I’ll Stay With You Even When You Betray Me : The Impact of Brand Anthropomorphism on Consumer-Brand Relationship and the Mediating Role of Social Presence

• In Event: ICA Plenary Interactive Paper/Poster Session I
  In Interactive Paper Session: Communication and Technology Interactive Poster Session

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of brand anthropomorphism on social presence and consumer–brand relationships in social media communication context. We hypothesized that anthropomorphism on a brand’s Facebook fan page can strengthen the relationships between brands and consumers by yielding both social presence and a positive inference regarding the brand’s quality as a relationship partner. Our longitudinal experiment confirmed the effects of brand anthropomorphism and the mediating role of social presence. The results suggest that when the anthropomorphized brand had relationships with consumers, consumers showed a favorable attitude toward the brand and high brand satisfaction. Also, the participants perceived the anthropomorphized brand as a trustworthy relationship partner, and they gave more Likes for the posts from the anthropomorphized brand than those from the non-anthropomorphized brand. Further, the results confirmed that these favorable relationships were maintained even after the participants became aware of a brand transgression.

Authors

• Taeyeon Kim, Korea University

• Yongjun Sung, Korea U

• Jang Ho Moon, Sookmyung Women’s University