Effect and Impact of Store Image on Brand Experience, Brand Attitude, Brand Attachment, and Brand Equity

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Pine and Gilmore (1999) stated that a number of marketers have conducted research on understanding how consumers experience brands. They also concluded that brand experience was important in understanding how brands are perceived and accepted by consumers. Smith and Wheeler (2002) stated that brand experience is an important tool in ascertaining and formulating marketing and strategies. Kotler (2008) added that marketers found it important to ascertain brand experience as it offered them an overview of customers’ preferences and choices. Pine and Gilmore (1999) further added that brand experience can be defined as subjective based on internal responses of consumers driven by feelings, sensations, and cognitions. Additionally, brand experience can also be driven by the design and identity of brands. In this regard, packaging and communication also holds great degree of value and significance in defining the brand experience. Oliver (1997) stated that brand experiences vary in many senses and marketers often try to differentiate them through a number of strategies. Some brand experiences are strong while others are weak based on the communication and impact made by them.

Reicheld (1996) stated that some brand experiences last for good number of days while few remains only for a brief period of time. Long lasting brand experiences have more impact on customers that also help in adding value to the overall experience. Kotler (2008) believed that long lasting brand experiences has significant amount of impact on the consumer satisfaction and brand loyalty. It was found that customer loyalty is always high in case of brands offering strong and long lasting impact and impression. Brand experiences help customers in differentiating between wide arrays of products and accordingly making a buying decision. Over a period of time, different brands have tried hard to offer unique experiences to customers in order to convert them into potential buyers. This has helped in enhancing the brand appeal and value in a planned manner.

Kotler (2008) stated that brand experience includes specific feelings and likeliness ad is different from the brand attitude and evaluations. Brand experiences also differ from the brand attachment and customer delight. However, Thomas and Park (2005) contradicted with this statement by pointing that brand experiences are important in creating brand attachment that is nothing but a part of brand loyalty. In this regard, Kotler (2008) counter questioned the fact that brand experiences and brand loyalty are two different notions and cannot be associated with each other in terms of similar meaning and interpretation. Additionally, he stated that brand experiences are different from the motivational and affective concepts and should not be related with each other. Kotler and Keller (2006) further added that experiences can happen when consumers show little or no interest in the brand. However, Thomas and Park (2005) contradicted this statement on the grounds of experiences being generated through the interest and acceptance level of consumers. They stated that until and unless consumers show interest in products; they will not be able to experience them.

Kotler (2008) further stated that brands with which customers are highly involved may not evoke strong experiences as this is based on brand attachment that is a different concept altogether. Brand experience is not an emotional relationship or concept but feelings, sensations, cognitions, and wide arrays of behavioural responses that may stay for a short or long period of time dependent on the beliefs, attitude, and perceptions of customers. Thomas and Park (2005) further contradicted with this statement by adding that brand experiences may result in emotional bonds but the role of emotions is short lived in this regard. Oliver (1997) stated that brand experiences can be affected by the views and opinions of others while in many cases, they are experienced in the form of feelings and sensations. Kotler and Keller (2006) stated that brand experiences can happen anytime based on direct and indirect mode of communication with the brand at any place or time.

Kotler and Keller (2006) stated that brand experience needs to be understood from philosophical investigations and in this regard, it was found that knowledge is one part of understanding the experiences of the world. Dewey (1925) being one of the highly notable philosopher pointed that intellectual experiences resulting from the knowledge helps in perceiving through senses and feeling in a critical manner. He also stated that knowledge helps in gaining deep insights over wide arrays of subjects that help in building experiences in a critical manner. Pine and Gilmore (1999) highlighted and discussed staged experiences in retail environments and distinguished aesthetic in the form of visual, aural, educational, entertaining, and escapist experiences. However, the framework introduced by Pine and Gilmore is restricted to retail settings only and needs further exploration and analysis. Schmitt (1999) proposed five experiences in the form of senses, feel, think, act, and relate. Richins (1997) stated that experiences include moods and emotions while thinking involves analytical and imaginative thinking.

Act refers to the monitoring of actions and behaviours while relate refers to the social experiences like reference groups and opinions leaders (Solomon, 2009). Overall, in terms of the brand experience, it can be stated that many philosophers, cognitive scientists, and researchers have made a number of definitions and categorisation but the bottom-line is restricted to the fact that brand experience is based on five experience dimensions based on sensory, affective, intellectual, behavioural, and social (Park, et al, 2010). These dimensions often define the brand experience and can be assumed as of great importance. Additionally, experience dimensions are affected by brand related stimuli in the form of colour, rand attributes, shapes, designs, logo, and slogans. Thus, it can be stated that there is no fixed dimension that can define the brand experience and needs critical analysis and underpinning for identifying key stimuli and factors leading to positive brand experience.

2.3: Brand Attitude

Armstrong and Kotler (2009) stated that the concept of attitude has different meanings in different contexts. Attitude can be defined as a general evaluation of people, objects, or issues. Solomon (2009) stated that attitude could be an intention to react to specific objects. Additionally, attitude is a purposeful act that defines the beliefs and perceptions of people in a significant manner. Banyte, et al (2007) further added that attitude can be toward a particular brand of an organisation that can be

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