Customer engagement, moral identity and oppositional brand loyalty in virtual communities

Abstract

Purpose Oppositional brand loyalty poses a challenge to the management of virtual communities. This study aims to categorize these loyalty behaviors into positive (willingness to pay a price premium and brand evangelism) and negative (schadenfreude and anti-brand actions) dimensions. It then explores how customer engagement and moral identity influence these dimensions in the context of brand competition. Design/methodology/approach Structural equation modeling was conducted to analyze the main and moderating effects, using survey data obtained from 498 valid responses out of a total of 636 responses from Xiaomi's virtual communities. Findings The results indicate that customer engagement significantly influences all four dimensions of oppositional brand loyalty. The relationship between customer engagement and brand evangelism is notably stronger among customers with a strong moral identity. Conversely, the effects of customer engagement on schadenfreude and anti-brand actions are attenuated for these customers. Originality/value Anchored in theories of brand tribalism, social identity and brand polarization, this study bifurcates oppositional brand loyalty into directions of preference and antagonism, empirically showcasing moral identity's moderating effect. It contributes to the literature on antagonistic loyalty and moral identity, offering strategic insights for companies to navigate schadenfreude and anti-brand actions in online communities.