Brand resonance in franchising relationships: A franchisee based perspective
The formation of brand centric relationships between franchisors and franchisees is of utmost importance to the success of franchising endeavors. Brand resonance refers to the nature of heightened brand centric relationships and is characterized by intense psychological attachment with a brand as well as active, volitional behavior directed toward the brand's benefit. This study offers a parsimonious framework of the antecedents of brand resonance in franchising relationships and test hypothesized relationships from the franchisee's perspective using data collected from business format franchisees in South Korea. Results demonstrate that franchisor's knowledge specificity, franchisor's trade equity, and franchisee's trust in franchisors are instrumental in the formation of brand resonance. Implications for researchers and practitioners as well as directions for future research are offered.