment figures. In particular, discount grocery stores (−10 PP), department stores (−9 PP) and TV stations (−8 PP) are among the trust losers.
See also
Brand awareness , brand loyalty
literature
- Delgado-Ballester, E .; Munuera-Alemán, JL; Yagüe-Guillén, MJ: Development and Validation of a Brand Trust Scale, in: International Journal of Market Research, Vol. 45 (2003), No. 1, pp. 35-53.
- Chaudhuri, A .; Holbrook, MB: The Chain of Effects from Brand Trust and Brand Affect to Brand Performance: The Role of Brand Loyalty . In: Journal of Marketing . 65, No. 2, 2001, pp. 81-93. doi : 10.1509 / jmkg.65.2.81.18255 .
- Müller, S .; Wünschmann, S .: Brand trust: Current state of research and empirical investigation using the example of the automotive industry , working paper of the Faculty of Economics, TU Dresden, Dresden contributions to business administration No. 91/04, Dresden 2004.
Individual evidence
- ↑ MMS Brand Trust 2010 . December 25, 2010. Retrieved March 23, 2014.
- ↑ Brand trust 2013 SM + . January 4, 2014. Retrieved March 23, 2014.
- ↑ SM + brand trust Amazon falls from the trust throne. Press release . Sasserath Munzinger Plus GmbH via openPR portal. January 15, 2014. Retrieved March 23, 2014.