Title: Evaluating customer-based brand equity in Iranian cell phone market

Authors: Seyed Majid Elahi; Reza Kiani Mavi; Sepideh Najafi; Matin Tanbakouei Kashani

Addresses: Department of Industrial Management, Faculty of Social Sciences, Imam Khomeini International University (IKIU), Noruzian Street, Qazvin, 34148-96818, Iran ' Department of Industrial Management, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Qazvin Branch, Islamic Azad University (IAU), Nokhbegan Street, Qazvin, 34185-1416, Iran ' Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Social Sciences, Imam Khomeini International University (IKIU), Noruzian Street, Qazvin, 34148-96818, Iran ' Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Social Sciences, Imam Khomeini International University (IKIU), Noruzian Street, Qazvin, 34148-96818, Iran

Abstract: Brand equity is defined and measured by different researchers in different ways. While one school of thought measures brand equity as the additional preference a consumer has for a branded product over a similar no-name product, another school of thought led by Aaker defines it in terms of a set of assets, popularly called the sources of brand equity. This study examines Aaker's brand equity model in the Iran cell phone market. Based on this model, three global brands of cell phones in this market are ranked. The study uses a sample of 196 customers in Tehran. The results show that among different aspects of Aaker's model, perceived quality is the most important one among Iranian consumers, so marketing managers should consider this fact in their activities in Iran markets.

Keywords: brand equity; Iran; cell phones; mobile phones; perceived quality; consumer perceptions; marketing management.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEMR.2016.078948

International Journal of Electronic Marketing and Retailing, 2016 Vol.7 No.3, pp.187 - 203

Received: 18 May 2015
Accepted: 19 Sep 2015
Published online: 06 Sep 2016 *

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