Research Article
The Effect of Fit and Duration of Cause-Related Marketing on Brand Page Subscription and Recommendation Intention
1 Samsung Economic Research Institute, 2 KAIST
Published: January 2015 · Vol. 44, No. 1 · pp. 281-303
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17287/kmr.2015.44.1.281
Full Text
Abstract
Cause-related marketing (CRM) is a form of corporate social responsibility activity that encourages consumer participation in charitable activities or public interest donations. Through CRM, companies can enhance their positive image and encourage consumers to participate in corporate activities. Recently, social network services (SNS) have attracted attention as suitable channels for CRM because they not only can easily inform users about corporate activities but also enable direct user participation. Therefore, this study examined the effects of the continuity and fit of corporate CRM on consumer behavior, focusing on channel effects and consumer attribution. The results of a study involving 323 domestic online service users showed that corporate CRM messages can have positive effects when they are closely related to the company's core domain and are perceived as authentic by consumers. Additionally, it was confirmed that when consumers encountered CRM messages through Facebook rather than email, their intentions to join and recommend brand pages were higher. This result supports impression management theory, which posits that consumers manage their personal impressions in online settings. Furthermore, the study demonstrated the existence of a mediated moderation effect of channel and consumer attribution on the relationships between fit and subscription intention as well as recommendation intention.
