Mediators of the effect of corporate social responsibility on product uptake: insights from the insurance sector in Harare, Zimbabwe

Abstract

Successful new product introductions are very important for an organisation’s long-term performance (Njue et al., 2018). This holds especially for the insurance sector in which firms invest heavily in innovative products (Masara and Dube, 2017). Product uptake (PU) hinges the survival and success of insurance organisations across all economies (Camilleri, 2018). However, the major challenge is that customers for insurance products are more comfortably sticking to products they already know than taking a gamble on new offerings (Bocoum et al., 2019). Thus, firms operating within the insurance sector remain under pressure to promote new products. This exerts more pressure on insurance sector management to develop strategies that influence PU (Zhang et al., 2012). Moreover, the insurance sector ought to understand the role played by corporate social responsibility (CSR), corporate image (CI) and product awareness (PA) in influencing PU (Camilleri, 2018). CSR is a critical component in developing and maintaining a positive CI, which is regarded as a critical strategic resource contributing to a company’s competitive advantage (Chuang, 2018). Also, serious consideration should be given to CSR as customers remember well products or services offered by firms that are involved in activities like philanthropic and developmental activities, donations and sponsorships within their communities (Di Benedetto, 2017). Accordingly, insurance firms should participate in CSR activities within their communities so as to increase chances of product adoption (Hoque et al., 2018). PA is the understanding of the specific items a business offer, particularly in comparison to those made available by its rivals. PA educates customers on the availability the product on the market (Wei and Alon, 2010) as well as the benefits associated with purchasing the same product (Agudelo et al., 2019). Through PA, customers give priority to certain products although PA campaigns are generally low in developing nations as compared to the developed world. Hence, insurance firms in developing economies should promote products and services in order to improve their uptake. CI should also be given considerable attention by the service industry since it influences PU (Machogu et al., 2017). Firms with better CIs occupy a better position in the customers’ mind (Tafesse and Wien, 2018). Furthermore, customers prefer to acquire products from firms that exhibit a good image (Machogu et al., 2017). Masara and Dube (2017) concur with the assertion by Agudelo et al. (2019) that firms are compelled to maintain an attractive appearance since consumers have a tendency of extending maximum support to organisations that show good CI. It is upon this backdrop that this paper looks at the role of PA and CI as mediating factors on the effect of CSR on PU. To date, several studies have been carried out across the globe in order to have an understanding of factors that influence PU (Bocoum et al., 2019; Brick and Visser, 2015; Jin et al., 2016; Machogu et al., 2017; Masara and Dube, 2017; Mukayami, 2016; Njue et al., 2018; Shigute et al., 2017). However, it is worth noting that most of these studies focused on direct relationships among the study variables and the majority were conducted in different sectors of the economy other than the insurance sector where PU is very low. Moreover, none of the studies considered the mediating role of PA and CI on the effect of CSR on PU especially within emerging markets like Zimbabwe. Hence, CI and PA are strong factors that help strengthen the effect of CSR on PU. Therefore, after testing direct relationships among all the study variables (CSR, PU, PA, CI, CSR and PU), the current study sought to further establish the mediating role of PA and CI on the effect of CSR on PU. Thus, the current study extends previous works within the field of services marketing domain in emerging markets by incorporating PA and CI as a mediators of the effect of CSR on PU.