THE POWER OF CHRISTMAS CAMPAIGNS TO BUILD STRONG BRANDS

Marta Blazquez Cano,Helen McCormick 글로벌지식마케팅경영학회 2023 Global Marketing Conference Vol.2023 No.07

In the last years, we have witnessed the consolidation of an increasing number of media channels including but not limited to, social media, brand sites, podcasts and the recent developments into the metaverse (Blazquez, 2023). Consumers are exposed to multiple stimuli with shorter attention spans which makes challenging for brands to create meaningful relationships that can sustain brand loyalty. It is important to revisit the role of campaigns that communicate brand-related messages and aim to affect brand image. Christmas advertising has become a part of consumers’ festive rituals (Cartwright et al., 2016) and engendering a positive response is particularly important at this time of year given that it is associated with love, friendship and reconciliation. These campaigns that appeal to a wider target audience, find in traditional media an important channel to get to their customers but also use digital channels which make them more inclusive.

CONSUMER EXPERIENCE IN A MULTICHANNEL RETAIL ENVIRONMENT: A CROSS-COUNTRY STUDY OF THE FASHION INDUSTRY

Marta Blazquez Cano 글로벌지식마케팅경영학회 2015 Global Fashion Management Conference Vol.2015 No.06

THE METAVERSE AND ITS IMPACT ON DIGITAL SUSTAINABILITY

Marta Blazquez Cano, Dr. Jo Cartwright 글로벌지식마케팅경영학회 2023 Global Marketing Conference Vol.2023 No.07

In recent years, Metaverse has become one of the most popular buzzwords in digital transformation and marketing. The concept of the metaverse refers to a new paradigm for how we will use and interact with digital technologies within an immersive virtual environment (Dwivedi, et al., 2022).

LUXURY FASHION VALUE PERCEPTIONS: THE INDONESIAN PERSPECTIVE

Marta Blazquez Cano,Bethan Alexander,Arinta Annabyanti Wirasto 글로벌지식마케팅경영학회 2019 Global Fashion Management Conference Vol.2019 No.07

EXPLORING MILLENNIAL CONSUMERS’ PERCEPTIONS, ATTITUDES AND PURCHASE INTENTIONS TOWARDS LUXURY FASHION WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY (SMARTWATCHES)

Marta Blazquez Cano,Bethan Alexander,Karie Fung 글로벌지식마케팅경영학회 2018 Global Marketing Conference Vol.2018 No.07

Introduction Smartwatches are mini devices that are worn like standard watches, which allow installation and use of mobile apps enabling connectivity and interactivity (Chuah et al., 2016). Park et al. (2016) regard smartwatches as multi-category products and are considered to be the first commercialized wearable technology for consumers (Jung et al., 2016). Wearable technologies refer to high-tech devices that are integrated into clothing, accessories or the human body to provide personalized functions to users, regardless of the types of usage (Choi and Kim, 2016). Thus, the smartwatch is recognised as an important and pioneering sub-category of broader smart-fashion. Wearable technology has become more readily available and widespread in the market. A recent industry report (IDC, 2017) indicates that worldwide shipments of wearable devices are expected to increase by 132% from 102.4 million units to 237.5 million units between 2016 and 2021, driven by the proliferation of new and various types of smartwatches. In the past, high-tech and fashion were considered as two separate industries. However, recent years have witnessed a trend towards fashion and high-tech collaborations (Zimmermann, 2016). For example, “Herm?s Apple watch” and “Louis Vuitton Tambour Horizon” (O‟Connor, 2017). Millennial consumers are often perceived as the first high-tech generation. This young generation is increasingly attracted by the innovativeness of smartwatches (Shotter and Bradshaw, 2014). According to PwC (2016), millennials are more likely to use smartwatches than older generations. Gartner‟s (2017) research also highlights that millennials represent the largest user group of wearable technologies. Considering the increasing magnitude of millennials‟ interest in luxury wearables, this study takes factors affecting millennial consumers‟ new technology acceptance, and luxury consumption into account. Despite increasing attention from industry, scholarly research on wearable technology has been limited to technological uses. Extant studies are focused in the fields of information systems, computers in human behaviour (Chuah et al., 2016) or electronic textiles (Berzowska, 2005). They concentrate on how these devices might be utilized for healthcare and safety monitoring, fitness or biometric purposes (Choi & Kim, 2016). Academic research to date therefore tends to be more technology rather than consumer driven (Choi and Kim, 2016). As discussed, although the fashion and technology industries are converging (Zimmermann, 2016), most existing research into smartwatch adoption (Choi & Kim, 2016; Chuah et al., 2016; Kim & Shin, 2016) utilizes standard or fitness-centric smartwatches as the research objects. Researchers generally fail to see smartwatches as a hybrid of high-tech wearable and luxury products. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) (Davis, 1986) is a frequently cited model in predicting consumers‟ intentions to adopt an emerging technology. It depicts that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use are two critical variables influencing users‟ beliefs, attitudes and intentions to embrace a new information system (Legris et al., 2003). An extension of TAM, TAM 2 (Venkatesh and Davis, 2000) denotes the influence of subjective norm on behavioural intentions. In this model, technology adoption is regarded as a process of social influence. TAM has been extensively applied to explain consumer acceptance of e-commerce (Pavlou, 2003), mobile payment (Schierz et al., 2010), smart glasses (Raushnabel and Ro, 2016), mobile learning systems (Park et al., 2012) and standard smartwatches launched by IT brands (Kim and Shin, 2015; Choi an Kim, 2016). Yet, despite considerable research on the application of TAM, studies incorporating TAM 2 to explain consumers‟ perceptions, attitudes and intentions towards using luxury fashion wearables is still scarce. While Choi and Kim (2016) provide a first step towards understanding consumers‟ perceptions of smartwatches, the authors consider only the functional (perceived usefulness and ease of use) and personal (need for uniqueness and vanity) variables. The influences of other factors like emotional and social factors are neglected. Within the context of consumer behaviour, watches are consumed primarily for aesthetic appeal, as well as providing a means for constructing one‟s self-identity. Thus, psychological and social motivations may also be considered as antecedents to luxury fashion smartwatch adoption. In addition, luxury fashion wearable technology products embrace both high-tech functionality and fashionable design. These smartwatches are marketed as luxurious accessories, rather than solely functional digital devices, as self-expressive use of them has become more commonplace (Mintel, 2016). Furthermore, millennial consumers generally consume luxury for social-oriented purposes (Eastman & Liu, 2012). Hence, values that drive millennial consumers‟ luxury consumption, along with factors proposed in TAM 2, are perceived to play a critical role in affecting the adoption of these smart accessories. The premise of this paper is based on Wiedmann et al.‟s (2007) model of luxury values, employing individual values (self-identity and perceived hedonism), social value (perceived conspicuousness) and functional values (perceived usefulness and perceived quality) to investigate the key factors affecting luxury fashion smartwatch adoption. The Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) (Ajzen and Fishbein, 1975) provides a framework for understanding consciously intended consumer behaviour (Yousafzai et al., 2010). It posits that the impact of consumer attitudes and subjective norms on actual behaviour are mediated by behavioural intentions, which is considered the most powerful predictor of human behaviour (Ajzen and Fishbein, 2005). In TRA, the roles of personal and social factors in forming behavioural intentions are considered. This attitude-intention-behaviour association has been extensively validated in various contexts like ethical consumption (Paul et al., 2016), Green Information Technology (Mishra et al., 2014) and online banking (Yousafzai et al., 2010). Yet, nascent research exists on the attitude-intention link in luxury fashion smartwatch adoption. Purpose In order to address the research gaps elucidated, this study aims to examine the relationships between key value propositions of luxury fashion smartwatches, consumer attitudes and their purchase intentions, and to explore millennial consumers‟ overall perceptions of using these luxury wearable technologies. Specifically, this study critically reviews and links the theories of technology adoption and luxury consumer behaviour to investigate and explore consumer behaviour towards luxury fashion smartwatches in order to offer compelling academic and managerial implications. Design/Methodology/Approach A conceptual framework (see Figure 1) was developed grounded in luxury consumption, technology acceptance and consumer behaviour literature, from which 9 research hypotheses and 3 research questions ensued. The model posits that millennial consumers develop attitudes and purchase intentions towards luxury fashion smartwatches in 3 stages. In line with the tri-component attitude model (Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975), consumers learn about luxury fashion smartwatches at the first phase (cognition). The second phase (affective) involves the formation of consumers‟ attitudes towards using luxury fashion smartwatches. At the final phase (conation), consumers develop intentions to buy consistent with their overall evaluations. Drawing on the TRA, relationship between consumer attitudes and purchase behaviour in terms of learning, feeling and doing (Solomon et al., 2010) is depicted. To offer a detailed understanding, mixed methods were employed (Creswell, 2014). An online self-administrated questionnaire was conducted and 230 valid samples were collected. The sample profile were millennial consumers, born between 1980 and 2000 (Young and Hinesly, 2012), who have seen or tried any luxury fashion smartwatch. This study recognizes millennial consumers as the research subject because this generation is described as the next prominent consumers of global luxury and are the largest user group of wearable devices (Higgins et al., 2016; Gartners, 2017). The proposed hypotheses were tested using SPSS 23.0 and subject to 5- statistical tests: reliability, descriptive statistics, factor analysis, correlation analysis and multiple linear regression. In addition, two face-to-face semi-structured focus-group discussions with 10 participants were conducted aiming to better understand the millennial consumer perceptions of using luxury fashion smartwatches. Quantitative content analysis and thematic analysis were employed to produce a more organized and comprehensive summary of the qualitative data. << Insert Figure 1 about here >> Findings The findings indicate that functional, individual and social factors influence millennial consumers‟ adoption intention of luxury fashion smartwatches. Empirical results reveal that perceived hedonism and usefulness are the most important factors that motivate adoption intentions, followed by subjective norm and perceived conspicuousness, indicating luxury fashion smartwatches are perceived as both an IT device and luxury fashion accessory. Other factors that might affect adoption are also discussed. A positive association between attitudes towards using luxury fashion smartwatches and purchase intentions is identified. Implications This study addresses a scholarly research gap by examining factors affecting attitudes and intentions towards using luxury fashion smartwatches, from millennial consumers‟ perspectives. It also offers strategic recommendations for luxury fashion brands in launching and growing luxury wearable opportunities specifically aimed at millennial consumers – a substantial and strategic segment for luxury brands. Research limitations and directions for future research are further elucidated. Originality and Value Given extant research on luxury fashion smartwatches is limited, this study contributes to this unique research stream by exploring millennial consumers‟ perceptions towards using these new generation smartwatches. To the authors‟ knowledge, this study is the first to investigate the application of TAM 2 in examining luxury fashion smartwatch adoption, and subjective norms has been proven as one of the most important factors.

EFFECTS OF BEAUTY VLOGGERS’ EWOM AND SPONSORED ADVERTISING – THE CASE OF SINA WEIBO

Claudia E. Henninger,Marta Blazquez-Cano,Weifang Ding 글로벌지식마케팅경영학회 2016 Global Marketing Conference Vol.2016 No.7

This article investigates the effects of beauty vloggers’ (video bloggers) eWOM and sponsored advertising on followers utilizing Sina Weibo, thereby exploring the concepts of eWOM, opinion leadership, and social status. This exploratory qualitative study found that vlogging differs from traditional blogging in that direct advertising that fosters ease of purchase of a product is appreciated by followers, whilst direct marketing, which in this case refers to simply describing the benefits of products and/or services, is seen as unfavorable. Moreover, this research found a relationship between the influence of vloggers, expertise of followers, the level of detail in adverts, and the level of trust. This provides valuable insights into attitudes and perceptions of followers of beauty vlogs, which can utilized as practical implications to develop targeted advertising strategies for companies seeking to promote their products and brands through third party vlogs.

MARKETING TO CHINESE MILLENNIALS: WEIBO AS A MARKETING TOOL FOR LUXURY BRANDS

Rosy Boardman,Marta Blazquez Cano,Shaoqianqian Deng 글로벌지식마케팅경영학회 2018 Global Marketing Conference Vol.2018 No.07

This paper explores how luxury brands can utilize Weibo in order to create an effective marketing strategy that appeals to millenials. China accounts for 47% of global online retail sales (eMarketer, 2016) and it is predicted that millenials (born 1980-1995) and Generation Z will make up two-fifths of luxury spending by 2025 (eMarketer, 2017). However, due to political constraints, popular western social media sites cannot be used to target this vast market of online Chinese consumers. Weibo is one of the most popular social media sites in China, with 97.2% using the site (Yu et al., 2017). In order to target them effectively brands need to gain an indepth understanding of Chinese consumers and what would appeal to them on Weibo. The majority of social media research uses quantitative methodologies on popular social media, such as Facebook and Twitter. There are limited qualitative studies exploring consumers’ feelings and attitudes towards brands’ social media activities on Weibo. Due to different cultural backgrounds Chinese consumer behavior is likely to show a different trend to Western countries. Semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of 12 participants were conducted. Findings showed that convenience, immediacy, social standing/status and entertainment were key drivers for using Weibo. Fashion information, latest product releases and videos were the most popular type of posts. Consumers read comments and tagged their friends, emphasising the importance of e-word-of-mouth (e-wom) and the influence that it can have on purchasing behaviour. This also facilitated the creation and feeling of a brand community. Consumers were very receptive to celebrity collaborations which influenced purchasing behavior. The main criticism of luxury brand’s Weibo was that it was not updated enough and Weibo did not have an influence on trust. This study provides a clear insight into what Chinese millenials want from luxury brands’ Weibo and how it can influence their purchasing behaviors and e-wom. The findings are novel, contributing to the academic literature through the conduction of a qualitative study exploring an under-researched area. This research has practical implications for luxury brands, as they should provide regular, up-to-date content consisting of videos and celebrity collaborations. A limitation could be the limited number of participants, yet, findings provide an interesting insight into consumers’ perceptions of Weibo and how it influences their attitudes and behaviors towards luxury brands.

WHAT AND HOW TO TALK: THE VALUE OF FASHION OPINION LEADERS’ NARRATIVE STRATEGIES IN CULTIVATING EWOM MARKETING

Shuang Zhou,Liz Barnes,Marta Blazquez Cano,Helen McCormick 글로벌지식마케팅경영학회 2019 Global Fashion Management Conference Vol.2019 No.07

The adoption of digital fashion as an end product: A systematic literature review of research foci and future research agenda

Chan Hazel Hoi Yau,Henninger Claudia,Boardman Rosy,Cano Marta Blazquez 한국마케팅과학회 2024 Journal of Global Fashion Marketing Vol.15 No.1

With the advancement of 3D design software, “digital fashion” has evolved from a retail and design tool for physical fashion to a virtual-only end-product sold to consumers in wholly digital form. As many brands are now developing digital fashion end products as a new revenue stream, given its potential to reduce some levels of overconsumption of physical clothing, it warrants academic attention. However, the literature has predominantly defined digital fashion as a tool rather than an end-product, resulting in an incomplete definition of digital fashion. This hinders scholars’ ability to fully comprehend and explore this emerging product category. This article aims to synthesize the current marketing/management literature on digital fashion and investigate the theories, context, characteristics, and methodology of digital fashion as an end-product. This study contributes to the literature by providing a comprehensive industry-accepted definition of digital fashion within a conceptual framework, categorizing six different types of digital fashion end-products, and establishing a future research agenda that will lead to new research streams.