A taxonomy of measures for consumer-based brand equity: drawing on the views of managers in Europe

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify the components of consumer-based brand equity from the perspective of experts in brand management in the UK, Germany and Greece.
Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected from semi-structured interviews with senior brand consultants and managers, five in the UK, five in Germany and five in Greece.
Findings: The findings suggested four categories of measures which can be used to define brand equity. These are the consumers' understanding of brand characteristics; consumers' brand evaluation; consumers' affective response towards the brand; and consumers' behaviour towards the brand. Specific dimensions are identified as indicators of each category.
Research limitations/implications: Although the focus of this study is Europe, data were only collected from the UK, Germany and Greece, countries representing three of the five European cultural clusters. The resultant taxonomy adds to the fragmented literature on brand equity measurement by proposing four categories to gauge brand equity.
Practical implications: The suggested taxonomy provides indicators of a framework managers could use when assessing brand equity.
Originality/value: There is little agreement on what constitutes brand equity and therefore measures of brand equity are fragmented. To date, the views of practicing managers have not been taken into account in research. This paper draws on the views of practitioners and academics to suggest a taxonomy of categories of measures for brand equity.