Merchandising/Marketing/Retailing: Branding

Telepresence and Aesthetic Experiences on Online Stores: A Brand-Website Image Congruence Perspective

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Abstract

Multichannel integration has often been studied from operational perspectives, with much less attention paid on the symbolic image aspect of channel integration. Based on the integration of schema and congruity theory, this study demonstrates the importance of seamless channel integration from a symbolic image congruence perspective, using data from an online survey with 458 female consumers. Specifically, findings of this study suggest that a high image fit of a brand's website to its original brand image may increase the consumer's acceptance of the website's aesthetic appeal and help them feel telepresence (i.e., feel as if they were in the brand's physical store) while shopping online, which in turn leads to increased patronage intent for the website. Further research is needed to disentangle the cross-channel image fit phenomenon and factors that influence the fit perception.

How to Cite:

Kwon, W. & Kim, H., (2018) “Telepresence and Aesthetic Experiences on Online Stores: A Brand-Website Image Congruence Perspective”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 75(1).