The relationship between market orientation, brand orientation and perceived benefits in the non-profit sector: a customer-perceived paradigm

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between ‘market orientation’, ‘brand orientation’ and ‘perceived benefits’ in the non-profit sector from the perspective of the customers. Data were collected from a number of church organizations in Australia using a self-administered questionnaire. The tests for construct reliability, validity and research hypotheses were conducted using structural equation modelling. Findings reveal that ‘market orientation’ is significantly associated with both ‘perceived brand orientation’ and ‘perceived benefits’. An alternative model also reveals significant relationship between ‘brand orientation’ and ‘perceived benefits’ through ‘market orientation’ as the mediating variable. The study contributes to the body of literature and provides practical implications for non-profit managers and church leaders alike. An organization that endeavours to build a strong brand and deliver relevant benefits to its members should ensure that it has sufficient understanding of its members and utilizes the various resources of the organization to deliver superior values to its existing and prospective members.

Keywords:

• market orientation
• brand orientation
• perceived benefits
• non-profit
• customer perspective

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Dr Eleri Rosier and the anonymous reviewer for forwarding the paper to the special issue of the Journal of Strategic Marketing. Special thanks to Dr Yelena Tsarenko and Professor Felix Mavondo who have been an integral part of the research project.