Consumer brand engagement in the US–China trade war

Abstract

PurposeThis study examines whether consumer brand engagement (CBE) can mitigate the negative effects of economic animosity (EA) on purchase intention (PI) and strengthen the positive effect of country-of-origin (COO) on PI.Design/methodology/approachUsing questionnaires distributed to 372 young Chinese adults, the study collected PI data for US products in the Chinese market. Partial least square structural equation modeling was adopted.FindingsThis study found a positive relationship between COO and CBE and a negative relationship between EA and CBE. CBE exhibits a partial mediating effect in the relationship between COO and PI and a full suppression effect on EA toward PI.Research limitations/implicationsThis research is limited to China; future research could extend this framework to the United States.Practical implicationsThis study contributes to relationship marketing knowledge. Furthermore, it provides new tools for multinational corporations to deploy their marketing strategies and avoid negative consequences stemming from the EA effect in the Chinese market following the US–China trade war.Originality/valueThis study is the first to extend COO and EA research to CBE discipline.

Predicting young Chinese consumers’ intentions to purchase Western brands: Structural model analysis

“…This extended VAB model has substantial power in explaining young Chinese consumers' attitudinal and behavioral tendencies to purchase Western brands. With an increasing disposable income, Chinese consumers and their consumption behaviors have attracted much attention from researchers and practitioners [2,5]. However, previous studies mainly focus on consumers' socio-psychological factors, and little research has been conducted to comprehend consumers' attitudinal and behavioral propensities.…”

“…In 2019, China's retail sales reached US$6.2 trillion, and the figure is only US$200 billion less than that of the USA, the largest consumer goods market in the world [1]. In addition, China's economic ties with the world are generally getting closer and closer, so many young Chinese consumers are directly exposed to foreign cultures and products [2]. Under the influence of global consumer culture, young Chinese consumers have become westernized in relation to consumer beliefs, preferences, and behaviors [3].…”

“…Nevertheless, Western brands face challenges in this seemingly lucrative market as consumer values rapidly evolve amid China's dramatic economic, social and cultural changes [3,5]. Although empirical studies suggest that young Chinese consumers become more cosmopolitan and less ethnocentric [4], they rarely consider the rising economic/political/cultural tensions between China and the West [2]. The tensions are manifested by a series of international events and associated media coverage [6,7].…”

“…Amid an increasing competition between China and the West (e.g. USA) in recent years, Western brands are facing more marketing challenges in China [2,7]. Thus, marketing practitioners, policy-makers and researchers have made considerable attention on Western brands' corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives in the Chinese market [12].…”

Consumer brand engagement on social media in the COVID-19 pandemic: the roles of country-of-origin and consumer animosity

“…Nonetheless, the role of consumer animosity on consumer brand engagement on social media is an underexplored area and only catches the attention of researchers in recent years (Han et al, 2020). Lee et al (2021) investigate consumer brand engagement in the context of the US-China trade war. Also, the current notion of consumer animosity is limited in scope.…”