What challenges and opportunities do brands face in the current context of consumerism? To provide a guide and framework for researchers and practitioners in the field of brand management, Dr. Enrique Murillo, professor at the Universidad Panamericana School of Business, and Dr. Ceridwyn King, Purdue University, Indiana, edited A Research Agenda for Brand Management in a New Era of Consumerism.
This was an opportunity that arose in September 2021, when the British publisher Edward Elgar Publishing approached Dr. King, who in turn brought Dr. Murillo on board, and invited them to edit a volume that collects state-of-the-art brand management research for an academic audience interested in research.
A Necessary Work for Marketing
Dr. Murillo recalls that he and Dr. King were convinced that there was a need for a book that identified and explained important brand management issues that have been on the rise in the last two decades.
“For example, brand communities, conscious branding, nonprofit branding and internal branding. Hence, Elgar’s offer was exceptionally attractive to us, as it was to the authors of the chapters when we invited them to participate,” says the scholar about the work that was finally published in September 2023.
“Each of the 32 authors who participated concluded their chapter with a map of future possibilities for their specific subject. With such a wide range of future possibilities for innovative research, and with the accelerated change we are seeing in consumer societies, it is hard to summarize in a few words the most promising directions,” says the researcher.
Evolution of Consumerism and Impact on Brands
Consumerism is not new, as stated by Dr. Murillo, it was born along with the Industrial Revolution, which allowed the mass production of consumer goods at affordable prices. However, he points out that some features of the consumerism practiced by millennials are brand new.
“Kantar Consulting (a leading market research company) mentions that this generation’s mandate can be synthesized in the phrase ‘Live large, carry little.’ Millennial consumers demand fun, convenience and new experiences, but they no longer consider it necessary to own a lot of material things to achieve those goals,” explains Murillo.
Likewise, he states that this change in consumer value propositions “has also created dramatic changes in the brand management role, which is primarily responsible for developing and communicating these value propositions to new consumers.
An Opportunity to Get Updated
The doctor confirms that the professional community recognizes and seeks to adapt rapidly to the changes introduced by millennials. However, he knows that the academic community is often slower to detect such trends and to conduct systematic research on them.
“I think every contemporary marketing and brand management professional requires continuous updating on the most recent research findings because the pace of change at the present time is dizzying.”
Hence, he recommends reading A Research Agenda for Brand Management in a New Era of Consumerism: “It is certain that a single book cannot cover all the content desirable for an informed professional, but I think our volume offers a very good synthesis written by world-class experts.”
He also hopes that the reader who approaches this publication, either for professional practice or out of mere interest, “will be able to take advantage of all the potential of the subject.”
Are you interested in purchasing the book? Click on this link:
https://www.elgaronline.com/edcollbook/book/9781803925516/9781803925516.xml
