CONCEPTUALIZATION OF CUSTOMER BASED BRAND EQUITY IN FINANCIAL SERVICE SECTOR

Brand management is not well understood in developing countries in comparison to its rich literature in developed countries. Therefore, current study aimed to conceptualize the customer based brand equity in the financial service sector with respect to its effect on perception of brand. A sample of 384 actual customers of Bank Saderat Iran (BSI), as the largest private bank in Iran, used to test the relations which depicted in the proposed model of the study. Findings showed that perceived quality, brand loyalty, brand awareness and brand association are influential criteria of brand equity that enhances perception of brand in financial service sector. Among the four mentioned dimensions, brand association appears to have the most influence on brand equity than other dimensions. This study provides important insights about the understanding of customer perceptions of overall brand equity and its dimensions in financial service sector of developing countries, especially in banking industry.