The impact of brand equity dimensions on university reputation: an empirical study of Georgian higher education

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of brand equity dimensions on overall university reputation in Georgian higher education. Fierce competition in the Georgian education market forces universities to address marketing in order to win over customers’ minds. However, their attempts fail because universities do not thoroughly grasp the uniqueness of the service they provide. This study aims to help universities understand what constitutes consumer-based brand equity. Also, it is dedicated to find out whether brand equity dimensions (elements) have an impact on university reputation (overall university brand equity). This study undertook an exploratory approach, employing qualitative as well as quantitative research strategies. Primarily we looked at the measurement scales developed by Pinar, M., Trapp, P., Girard, T., & Boyt, T. (2013). University brand equity: An empirical investigation of its dimensions. International Journal of Educational Management, 28(6), 616–634. The results of this study suggested that university brand equity dimensions fall into two types, core and supportive. This research also identified the combination of elements important to university branding.

KEYWORDS:

• Brand equity dimensions
• higher education branding
• university branding

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.