Factors affecting the special value of the brand according to the opinion of the consumer in the market of high-speed Internet services of Golestan province telecommunication company

Academic Thesis for Master's Degree

Field: Business Administration, Major: Marketing

Abstract

In recent years, the issue of brand and especially brand equity has attracted the attention of researchers and practitioners in the field of marketing. The purpose of this research is to investigate the factors affecting the special value of the brand according to the opinion of consumers in the market of high-speed Internet services of Stangolistan Telecommunication Company. In this research, the provision of high-speed internet by Golestan province telecommunications company, Haiweb, Asiatec and Sabant have been studied. The random sampling method is simple and there are 384 people in Gorgan city (the capital of Golestan province) who went to the centers providing these high-speed internet services to buy the above brands. The research method is applied and its research design is descriptive survey type. The data collection method was through a questionnaire, which will be analyzed using the path analysis method by Lisrel 8 software.

The results showed that the variables of the family indirectly affect the special value by influencing the variables of association, quality and loyalty. Electronic word-of-mouth variable also has an indirect effect on association variables, quality and loyalty, and has no relationship with awareness, and the above hypothesis is rejected. Also, in this research, association, quality, and loyalty were effective on brand equity, and the relationship between brand awareness and brand equity was not confirmed.

Key words: brand equity, brand loyalty, perceived quality of a brand, brand association, positive information about a brand, service market, high-speed internet, electronic word-of-mouth communication, telecommunications. to change their services towards customer satisfaction and loyalty (Anastisos and Polimer [1], 2013, p. 3). In recent years, the business environment in the world has seen many changes in order to increase the satisfaction and loyalty of customers. Among these changes, we can mention the change of attitude of companies from tangible assets to intangible assets. Therefore, the process of intangible asset valuation is very important for companies. Considering intangible assets helps to have a more correct evaluation of the performance of organizations in the short and long term (Salar, Gorgani, and Jafari, 2012, p. 2). The special value of the brand is one of the intangible assets and one of the principles of marketing, which is called the subjective and intangible evaluation of the brand by customers (Ramab [2], 2014, p. 315). Most companies and organizations have understood that brand is one of the most important assets (Aker, 1996). In fact, the brand is more than the product. What differentiates a branded product from an unbranded product and gives it value is the sum of the customer's perceptions and feelings about the features and how it functions, the reason for existence, and the perceived features of the company associated with the brand (Kapferer [3], 2008, p. 23). There is no real value within the product or service. Rather, this value is in the minds of potential and actual customers, and it is the brand that evokes this value in their minds. In today's materialistic world, the consumer seeks to give meaning to consumption. In this regard, it is the brand that tells a story about the product buyers, and creates meaning and concept in the product or service. Therefore, surprisingly, all organizations and individuals tend to be managed as a brand (Kapferer, 2008, p. 23). 1-2. Statement of the problem

In Iran, there are very limited studies on brand equity and brand name in Iran. It seems that this aspect of marketing in Iran has been neglected. This is while international companies have more than half of their sales success, especially among developing countries, Madson is a global brand and name (Salar, Gergawi, and Jafari, 2013). Also, no studies have been done on the issue of special value of the brand in Golestan province telecommunications company. According to the definition of Lazar [4] (1995), the special value of a brand name is the consumer's prioritization of a brand name compared to other brand names in a class of products (Gil [5], 2007, p. 190). According to Ramab et al.According to Ramab et al. (2014), the special value of the brand consists of three main factors of customer loyalty to the brand, customer attitude towards the brand and customer perception towards the ethical principles of the brand (Ramab [6], 2014, p. 317). Van Doren and Leif Long [7] (2014) showed that brand equity consists of four parts: brand responsiveness, brand image, brand quality, and brand loyalty (Van Doren and Leif Long, 2014, p. 286). Also, Lia and Cheng [8] (2014) also proved the results of Van Doren and Leif Long (2014) and showed that these factors do not affect product innovation (Lia and Cheng, 2014, p. 214). Clado Khagias [9] (2014) also showed that the cultural assets of the brand are also one of the influencing factors on the specific value of the brand (Clado Khagias, 2014, p. 3).

The special value of the brand enables organizations to demand more money for their brand in addition to maintaining their market share (Lee and Beck, 2009, p. 2). David Acker [10] stated in 1991 that brand equity increases the efficiency of marketing programs and customer loyalty to the brand, reduces the costs and expenses of marketing activities, and creates a platform for its growth and development through brand expansion. Therefore, the special value of the brand makes the brand profitable and creates cash flow for the organization. A strong brand can be considered the most valuable asset of a business organization because it allows the organization to obtain higher profit margins, better cooperation channels, and other benefits (Olzen [11], 2008, p. 246). But its effects on the formation of "special brand value" have been less analyzed. Indeed, only Moore et al. (2002) have directly addressed these effects. As these authors have generally stated; The family can have a significant impact on the consumer-brand relationship and this can lead to the formation of "consumer-dependent value" of the brand. Therefore; The family puts a person in contact with the brands that are consumed at home, and in this way, causes more recognition and awareness of those brands. In addition, the mentioned brands can be tied to family memories and this will create an emotional meaning (Fournier, 2001). After all, frequent consumption of a brand in the family can lead to the creation of a habit in the individual, which may be a factor for subsequent loyalty to that brand. The relationship between the family and the formation of "special brand value" is especially interesting in people who are separated from their father's house and have to face new shopping situations. Because at this stage, the consumer has almost no consumption experience except what he had in his father's house. In addition, when buying a product, such people often refer to the advice of their families; Because parents consider themselves a close and reliable authority (Charanotoni [12], 2008).

Word-of-mouth marketing is an activity that guides other customers by giving them information. Word-of-mouth marketing provides motivation and a reason to people in the community to talk about your company's services and products (Shaemi and Brari, 2019). Research has shown that word-of-mouth communication is more effective than communication through other sources such as recommendations of important newspaper articles or advertisements; Because it is understood that it provides reliable comparative information (Samiei [13], 2012, p. 5).

The current research practically seeks to investigate and analyze the dimensions of brand equity according to Acker's developed model in the model presented by Gill (2008) in the service market (high-speed Internet [14] Golestan Province Telecommunication Company) and at the same time provide an answer to the effectiveness of the factors presented in the aforementioned model in equity. Is the brand in the case study on the special value of the brand or not?

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