THE EFFECT OF BRAND EXPERIENCE ON CUSTOMER LOYALTY: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF BRAND AUTHENTICITY AND MODERATING ROLE OF SELF AUTHENTICITY

Abstract

The focus of this study is to explore the effect of brand experience on customer loyalty focusing specifically on the mediating function of brand authenticity and moderating function of self-authenticity. This research has been conducted by using structured questionnaires that were distributed to the audience belonging to various age groups and educational backgrounds in Karachi. The questionnaire was based on 23 questions. A total of 120 responses has been gathered to generate the results. For generating results, Smart PLS 4 has been used in this research. PLS algorithm was applied to estimate the model and then bootstrapping was done to critically asses the significance of the model. The findings indicate that brand experience has statistically meaningful effect on customer loyalty. On top of that, self-authenticity does not exhibit significant moderating effect, hence, moderating role of brand authenticity is not justified. However, mediating role of brand authenticity was positive. Therefore, except for moderator all proposed hypothesis were supported. This research enriches the literature on branding and offering a deep insight on the pathway through which customer loyalty can be developed. This study will be helpful for brand manager and marketer. The finding recommends greater attention on making persisting and meaningful brand experiences to build sustainable relationship with the customer. Future studies may examine this model in different industries and culture to determine whether the findings remain consistent across various context. Furthermore, other moderating and mediating variables can be considered in future. Additionally, more extensive and heterogeneous samples can be used to improve broader relevance of the findings.