Management Review ›› 2020, Vol. 32 ›› Issue (12): 320-332.

• Case Studies • Previous Articles     Next Articles

A Case Study of Promoting and Inhibiting Factors of the Brand Attachment in Cross-Border E-commerce Platform Based on fsQCA Method

Wang Lin1,2, He Yufeng2,3, Yang Yong1,2, Zhao Yang1,2   

  1. 1. School of Business Administration, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110167;
    2. School of Management, Northeastern University at Qinhuangdao, Qinhuangdao 066004;
    3. School of Economics and Management, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001
  • Received:2019-12-27 Online:2020-12-28 Published:2020-12-30

Abstract: The ecological evolution and symbiosis of cross-border e-commerce platform in China have broken the regional competitive relationship of brand. Customer-centered brand reconstruction is affecting the global purchase decision of Chinese consumer groups, and it is of great practical value to explore the formation mechanism of brand attachment in source countries. In this study, configuration thinking and QCA method are used to explore the causal complexity of Chinese consumers' attachment to the brand of source country, taking 24 brands of NetEase koala National Pavilion as a case study. The results show that:(1) The driving mechanism of high brand attachment is divided into four paths, revealing that different conditional configurations can form multiple paths of high brand attachment. Among them, path 1 and path 2 are the linkage matching of high word of mouth and high emotional tendency; path 3 is the linkage matching of high brand international influence, high involvement and high word of mouth; path 4 is the linkage matching of high brand international influence, high involvement and high group identity. (2) The driving mechanism of non-high brand attachment can be divided into four paths, and it has a causal asymmetry with the driving mechanism of high brand attachment. The conclusion of this study is helpful to expand the brand management perspective of brand reputation and value co-creation, and provides theoretical and practical enlightenment for cross-border e-commerce enterprises to effectively promote brand attachment.

Key words: qualitative comparative analysis, brand attachment, brand reputation, word-of-mouth communication, configuration thinking