The role of pre-consumption experience in perceived value of retailer brands: Consumers' experience from emerging markets

This empirical study integrates the theory of brand touchpoints and the theory of brand experience to investigate the combined effect of pre-consumption and consumption experience on consumer perceived value (CPV) and brand preference. We chose cosmetics retailing for investigation and consumers from a major emerging market: China. Findings reveal that favorable experience with the brand's marketing communication activities during the pre-consumption stage will elicit positive affective responses to enhance brand preference that contributes directly to perceived value and indirectly to brand loyalty. The study extends the conceptualization of consumption-based evaluation of perceived value of service brands to include the consideration of pre-consumption experience. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of the impact of different contact points on the development of brand equity in both pre-consumption and consumption phases from a holistic brand management perspective and provide guidelines for resource allocation on various marketing mix programs.