What customers associate with a brand is the result of what they have felt, learnt, seen and heard about the brand. This knowledge impacts the attitudinal and behavioral brand response of customers (and vice versa).

Koll and von Wallpach identify how customer segments of one brand characterized by different levels of behavioral and attitudinal response intensity differ in terms of content and structure of brand associations.

The findings show that consumer segments with differing behavioral and attitudinal brand response intensity show unique brand knowledge patterns. Consumers with high response intensity elicit more (favorable) brand associations, and elicit the brand more frequently when stimulated with the brand name. In addition, identical brand associations are rated differently favorable depending on the intensity of brand response.

Oliver Koll, Sylvia von Wallpach (2009). One brand perception? Or many? The heterogeneity of intra-brand knowledge. Journal of Product & Brand Management Vol. 18, Issue 5, pp. 338-345.
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