“How does the degree of compulsive buying tendencies influence the way brands play a role in consumer purchase decisions; a quantitative study”

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2018-06-28
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en
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Marketing activities are one of the reasons for compulsive buying behavior (CBB). The persuading communications messages encourage the urge of compulsive buyers to buy. However, there is a lack of knowledge of the differences between consumers with a different degree of CBB tendencies and the way brands play a role in their purchase decisions. Since this behavior has harmful effects and the number of people showing this behavior is still increasing, it is important to research this relationship. The objective of this study is to examine the role of brands in purchase decisions for consumers with low, medium or high degrees of CBB tendencies. This led to the following research question: In what way do consumers with different degrees of compulsive buying behavior tendencies differ with regard to (a) motivations for buying branded products, (b) brand trust, (c) brand attachment and (d) brand-switching behavior? The motivations to buy branded products include functional, emotional and social motivations. The hypotheses were tested with a questionnaire including 167 respondents. These respondents were assigned to the group with low, medium or high CBB tendencies, according to their score on the CBB Screening Tool by Maccarrone-Eaglen & Schofield (2017). The results were analyzed through an Ordinary Least Squares regression analysis. For the motivations to buy branded products it appeared that the higher the CBB tendencies the more the emotional and social motivations are of importance. This is in contrast to the consumers with fewer tendencies who focus more on the functional motivations of a brand. Consumers with higher CBB tendencies develop a lower level of brand trust and tend to switch more between brands. For brand attachment, no significant differences were found. Overall, the higher the degree of CBB tendencies the fewer brands plays a role in consumer purchase decisions. On this basis, to build long-term relationships with customers, it is better to target noncompulsive buyers. However, for societal relevance, introducing a ‘Shop Responsibly’ campaign is a socially responsible option, in order to help compulsive buyers avoid or reduce their buying behavior. Future research could focus on the role of online shopping channels for compulsive buyers, as the online environment is an essential part of consumers’ lives nowadays. Analyzing the customer journey of compulsive buyers could also be relevant for marketing activities.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen
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