The objective of this research was to develop the brand identification measurement model. This construct reflects the congruence between the personal image and the brand image, since the consumed brand is an important symbol to the consumer life and for his/her social groups. The theoretical concept is based in the Social Identity Theory - SIT (TAJFEL, 1984) and the Self-Congruity Theory - SCT (SIRGY, 1986). The importance of this construct is given as a facilitator and advisor of the consumer decision heuristics. This study was conducted considering three steps in the Brazilian context: (1) exploratory qualitative research, with 19 deep interviews; (2) survey with 194 observations collected by internet, and (3) survey with 780 respondents, collected by personal approach. Four brands were evaluated in the last step: Volkswagen, Fiat, Honda and Renault. Results suggest that brand identification can be reflected by four dimensions: (1) cognitive: related to the consumer knowledge and experience with the brand; (2) affective: related to the affective and the emotional connection developed with the brand; (3) evaluative: related to the personal and others judgments about the consumed brand; and (4) behavioral: observed by the involvement and actions taken towards the brand. Honda has the highest rate of identification, then, respectively, Volkswagen, Fiat and Renault. Finally, it was also observed that the greater the identification with the brand, the greater the tendency to stay with the brand in future purchases. Therefore, identification with the brand can offer the company a unique source of competitive advantage.
Brand Identification; Social Identity Theory; Self-Congruity Theory
