'n Vereenvoudigde model om handelsmerklojaliteit van vinnig-bewegende verbruikersgoedere te meet
Abstract
Since the emergence of branding as an approach to marketing, the concept has been received
with a great deal of interest and has stimulated ever-increasing research in the area. Businesses
have realised the importance of retaining existing customers and have begun to identify and apply
ways to build long-term relationships with customers. These relationships with customers require
an understanding of customer needs, business requirements and the influences that create a longterm
relation, which is more commonly known as brand loyalty. Several research studies, including
this one, present the results of brand loyalty research in the form of a conceptual model. From an
academic viewpoint, the identification and application of all the relevant influences are essential
in the construction of a model that can guide the promotion of brand loyalty. The extensive review
of literature and previously tested brand loyalty models resulted in the identification of initially
58, then 26, and eventually the final 12 influences that directly affect brand loyalty. These influences
have been well researched and documented by Moolla and Bisschoff in their research to construct
a model that could measure brand loyalty. The primary theoretical background and concepts in
brand loyalty for this article ranged from the history of branding to the results of brand loyalty
studies conducted over the past five years, as well as from seminal older sources. However, although
the measuring model already explained a significant portion of the variance, a total of 12 constructs
as measured by 50 criteria could be challenging in data collection and measurement. Therefore,
the primary objective of the research was to diminish the number of constructs and criteria within
the constraint of not diminishing the proportion of variance explained by the model. This reduction
of the initial 12 brand loyalty influences presented an even more manageable research model that
can be employed to measure brand loyalty. The empirical study was conducted among 550
customers who had access to a wide range of fast-moving consumer goods. The results were
analysed by the process of factor analysis. The results showed that the 12 brand loyalty influences could successfully be limited to nine, whereas the number of criteria employed to measure them
could be reduced to 39. Interestingly, the original two influences “culture” and “brand
performance” combined to form a new brand loyalty influence, signifying that the performance
of a brand is culturally influenced. This is an important finding in a culturally diverse business
environment (such as South Africa, for example). In addition, the constraint could be maintained,
and the variance explained improved marginally from 89.07% to 90.27%. The uniqueness and
value of the research are embedded in the evaluation of each brand loyalty influence that is
collectively assembled in one model. As a result, an important contribution of the study is therefore
the simplification of the brand loyalty model, which enables managers to measure and strategically
manage brand loyalty. OPSOMMING: Moolla en Bisschoff het ʼn model ontwikkel om handelsmerklojaliteit te meet. Dit is in verskeie
ondernemings getoets en betroubaar bevind. Hierdie navorsingstuk is ʼn verlengstuk van hierdie
navorsing. Die doel was om die model en sy akkuraatheid te verfyn en dit verder te ontwikkel tot
ʼn empiries werkende model wat handelsmerklojaliteit kan meet. Die oorspronklike model het ʼn
sterk teoretiese basis gebruik om 26 handelsmerklojaliteitsinvloede te identifiseer wat in die
verlede deur verskeie navorsers in hul handelsmerklojaliteitsmodelle gebruik is. Hierdie invloede
is verminder tot 12 prominente invloede ten einde die handelsmerklojaliteitsmodel te ontwikkel.
Deur faktoranalise as ʼn suiweringsmeganisme aan te wend, bewys hierdie navorsingstuk se
resultate dat, na drie rondtes van verfyning van die metingskriteria, ʼn uitstekende kumulatiewe
variansie van 90% behaal is. Daarbenewens kon die oorspronklike 12 handelsmerkinvloede tot
nege invloede verminder word. Die oorspronklike 50 metingskriteria is ook in die nuwe empiriese
model tot 39 verminder – nog ʼn aanduiding van die vereenvoudiging van die oorspronklike model
– terwyl die bruikbaarheid in ʼn bedryfs- sowel as akademiese omgewing verbeter het. Die resultate
is tot ʼn groot mate bevestigend van aard – dit bevestig bestaande handelsmerklojaliteitsinvloede.
Daar is egter ʼn aantal lae bydraende metingskriteria geïdentifiseer en weggelaat uit die model.