Brand Management: Research, theory and practice

Theoretical building blocks of the community approach

The key constructs of the brand community theory will be presented in this
section. They are the three markers of community: the question of geography, the
interconnectedness with subcultures of consumptions, and different variations of
the brand community (the brandfest, the brand community and the community
brand). But in order to understand the origin of the brand community concept, it is
essential to know the origin of these concepts. The two supporting themes are
hence initially presented before the core construct.

Supporting theme:

Subcultures of

Consumption

Supporting theme:

Community Theory

Core theme:

Brand Community

Figure 9.3Supporting themes of brand community

Shared

rituals and

traditions

Geographically bound

Shared

consciousness

of kind

A sense of

moral

responsibility

Community

Figure 9.4Conceptualization of the community in the sociological tradition

186 Seven brand approaches