Brand Communication, Service Quality, and Brand Image: A Mediated Path to Purchase Intention through Customer Loyalty
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: The study asks how brand communication and service quality contribute to brand image, and whether brand image leads to purchase intention on its own or works mainly by strengthening customer loyalty. A cross-sectional survey was completed by 235 university students in Tehran who owned and used Samsung smartphones. The questionnaire employed established multi-item measures, and the five proposed relationships were examined using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Both brand communication (β = .15, p < .05) and service quality (β = .68, p < .01) had significant positive effects on brand image. Brand image strongly predicted customer loyalty (β = .81, p < .01), which in turn predicted purchase intention (β = .85, p < .01). By contrast, the direct path from brand image to purchase intention was not significant (β = .02, p = .70). With a VAF of 96.25%, the results indicate full mediation through customer loyalty. A positive image is most likely to influence future purchase when it develops into loyalty. Managers should therefore connect image-building activities with product and service performance, customer retention, and relationship programs rather than relying on favorable perceptions alone. The paper brings the antecedents and outcomes of brand image into one model. It also helps explain the mixed findings in earlier research by showing that loyalty can carry the effect of brand image to purchase intention even when the direct relationship is not significant.
Source: Marketing and Branding Research
Authors: Hossein Norouzi, Kebria Talebi Darestani
Institution: Kharazmi University
Language: English
Subfield: Marketing
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7204156601