The Effect of Airline's Professional Models on Brand Loyalty: Focusing on Mediating Effect of Brand Attitude

Abstract

This study investigates the importance of professional models in the promotion of the corporate brand attitude through differentiated marketing strategies in the saturated low-cost carrier (LCC) aviation market. The attributes of professional models affect brand attitude and brand loyalty. The study seeks to identify the factors affecting brand loyalty through the contribution of professional models. The empirical analysis is based on a questionnaire survey conducted online and off line over a seven-month period, from January to July 2019. Some 292 valid samples could be used. The study conducted a positive factor analysis using AMOS 18.0 and a reliability analysis using SPSS 18.0. Reliability of measurement tools was performed using Cronbach's alpha. The attributes of professional models relating to airline advertising include: reliability, attractiveness and expertise. These attributes are shown to have a significant impact on brand attitude and brand loyalty toward LCCs. The findings reveal that reliability and expertise have a significant influence on the brand attitude and the formation of brand loyalty. Professional models' attractiveness has no significant impact on brand attitudes and brand loyalty. The mediating effect of professional models' attributes on the relationship between brand attitude and brand loyalty also show a significant positive effect.

1. Introduction

Low-cost carriers in Korea are expanding the Asia-Pacific market by launching new routes based in Japan, China and Southeast Asia. For the continued growth of the saturated LCC market in the future, a differentiated marketing strategy will be needed, and a goal should be set to expand the market by predicting its direction. The airlines also need to improve their differentiated competitiveness by addressing their weaknesses such as low aircraft operating rates and FSCs that do not differ significantly from their FSCs (Kim, 2016). Currently, the LCC industry is trying to promote itself through differentiated and independent marketing strategy by holding two or three special sales events a year, or using famous professional models to produce advertisements, offer exotic in-flight event services and promote itself as a marketing strategy.

Amid the saturated market, airlines should establish strong brand evidence to build close relationships with consumers and study ways to strengthen relationships, and evolve from market-oriented to customer-centric marketing. Brand evidence is a collection of service brands experienced by consumers before or during the purchase of goods (De & Zuidberg, 2012).

Companies are focusing on marketing activities to strengthen the brand’s evidence and gain an upper hand in the competition to forge efficient relationships with consumers. In other words, companies are conducting various marketing activities to inform people of their products and services. These activities can be a means to establish and strengthen corporate brand evidence. With the aviation market saturated, brand strategy has also become a major marketing tool for the service industry, and the aviation industry (Wu & Kim, 2019).

Consumers tend to favor companies with strong brand evidence when they want to utilize a product or service, which can soon lead to brand loyalty for the company. Economic growth raises the quality of life as people’s income increases, and direct their spending toward companies about which they have a positive attitude (Kim & Kim, 2011).

Thus, companies seek to appeal and disseminate strong brand evidence to consumers through a variety of marketing activities. In particular, marketing activities using professional models are a major advertisement for companies, and professional models that advertise products through advertisements and promote their products to people in numerous product advertisements are very important because professional models provide information and image about the product (Lee, 2013).

In the aviation industry, these marketing activities are also prominent, especially those using professional models, which are effective in promoting the airline’s image. Using the image of a professional model in promoting its independent image in the saturated aviation market can be an efficient way and an effective medium to enhance corporate brand loyalty (Ha, 2018).

Accordingly, this study examines the importance of professional models in order to promote the corporate brand attitude through differentiated marketing in the saturated LCC aviation market, looks at the relationship by which the attributes of professional models affect brand attitude and brand loyalty, and identifies the factors affecting brand loyalty by the nature of professional models.

2. Literature Review

2.1. Professional Model

Companies often use professional models to promote their image to target consumers. Professional models can make public relations easier by utilizing the reliability and reputation of celebrity status (Lord & Putrevu, 2009).

Some Korean airlines are also working to promote their companies by using professional models. Currently, Asiana Airlines and Jeju Air are using professional models on domestic airlines. If a professional model is used by an enterprise as well as an airline, it should be used with consideration of a number of different incidental factors, not just by the model itself. As the nature of professional models among these variables increases the effectiveness of the promotion, which models will be used should also be considered carefully (Wu & Kim, 2019).

This is because appealing to people in various ways based on the attractiveness, similarities, favorability, integrity and expertise of the professional model is an important means to achieve the desired professional effect.

Hwang and Shin (2012) said the role of a professional model in terms of marketing should clearly convey the theme of the announcement to the public as an image character and study expressions that can cause social issues as matchmakers the model and the commercial products. The authors also noted that by acting as an informant, it is important to convey information about commercial products in a consistent manner, so that people can understand them and show fresh performances in remembering them for a long time. Finally, the main role of the person who forms public opinion is to deal with small and medium-sized retailer so that consumers can choose products they promote among similar competitors, and to be able to properly project the information that companies and advertisers want to give to consumers. Kim, Kim, and Youn (2012) observed that the use of celebrity models is a big expense, so there are economic risks from a company’s perspective, but they can easily draw people’s attention by using celebrities as models. It is also about using celebrities that consumers like to attract people’s attention in today’s high-profile society. And when there is no distinction between products due to their similar function and nature, the image of celebrity models can be used to create brand-specific images.

For Yang and Ahn (2013), a professional model is a person who promotes products and images of a company. In other words, in the process of communication between companies and the public, advertisers want to communicate to people through professional models the way they want to express their identity and the features and images they want to emphasize. Thus, a professional model can be called a medium that directly informs and provides information to the public regarding the entity’s products and images.

Lee (2016) said: “The professional model plays a role in maximizing the value that advertising has within the limited range of audio and video viewing and space.” In other words, a professional model is a message provider that can give people psychological grafts or connections, and carries out an important task of providing consumers with all the information about the products they advertise, so that they can persuade them to buy. The professional model was called a person or object that appeared in an advertisement to provide an image of the product or the subject of the advertisement intended to inform people. The professional model, based on persuasion, plays a major role in providing information about the nature of products to the public or communicating key messages from companies and advertisers, and in linking companies and products on behalf of companies and brands to influence commercial effectiveness for a long time to remember them. Therefore, companies or advertisers should consider carefully when selecting advertising models in the field of commercial practice (Yoo & Cho, 2019).

In particular, it can be seen as a positive effect that new products can gain a place in the market in a short period of time by using celebrities who are highly reputable and highly likable.

2.1.1. Attributes of Professional Model

For Kim (2008), reliability is something that can be easily stated. In other words, reliability refers to confidence in the professional model, which is a message provider that delivers information. The public believes in the credibility of professional models so long as they objectively convey information and do not deceive consumers by taking advantage of their own interests.

Confidence in these professional models is not absolute, but can appear relatively different depending on the extent to which an individual is granted trust in a past experience or model. In other words, the person who receives the information will have confidence in the source if he or she has information about the goods advertised and feels honest about his or her opinion. In addition, the message celebrity professional models provide through commercials serves to enhance the image or quality of goods or companies, at least because of the belief and trust that a famous professional model will not deceive the public. However, resistance or distrust to professional models may have a negative effect on building trust between businesses and consumers. The reason why reliability is important is that in modern society, the reliance on advertising has increased to promote any product, and thus has the absolute influence to determine the image of the product and brand by the role and persuasion of the professional model. This is because the professional model has the power to stop, which is effective in attracting people’s attention compared to other marketing techniques.

In terms of marketing, marketers or professionals say that physically attractive guarantors produce more effective results. The attractiveness of the professional model creates a positive emotion for the product that consumers are promoting, thus attracting people’s attention (Wolbring & Riordan, 2016).

Attractiveness is what enables professional models to attract consumers to the attention of commercials, which can include the external image, preference, and attractiveness of professional models. Advertisements featuring popular celebrity models or sports players generally take advantage of strategies to project and advertise the model’s appeal onto products that advertise it.

For Ahn Byeong-hee (2016), glamour is a concept that includes psychological as well as physical attractiveness, and the persuasion and advertisement effects of messages are also enhanced when the message informant is more attractive. This attraction includes similarity, familiarity and relativity.

Expertise is the extent to which message receptors are aware that a wise answer or an accurate judgment can be proposed regarding the subject and issue of a message provided by a message source. That is, expertise is the knowledge that the message provider has to support the information specified in the advertisement. Therefore, expertise is the attribute of information sources recognized by message receptors rather than the inherent attribute of the message source itself.

The expertise the message accept tends to be blind trust and goodwill toward the source of the information that conveys the message. The study by Becker and Lee (2019) showed a more favorable attitude toward the information provided than when the expertise of the source of the information was perceived to be low when it was perceived to be highly specialized. They also said that sources of information deemed highly professional are more likely to be involved when it is uncertain, and that attitudes are more positive. Expertise was referred to as the perceived ability of the source of the reasonable argument. In other words, the professionalism is to recognize that the professional model has the message that the company wants to convey (Zarantonello & Schmitt, 2010).

2.2. Brand Attitude

The use of professional models should match the image of the professional model with the image of the company, thus creating a brand attitude among consumers toward the company. The formation of a favorable or unfriendly image of the entity may result in a phase of repurchase of the product or a shift of attitude to another entity (Kim & Kim, 2011). From a company’s perspective, it is necessary to select a long-term forward-looking model because repeated purchases of goods to a particular company could soon lead to brand loyalty

In other words, a brand attitude is the attitude or position people are taking toward the company. Brand attitudes are the most important part of an entity’s thinking because they can be created or destroyed even after the product is out (Lee & Choi, 2013). This is because this brand attitude may vary on behalf of the entity, depending on the advertising model.

Brand attitude is a compilation of assessments of specific products and brands by message acceptors, and can be said to be the basis for the intent of message acceptors to make purchases and for actions to choose a particular brand. This brand attitude is important because, once formed (Hosoda, Fraser, Kim, & Cheon, 2018), it directly affects consumers’ buying behavior and does not change easily. In addition, consumers who form brand attitudes can be a major criterion for measuring whether they intend to purchase a particular brand. According to Zarantonello and Schmidt (2010), the relationship between brand attitudes and willingness to purchase may vary depending on various experiences. It can be said that empirical and hedonistic situations can usually form stronger brand attitudes. A strong brand attitude could lead to a willingness and desire to buy products, as well as a willingness to pay for them at a premium (Oh, 2019). Also, when compared with brand attitudes with practicality, brands with the attributes of pleasure can heighten the willingness to buy. Therefore, it was assumed that message receptors with a lot of experience in brand attitudes and purchases would have more consumption, while those with relatively little experience would also have a weak consumption (Kim, 2012).

The public decides to buy a product after first forming a certain attitude toward the product that it wants to buy. This attitude refers to something favorable or unfriendly to a particular object and can act as a useful factor in predicting and judging market trends (Choi, Xu, & Teng, 2018). In particular, many prior studies use brand attitudes to predict the public’s intention to purchase, since attitudes are formed when message receptors want to satisfy their needs through consumption.

The reason why brand attitude is considered important in previous research is that brand attitude is created through various functions. According to a study by Ngo, Nguyen, Long, Tran, and Hoang (2019) not only does a brand attitude form attitude by acquiring the target’s information through the experience of direct access to a particular target, but also by learning attitude, it can form an inherent behavior related to a particular target. To summarize these previous studies, consumers purchase a product after the attitude about a particular brand is first formed when purchasing a product, so the message acceptor’s attitude regarding the brand can act as an important factor in determining the purchase of the product. (Kim et al., 2011)

2.3. Brand Loyalty

As a way for companies to effectively generate profits, there is a strategy to encourage repeat buying behavior by consumers by increasing corporate brand loyalty. Higher brand loyalty can reduce marketing costs, resulting in maximum marketing effect, which can lead to increased revenue (Shin & Hwang, 2015). Brand loyalty also contributes to a continued competitive advantage by reducing consumers’ willingness to select competitors as alternatives and by deterring potentially new competitors from entering the market.

Creating brand loyalty for a particular brand increases the initial entry barrier for competitors, increases the company’s ability to predict future risks, and ensures that consumers have a positive attitude toward the company, thereby resulting in profit generation (Kim, 2016).

A study by Kim (2018) found that in order to form this brand loyalty, an enterprise could, through a seller, improve human service and moral factors, consequently, form a favorable attitude of message receptors to the brand and at the same time improve brand attitudes. To enable consumers to form high brand loyalty, increasing their share of people’s minds is key, and to this end, continuous exposure to the public that the brand of assets has more interest and responsibility in society, the environment, etc. than the brand of competition could be an important strategy for people to have emotional solidarity and goodwill toward the brand.

According to Khoa (2020), when the result is satisfactory after using a product or service, the act of buying only the product repeatedly and continuously by taking a positive attitude towards the brand is called brand loyalty. On the other hand, it emphasized the importance of customer satisfaction and brand loyalty because the relationship between customer satisfaction and brand loyalty is very close, and because people choose a brand, they show a brand orientation, which is an attitude that people buy only based on a consideration of the brand itself. Loyalty is a different concept from satisfaction, and loyalty can be said to be a constant preference by consumers if they are aware that satisfaction is highly beneficial to the product or brand they are currently using (Ha, 2018).

3. Data and Research Methodology

3.1. Research Model

In this study, low-cost carriers are focused on impact in which the attribute of professional model affects brand attitude and brand loyalty. The purpose of this study is not only to reveal the relationship of advertising models to brand attitude and brand loyalty, but to select the properties that constitute the professional model to reveal the relationship between each of these properties, and to identify the architectural impact these variables have on brand attitudes and brand loyalty.

The service and product advertised by the professional model involves attractiveness, reliability and expertise. The brand attitude demonstrated as mediator between professional model and brand loyalty as shown in Figure 1.

Figure1: Research Model

3.2. Research Hypothesis

This research demonstrated the relationship of brand attitude centering on Jeju Air, a low cost carrier that is engaged in a lot of marketing strategies using celebrity professional models, and analyze the effect of relationship between the brand attitude and brand loyalty based on the sub-variable variables of the professional model and the brand attitude.

3.2.1.  The Relationship between Professional Model and Brand Attitude

Among the attributes of professional models, reliability and expertise have the greatest impact on shaping customer loyalty. In response, the entity proposed that it should utilize a model that can provide consumers with a professional image of trust, trust in products, and enhance customer brand loyalty through publicity (Khoa, 2020).

The image of the sports professional model can affect brand assets through advertising attitude, and the components of brand assets are causative. It said that the external image and morality, the attribute of the sports advertising model, form a relationship between the commercial attitude of the company promoted by the advertising model and the commercial attitude of consumers, once formed, can be an important factor in shaping brand asset values such as brand attachment and brand identity and brand loyalty (Kim, 2018). It also argued that creating emotional bonds or homogeneity among consumers, such as brand attachment or brand identification, to enhance loyalty of sports brands such as golf can be a very important factor, and a systematic strategy is needed to utilize these factors.

Kim et al. (2012) suggest that reliability and expertise among the advertisement model attributes of celebrities have a positive impact on the loyalty of coffee brands. In other words, reliability, which refers to the degree of confidence in the advertising model that informs consumers, and expertise, which means the degree of knowledge the professional model claims in the advertisement, directly affects brand loyalty. In particular, the professionalism of celebrity advertising models affects brand loyalty more effectively than reliability, so when using professional models to increase brand loyalty, we should carefully consider whether advertising models can improve corporate awareness and promote sales (Yoo & Cho, 2019).

However, it said that it is more effective to select a model with expertise that can represent the image of an expert rather than considering the external attractiveness of the model because the appeal of the advertisement model does no. In order to generate an effective brand image when advertising a particular product, among other things, the nature of the professional model may be the most important factor, and the brand image formed by consumers will be able to create a strong trust and belief in a particular brand, which in turn leads to an improvement in brand loyalty (Hwang & Shin, 2012; Yang & Ahn, 2013). Based on these studies (Kim et al., 2012; Hwang & Shin, 2012; Yang & Ahn, 2013; Kim, 2018; Yoo & Cho, 2019; Khoa, 2020), the following hypotheses were formulated.

H1: The attributes of the professional model will have a positive impact on the brand attitude.

H1-1: Reliability of the professional model will have a positive effect on the brand attitude.

H1-2: Attractiveness of the professional model will have a positive effect on the brand attitude

H1-3: Expertise of the professional model will have a positive effect on the brand attitude

3.2.2.  The Relationship between Professional Model and Brand Loyalty

Many studies have showed that professional model and the attributes of airline professional influences brand loyalty (Zarantonello & Schmitt, 2010).

Kim (2016) demonstrated that the causal relationship between the professional model and the brand loyalty in the system of airline that the professional model can affect brand loyalty. The positive emotional cognition and the attributes of airline commercials had a positive influence on loyalty and relationships.

Reliability and expertise among the attributes of professional models have the greatest influence on shaping customer brand loyalty, it was suggested that firms should utilize professional models that can provide consumers with expert images of reliability, trust and products and enhance brand loyalty through promotions.

Consumers’ brand loyalty, reliability and attitude are assessed through the consumption and use of the product they intend to buy and are demonstrated as a result of the positive evaluation of the consumption situation and the assessment of the product. Therefore, the marketer suggested that government leaders could come up with measures to manage the attributes of airline commercials of companies, so that consumers can sustain and form positive acceptance intentions (Kim, 2016).

Many studies by (Zarantonello & Schmitt, 2010; Kim 2016; Kim, 2018; Becker & Lee, 2019) have shown that brand attitude has a positive influence on brand loyalty. Positive brand attitude affects improving brand loyalty. Therefore, in this research, the following hypothesis was formulated to find out about the relationship between the attributes of airline professional model and brand loyalty.

H2: The attributes of professional models will have a positive effect on brand loyalty.

H2-1: Reliability of professional models will have a positive effect on brand loyalty.

H2-2: Attractiveness of professional models will have a positive effect on brand loyalty.

H2-3: Expertise of professional models will have a positive effect on brand loyalty.

3.2.3.  The Relationship between Brand Attitude and Brand Loyalty

Kim et al. (2011), the relationship between brand attitude and brand loyalty has a relationship of positive influence. They said that dining out brands should be perceived not as a means of one-off transactions between consumers and businesses, but as a means of an interactive relationship that continues to maintain the relationship. To positively shape the image of the expanded brand, it was suggested to the message acceptor that active advertising should be carried out in terms of marketing, such as advertising, and to promote it by utilizing the preferred elements of the consumer through communication with the consumer. This expanded brand image can also enhance brand attitudes, enhancing consumer satisfaction and brand loyalty. In particular, the main purpose of expanding the brand is to secure loyal customers by securing consumers with high brand loyalty.

Lee and Choi (2013) stated that the goodwill attitude there is toward the brand in the sports industry could consequently be said to be the purpose of the entity’s participation in the sponsorship, which in turn could affect the brand loyalty that is linked to consumers’ direct consumption.

Nguyen and Lien (2019) also suggested that sports companies should first increase their reputation as sponsors and form their brand attitudes favorably in order to increase brand loyalty to their sponsor companies. In the process, he said that it is important to be careful not to let consumers down or let them down, and to identify and meet the needs that consumers want, thereby giving them confidence.

Choi, Liu and Li (2018) said: “After all, the reputation of sponsor companies that support professional clubs in sports positively affects brand attitudes and brand loyalty, so brand attitudes can affect brand loyalty.” This will soon improve this attitude to brand loyalty after forming a positive attitude toward the enterprise, which can be seen as a major goal for consumers to increase purchases and repurchase of the enterprise’s products. Therefore, it suggested that companies should first consider various ways to build a corporate reputation, expose positive aspects as sponsors, and conduct strategic marketing to segment consumers to meet their diverse needs. The company’s brand attitude can have a valid impact on brand loyalty, and in order to increase brand loyalty, it must form a favorable attitude to consumers. To form this attitude, continuous management of message receptors is important.

For Ngo and Choi (2019), once favorably recognized, brand attitudes can have more positive aspects when people choose that brand. They also said that if consumers’ attitudes are positive, brand loyalty could improve further. Therefore, brand attitudes and brand loyalty have a positive relationship that affects each other. In other words, if a message acceptor becomes aware of a positive brand attitude toward a particular company, it can have a positive effect whenever they choose that brand, and as the brand attitude deepens, it will soon lead to brand loyalty.

Oh (2019) said: “The relationship between the brand attitude and brand loyalty of the restaurant is valid because the customer knows that the role of the brand is valuable and attractive, and that the relationship with the consumer is friendly, so the relationship can be maintained continuously.” Thus, while consumers’ choice of what roles companies and brands are playing will vary, they need to differentiate, create and manage brands from competitors so that they can lead to brand loyalty in the long run by managing consumers’ brand attitudes.

H3: The brand attitude will have a positive effect on brand loyalty.

3.2.4.  The Mediating Effect of Brand Attitude between Professional Model and Brand Loyalty

Kim et al. (2011) say that the brand attitude of tourism companies is related to the influence of various factors in marketing on brand loyalty. Brand attitudes posit that the nature of the airline’s advertising model could affect brand loyalty, and that companies should increase brand loyalty through advertising models and brand attitude management. In order to enhance the relationship between brand attitude and brand loyalty, a specific analysis should be made of the main objectives that the company intends to achieve, and appropriate marketing should be carried out to achieve those objectives. Marketing carried out by tourism companies affects brand loyalty and consequently, advertising model, brand attitude and brand loyalty form a sustainable relationship. Thus, tourism companies should set long-term goals rather than short-term ones to implement consistent marketing, thereby enhancing their image and consequently enhancing brand loyalty (Oh, 2019).

Wu and Kim (2019) published a study that found that advertising models and brand attitudes of restaurant companies have a positive effect on improving customer brand loyalty. The more reliable and positive the image of a company is, and the more active it is in the implementation and familiarity of customer service, the more positive people are about to use the company, recommend it to others, and have a willingness to purchase despite the high price. In addition, restaurant brands said that they can increase brand loyalty through various social contribution activities, which affect corporate image and the enhancement of strong brands.

Therefore, after analyzing the characteristics of products in circulation and consumers using their brands, the entity suggested that enhancing the corporate image through social contribution activities is an important strategy to increase brand loyalty as a result.

H4: The brand attitude will serve as a mediating role in the relationship between the attributes of professional model and brand loyalty.

4. Results

4.1. The Demographic Characteristics of Sample

Questionnaires were collected using random sampling method to verify the proposed hypothesis. The investigation period lasted for two months – July-August 2019. A total of 310 questionnaires were collected, of which 307 valid ones were used for the analysis, minus those with missing values. The demographic characteristics of the 292 samples are shown in Table 1.

Table 1: Demographic Characteristics

4.2. Reliability and Feasibility of the Sample

In this study, the validity of the measurement tools was assessed through the concentration and validity of the judgement and internal consistency was assessed based on the Cronbach’s alpha factor to assess whether the measurement tools were reliable. To ensure this constructability and reliability, this study conducted a positive factor analysis using AMOS 18.0 and a reliability analysis using SPSS 18.0. The results of the positive factor analysis are as shown in Table 2.

Table 2: Verification Factor Analysis

***: p<.001

For the suitability of the measurement model, the χ² values are 1668.198(df=655, p=.000) indicates nonconformity, but this is not the only reason for the sensitivity of the sample size and the number of observations, and hence the appropriateness of the consideration of the absolute compliance index and the simplified conformance index was diagnosed.

The conformity of the model indicated that the GFI and AGFI figures were below the baseline, but were generally considered acceptable because they were above the threshold (χ² /df=2.547, RMR=.048, GFI=.844, AGFI=.811, NFI=.906, TLI=.953; CFI=.950, RMSEA=.073). In addition, the value of the load carrying capacity of the standardized factors of all the measurement items was more than 0.5

The AVE and CCR, both of which are the methods for evaluating the concentration and validity of each component, were found to meet the criteria of AVE > 0.5 and CCR > 0.7, and the measurement items in this study were found to have sufficient concentration and were highly reliable and selected in the Cronbach’s alpha study.

Finally, the relationship between all potential variables was shown to be less than the absolute value of 0.7 and the probability was not to be doubted, and the AVE value of all potential variables was greater than the square value of the correlation between the potential variables. Therefore, it was deemed that the judgement justification between the concepts of each component would be established. In addition, it was assessed that the direction of the relationship between the concepts of each component was a positive relationship consistent with the direction of the hypothesis established in this study, thus establishing a legal justification. Therefore, the validity of the measurement tools in this study was deemed sufficient.

Table 3: Correlation Analysis and Verification

a: AVE Value, b: Two-variable relationship formula (R²)

4.3. Hypothesis Testing

An analysis of the structural equation model for hypothesis testing in this study was shown in Table 4. The suitability of this study is, for example, χ² value is 1668.198(df=655, p=.000) indicates nonconformity, as was the case with a positive factor analysis. However, due to the sensitivity of the sample size and the number of observation variables, compliance with absolute, incremental and simplified equivalents was diagnosed. The results showed that the figures for GFI, AGFI and NFI were below the baseline, but were generally higher than the baseline, which was determined to be acceptable (χ² /df=2.547, RMR=.048, GFI=.844, AGFI=811, NFI=.906, TLI=.953; CFI=.950, RMSEA=.073). Meanwhile, 21.2% of the explanation for brand attitude by external variables (reliability, attractiveness, expertise) was shown, while 86.7% was explained about brand loyalty by external variables (reliability, attractiveness, expertise and brand attitude).

Table 4: Structural Equation Model Analysis Results

*** p<.001, a: Squared Multiple Correlations

4.3.1.  The Influence of Professional Model on Brand Attitude

As a result of verification of the impact of reliability, attractiveness and expertise on brand attitude, which is a sub-factor of the H1 advertising model, the standardized path coefficient of the impact of H1-1 reliability on brand attitude was shown in .339, and t=5.779(p < .001), which is shown to have positive effects. Therefore, H1-1 was accepted. The standardized path coefficient of attraction H1-2 on brand attitude was shown as .145 and t=2.537(p < .05), indicating positive influence. Therefore, H1-2 was accepted. The standardized path coefficient of H1-3 expertise’s impact on brand attitudes was shown as .275 and t=4.575(p<.001), indicating positive effects. Therefore, H1-3 was accepted.

4.3.2.  The Influence of Professional Model on Brand Loyalty 

As a result of verification of the impact of reliability, attractiveness and expertise on brand loyalty as a sub-factor of the H2 professional model’s attributes, the standardized path coefficient of the impact of H2-1 reliability on brand loyalty was shown as .019, t=It appeared to be 542 (p > .05) and had no effect on positive. Therefore, H2-1 was rejected. Standardized path coefficients of attraction H2-2 on brand loyalty.048 was shown and t=-1.437(p > .05) was shown to have no effect. Therefore, H2-2 was rejected. The influence of H2-3 expertise on brand loyalty was found to be the standardized path coefficient at .093 and t=2.587(p < .05), which is shown to have a positive effect. Therefore, H2-3 was accepted.

4.3.3.  The Influence of Brand Attitude on Brand Loyalty

As a result of verification of the influence of H3 brand attitude on brand loyalty, the standardized path coefficient of brand attitude on brand loyalty is .900. It was also shown that t=14.370(p<.001) had a positive effect on brand loyalty. Therefore, H3 was accepted.

4.3.4.  The Mediating Effect of Brand Attitude between Professional Model and Brand Loyalty

To verify the medium effect of brand attitude in the causal relationship between H4 professional model and brand loyalty, the indirect effect of professional model attribute on brand loyalty was shown in Table 5.

Table 5: Verification of Brand Attitude Mediation by Bootstrap

*** p<.001. **: p<.01, *: p<.05

Among the sub-factors of the H4 professional model’s attributes, the standardized path coefficient for the indirect effects of reliability is, as a result of verifying the intermediaries of brand attitudes in the causal relationship between reliability and brand loyalty .306 (p=.012) and H4-1 shows that reliability does not directly affect brand loyalty (β=.019, t=.542, p=.588). Brand attitude is found to be a full sell-off in the causal relationship between reliability and brand loyalty. Therefore, H5-1 was adopted.

Figure 2: Structural Equation Model Analysis Results

The standardized path coefficient for indirect effects of attractiveness is .131(p=.340). After verifying the intermediaries of brand attitude in the causal relationship between attractiveness and brand loyalty among the sub-factors of the H4-2 advertising model showed that brand attitudes do not act as intermediaries in the causal relationship between attractiveness and brand loyalty. Therefore, H4-2 was rejected.

Sub-factors of the H4-3 advertising model’s attributes, the verification of the role of the medium of brand attitude in the causal relationship between professionalism and brand loyalty resulted in the standardized path coefficient for the indirect effects of professionalism at .248 (p=.030), and H4-3 shows that professionalism directly affects brand loyalty (β=.093, t=2.587, p=.010) Brand attitude plays a part in the causal relationship between professionalism and brand loyalty. Therefore, H4-3 was accepted.

5. Conclusions

In this study, reliability, attractiveness and expertise of the professional model were set as independent variables for users who had experience with the professional model, and the relationship to brand loyalty was examined by analyzing the influence of brand attitude using the professional model. This research is therefore meaningful in that when airline marketing is using a professional model, the attributes of an effective professional model can be presented in a managerial sense to enhance its brand attitude and brand loyalty.

Based on the results of this study, the following implications are given on the impact of the nature of professional models on brand attitudes and brand loyalty:

First, reliability and professionalism, which are attributes of professional models, have a significant impact on both brand attitudes and brand loyalty. Therefore, when using professional models, it is important for airlines to use the expertise and reliability of advertising models to build brand attitude and loyalty.

Second, in the case of airlines. Based on the results of this paper, the airline industry believes that the use of models with reliable and professional images will have a positive advertising effect at a lower cost on LCC airlines. It is expect this paper will provide managerial implications because it is important to make as much profit as possible by investing as much as possible.

Third, studies related to the attributes of the airline using professional models are incomplete when compared with previous studies in other service areas, and in the past, studies of the airline advertising model have been conducted primarily as an independent variable. This study focused on Jeju Air, a low-cost carrier that actively utilizes professional models. This study identified the properties of professional model to be reliability, attractiveness, and expertise, and tried to identify the influence on the properties of professional model and brand loyalty around the medium effect of brand attitude. It is expected that this research will be able to provide academic assistance in producing professional models for low-cost airlines in the future.

Having identified the properties of the professional models being reliability, attractiveness and expertise, the components of the corporate image are corporate competitiveness, social responsibility, and communication to identify the impact between each variable and examine the impact on brand attitudes and brand loyalty. Consequently, the limitations and suggestions of this study are as follows.

First, the survey targets were experienced persons who know the professional model associated with Jeju Air or have seen an advertisement. So, it does not offer a distribution of respondents by age groups. Thus, future research should allow a more accurate examination of the airline’s advertising if it is shown to older customers. Also, the survey should involve more respondents. This will enable a more refined identification what attributes of the professional model can affect the airline’s image, brand attitude and brand loyalty for each age group.

Second, this study is to find out the impact of the nature of professional models on corporate image, brand attitude and brand loyalty, with low-cost airlines at the center. In other words, the results of this study are not generalizable for all low-cost airlines. Therefore, it is expected that a more accurate comparative analysis will be possible if the research on the impact of the relationship is carried out by referring to the studies of LCC airlines using overseas professional models.