KOREASCHOLAR

The Internet is providing companies with an opportunity to market their goods more widely than has been the case in the past. This is having implications for senior managers as it means that some luxury goods are being made available to a wider market segment than previously and also, there are issues as regards authenticity and counterfeiting for example. Cultural value systems underpin psychological needs which are taken into account when advertising a brand and in addition, marketers are keen to build a relationship with customers, which takes into account the customers’ psychological aspirations. Meeting consumer expectations is crucial in the luxury sector because of the value placed on uniqueness and the price-quality dynamic. Bearing these points in mind, the research question to be addressed in this paper is: How can marketers utilize the Elaboration Likelihood Model (Petty & Cacioppo 1984 & 1986) in order to maintain the quality of the luxury brand and develop a relationship with high net worth individuals while marketing the product online? The aim of the paper is to explain how marketers can develop a better understanding of how the Elaboration Likelihood Model (Petty & Cacioppo 1984 & 1986) can be utilized to develop theoretical insights into promoting luxury goods online. Bearing this in mind, two research objectives were formed: (i) to explain how the Elaboration Likelihood Model can be used to formulate international luxury brand strategies; and (ii) to provide guidance as to how marketers can develop a better understanding of marketing luxury products online. The study will build on the work of Hennessey and Anderson (1990), as it will explain how involvement affects motivation vis-à-vis luxury brands. By studying luxury brands, the Internet, and social psychology, it should be possible for marketers to provide marketing practitioners with relevant theoretical insights into how marketing theory is evolving and is applied in practice. The Elaboration Likelihood Model represents “a fairly general framework for organizing, categorizing, and understanding the basis processes underlying the effectiveness of persuasive communications” (Petty & Cacioppo, 1986, p.125) and proves ideal with respect to researching cultural value systems. The Elaboration Likelihood Model allows academic researchers to look into and comprehend cognitive processing (Cacipppo, Harkins, & Petty, 1981, p.37). The main strength of the Elaboration Likelihood Model is that the variables that can impact certain judgements are made clear and in addition, the processes underlyingchanges in attitude are made known and so too are the resulting judgements (Petty, Rucker, Bizer, & Cacioppo, 2004, pp.66-67). The Elaboration Likelihood Model has been extensively used by marketing academics and has relevance in terms of how people formulate a systematic information processing strategy (De Meulenaer, Dens, & De Pelsmacker, 2015, p.610). Marketers are concerned about the price-quality dynamic and also the trust construct (Shu-Chen, Wanchiao, Sung, & Cheng-Kiang, 2006) and risk (Park, Lennon, & Stoel, 2005) vis-à-vis buying online. Furthermore, how online consumers interpret signals has been given attention (San Martin, Camarero & San Jose, 2011) and according to Areni (2003), argument-driven persuasion is important and will be given attention in the study. Attention will be given to luxury branding, the development of an international brand strategy and how marketers can protect a luxury brand through a marketing intelligence strategy that counteracts counterfeiting. As well as utilizing data collected via a group interview, reference will be made to data collected over a three year period using a survey instrument. The Elaboration Likelihood Model (Petty & Cacioppo 1984 & 1986) will be used as a basis for providing a framework for understanding how a luxury brand can be perceived and protected, and the research outcome will be used by marketers to advise senior management about the need for implementing an integrated international luxury brand strategy. For example, research has been undertaken into the relevance of the construct trustworthiness and it is important to note that “trustworthiness is an attribute of individual exchange partners” (Barney and Hansen, 1994, p.176). This is an important observation because the producers of luxury goods depend on a number of external specialists (eg., designers, communication and public relations advisors, and manufacturers of specialist components) in order to help the company to add value to the product/service and make sure that it is viewed as unique. Marketers employed by a luxury goods producer need to ensure that data and information relating to the product offering is well guarded because they need to have confidence in the fact that there are no vulnerabilities in existence. A vulnerability could result in leakage of sensitive data and information (e.g., a new design) and result in a loss in intellectual property and ultimately brand piracy and reputational damage. By failing to identify potential vulnerabilities and deal with them through adequate counter threat measures, it is likely that it will take several years and require a repositioning and a rebranding strategy to recover the brand in the market. What we are advocating is a marketing counterintelligence strategy that is aimed at reinforcing the need and usefulness of security to protect the brand and ensure that the brand is not diluted in any way. Another reason as to why marketers need to engage in risk management is because there are a number of country-of-origin issues that arise and need to be addressed. Balabanis and Diamantopoulos (2011) have indicated that consumers are not always able to link a brand correctly with its country-of-origin and this may prove problematic. This is linked with brand image perceptions and again the Elaboration Likelihood Model can help to provide evidence that is used by marketers to overcome consumer misperceptions. Reflecting on the fact that marketers are confronted with legitimate competition (products and services compete in adherence with regulatory processes) as well asillegal forms of competition, it can also be argued that marketers need to be aware of and embrace the standards that govern the production of the product/service to the quality specified. Thus, senior management need to ensure that employees lower down the organizational hierarchy are committed to maintaining the standards that are in being (Ghoshal and Bartlett, 1994, p.96). Ghoshal and Bartlett (1994, p.98 and pp.106-107) add to our understanding by suggesting that marketers need also to have a shared ambition and participate in a collective decision-making, which relies upon collective learning. The logic of this view manifests in the fact that the Elaboration Likelihood Model is used to reinforce and condition the views of the employees as well as the organization’s customers and because it has both an internal and an external dimension. Because marketers work closely with organizational strategists that are outward looking and intelligence driven, and liaise with R&D, technology and production staff that are inward looking and security driven, they are well able to contribute to the risk management process and advise on all the aspects of marketing strategy. The research undertaken will be placed within a strategic marketing context and the learning aspect will be drawn upon to show how marketers can link social psychology theory with marketing theory, and how risk communication can be used to reinforce the advertising message. The paper will explore the advertising-consumer perception dynamic and will examine how the Elaboration Likelihood Model (Petty & Cacioppo 1984 & 1986) can be used to promote the uniqueness of a luxury good to individual consumers who share and exchange information using social networks. The influence of social networks is growing and marketers need to be aware of how and why consumers share and exchange information as they do across geographical boundaries. In particular, it will build on the work of Michaelidou and Christodoulides (2011) by establishing how certain psychological factors influence attitudes towards counterfeited products and what marketers can do to counteract these attitudes. This will contribute to the literature because it will highlight both price related and ethical related issues associated with the purchasing of counterfeited goods. In addition, it will allow marketers to identify trends in customer buying behavior and build on the work of Jack and Powers (2013) relating to shopping behavior and consumer satisfaction. By understanding better the motivations of those that purchase luxury products, marketers will be better able to plan product offerings and formulate and implement promotional strategies.

• Yang-Im Lee(University of Westminster, UK)
• Peter R.J. Trim, Birkbeck(University of London, UK)