Examining the factors effective on brand equity from potential and actual customer’s viewpoint

Abstract

Brand is one of the most valuable assets of a business and paying attention to the concepts such as brand, brand management, and brand equity improves mental image of the consumers regarding the business and the sale in return. The general purpose of the present study is to survey and elaborate on the factors effective on brand equity from the potential and actual customer's viewpoint. To this end, Aaker's theory was adopted as theoretical framework with 4 hypotheses. By emphasizing on the model and the consumer behavior-based approach and taking into account the actual/potential consumers of organization, the study is aimed at doing a survey to find the relationship between the different aspects of brand equity in Aaker's model (brand loyalty, brand awareness, brand quality, and brand association) and brand equity from the customer's viewpoint (knowledge equity, attitude equity, and relationship equity). Sampling was performed through cluster random sampling and the data gathering tool was Yoo and Denthu's standard brand equity questionnaire. The findings showed that brand loyalty, brand awareness, and brand quality are effective on brand equity from the actual customer's viewpoint. The findings make a great contribution to the process of finding better strategies to improve brand equity. To use the results at practical level, the indices of the variables effective on brand equity can be organized as statements of a questionnaire to measure realization of one or more indices of brand equity. The questionnaire should be filled out by the managers to measure a firm's readiness to improve brand equity.