IMPACT OF POLITICAL POLARIZATION BASED ON ETHNICITY AND RELIGION ON BRAND IMAGE AND REPUTATION: APPROACH OF CONSUMER'S IN TURKEY TO TRADEMARKS ASSOCIATED WITH JUDAISM

Abstract

The main reason why the businesses want to create psychological differences rather than physical orfunctional differences is the existence of many companies providing similar products and services inthe market. Provision of products and services exceeding the requests and needs of clientele, similarityof each and every one of them with each other both physically and functionally, the requirement ofselling them due to inventory and other different costs have made it compulsory to emphasize onestablishing psychological bonds between such products, and the consumers. The brands, over time,have begun to be employed with symbolic purposes in addition to their physical or functionalproperties by differentiating from each other with an eye to gain competitive advantage and establishpsychological bonds with consumers. The consumers receive help from the brands they consume increating social identity. In this sense, brands act as a kind of social passport. In our day it is notpossible to examine brands separately from their psychological, political, social and culturaldimensions. To understand the variables of brands such as class and status in terms of sociology; groups and ethnic origin in terms of politics; motivations and habits in terms of psychology andpleasure and meaning in terms of anthropology more than the price and functions of brands plays an important role in creating the image and reputation of the desired brand. For, the consumers also consume the meanings offered by the brands in addition to brands themselves. In this study, it isresearched how brands create an impact on the brand image and reputation by the effect of ethnic andreligious origins, the political developments in the world and political and social structures in thesociety they exist. As such, the impact of the Israel and Jewish originated global brands- due to theIsrael s being the leading actor of the Palestinian- Israeli war- on Turkish consumers is researched anddiscussed.