What Is Brand Authenticity? Introducing the Entity-Referent Correspondence Framework of Authenticity and Its Application to Brands

摘要

Despite the significant effort dedicated to brand authenticity in the academic literature, a precise meaning of brand authenticity has not emerged. Some researchers have defined the concept as being "genuine," "real," or "true"; however, such synonyms do not actually expound the concept. Additionally, the literature is replete with over thirty concepts that have been tied to brand authenticity, including distinct types of brand authenticity and specific components. Many of these types and components are incongruent or overlapping. Others include multiple meanings and are, thus, ambiguous. Further, previous researchers have not provided theoretical support for the inclusion of these types or components as part of brand authenticity's conceptual domain. As a result, a lack of clarity and parsimony exists in the brand authenticity literature.