Brand Happiness: The Searching and Finding of the „Holy Grail“ of Marketing

Brand happiness is the “holy grail” of marketing! This means that it is not only one of the highest goals consumers aspire to by interacting with brands; rather, it is the highest brand goal that marketers should seek to employ in order to establish their brand’s “eternal vitality”, in its long-term success. The authors conceptually and empirically assess this provocative statement based on two predefined conditions. Conceptually, they define brand happiness and argue that it is an autonomous brand goal (i.e., it is conceptually different from related constructs such as emotional brand attachment and brand satisfaction), (first condition); and that it is a stronger predictor of brand success than related constructs (second condition). Empirically, the authors assess these conditions in six studies by developing and validating a scale to measure brand happiness. The results reveal that brand happiness is a valid and reliable construct with joy, vigor, pride, and serenity as correlated factors. The brand happiness scale is stable across brands, respondents, and cultures, is empirically distinct from related constructs, and is superior in affecting purchase intention, price premium, and word-of-mouth.