BRAND ADVOCACY AND SALES EFFORT BY RETAIL SALESPEOPLE: ANTECEDENTS AND INFLUENCE OF IDENTIFICATION WITH MANUFACTURERS' BRANDS

Retail salespeople represent an important link for manufacturers in communicating value propositions to retail customers and for implementing target market strategies. Past research reveals that the recommendations provided by retail salespeople exert significant influence on customers' brand choice, especially in the context of consumer durables. However, as the retail environment is often characterized by an inherent tension between manufacturer and retailer strategies, a major challenge for manufacturers is to induce retail salespeople to recommend their brands over those of rivals. Relationship marketing and social identity theory suggest that psychological attachments motivate the direction and intensity of individuals' volitional efforts and extra-role behaviors. Extending past research, this study examines brand identification among retail salespeople as a critical psychological mechanism that mediates the influence of manufacturer and manufacturer representative-related factors on brand advocacy and sales effort. Using data gathered from retail salespeople employed in the consumer durables division of a major national retailer, a framework integrating the antecedents and outcomes of brand identification is tested. Based on the study's results, implications for theory, manufacturers, and retailers are offered.