Impact of distribution intensity on perceived quality, brand awareness and brand loyality - structural model

Ovo empirijsko istraživanje imalo je za cilj utvrditi utjecaj intenziteta distribucije na percipiranu kvalitetu i poznatost marke, te analizirati utjecaj percipirane kvalitete i poznatosti marke na lojalnost marki. Definiran je model strukturnih jednadžbi na temelju kojega su identificirani intenzitet i smjer kretanja specificiranih varijabli. Model je testiran na uzorku od 956 studenata. Analizirane su tri kategorije fizičkih proizvoda i tri kategorije usluga. Strukturnim modelom potvrđene su hipoteze. Što je veći intenzitet distribucije, veći su percipirana kvaliteta i poznatost marke. S druge strane, ako su veći percipirana kvaliteta i poznatost marke, veća će biti i lojalnost marki. U radu su raspravljene strateške implikacije rezultata. Rezultati istraživanja mogu biti od koristi znanstvenicima, stručnjacima i menadžerima u području upravljanja distribucijom i markama.The purpose of this empirical study was to determine the impacts of distribution intensity on perceived quality and brand awareness, and to analyze the effects of perceived quality and brand awareness on brand loyalty. A structural equation model was used to identify the size and the direction of proposed relationships. The model was tested on a sample of 956 students using three brand categories in the manufacturing industry and three brand categories in the service industry. The proposed hypotheses were supported by the model. The results show that distribution intensity is positively related to perceived quality and brand awareness. Moreover, perceived quality and brand awareness were shown to be significant and positive predictors of brand loyalty. Managerial implications are discussed in the paper. The findings of this study could be of special interests to managers, professionals and those doing research in the field of distribution and brand management