Does Perceived Brand Globalness and Localness Affect Brand Credibility and Perceived Quality? Investigating the role of Brand Credibility as a Mediator and Consumer Ethnocentrism as a Moderator on This Relationship

Abstract

Whether local or global, brands sometimes prefer to emphasize their globalness and sometimes their localness. Indeed, what is important is how consumers are perceiving their brand status: Local or global? Empirical studies show that consumers perceive global brands stronger in functionality and quality, more successful in expressing symbolic benefits and more successful in projecting their identity. The purpose of the paper is to identify the impact of perceived brand globalness / localness on perceived quality and the mediating role of brand credibility in this relation, among consumers of Turkish. The results showed that perceived brand globalness affected perceived quality via brand credibility, it did not have direct affect, in other words there was a full mediation. On the other hand, perceived brand localness did not have any effect on perceived quality either directly or non-directly. The paper also investigates the moderation role of consumer ethnocentrism on the relationship between perceived brand globalness / localness and brand credibility. The moderating role of consumer ethnocentrism between perceived brand globalness / localness and perceived quality has been demonstrated. The weaker the consumer ethnocentrism, the stronger relationship between perceived brand globalness and brand credibility. The higher the consumer ethnocentrism, perceived brand globalness did not have any effect on brand credibility.