How Customers Engage Experiential Marketing in Hyperinflationary Settings and Its Effects on Consumer Behaviour: Insights from Nigeria
Uchenna Uzo *, Ephraim Nwokporo * and Stanley Emife Nwani **
Affiliation* Department of Operations, Marketing, & Information Systems, Lagos Business School, Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos, Nigeria
Affiliation** Department of Economics, School of Management and Social Sciences, Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos, Nigeria
Abstract: As experiential marketing continues to gain global traction, brand loyalty simultaneously wanes. This is primarily induced by economic pressures driving consumers to switch brands. Current research on experiential marketing has predominantly focused on stable economic environments, overlooking the impact of hyperinflation on consumer engagement with experiential activations. This study uses social exchange theory as a theoretical lens to examine how experiential engagement influences brand loyalty, purchase intentions, and consumer spending in hyperinflationary settings. A multilevel sequential mixed method involving 12 key informant interviews with four selected experiential agencies, a focus group discussion with senior brand managers or representatives, 10 in-depth interviews with consumers who have interacted with brands through experiential marketing, and a survey of 308 consumers in Nigeria was adopted. The findings of this study show that in hyperinflationary contexts, experiential engagement has a statistically significant impact on brand loyalty and customer purchase intention. The study also revealed a significant positive relationship between the amount of time spent consuming experiential campaigns and customer spending on the brand. Surprisingly, repurchasing after activations has a statistically negative effect on brand loyalty. This study offers valuable theoretical and managerial implications for experiential marketing and consumer behaviour in hyperinflationary settings.
Keywords: Experiential marketing, experiential engagement, loyalty, purchase intention, hyperinflation, repurchase.
