A conceptual study of the formation of online brand equity: The role of online brand trust

Abstract

Objective - This paper is to examine the importance of online brand trust towards the formation of brand equity on top of the factors used by Aaker in Brand Equity's Model. Methodology/Technique – Literature review Findings– Changing environment in the business world is affecting business and the advent of the Internet has also had an enduring effect in the way companies do business. In ensuring the continued survival of a company it becomes imperative that a company develop a loyal customer base. To this effect brand equity is a concept that has been looked at as a way of achieving a loyal customer base. Higher brand equity, leads to higher customers' repeat purchase, to pay more for the same value of quality and to create a long term relationship with the seller. Furthermore, the emergence of the Internet has made the brand equity concept become ever more important in helping the consumers to reduce their search costs and purchase risk in the world of information overload. However, the nature of the Internet also raises an issue of how marketers can build the online brand equity when the buyers and sellers have physical distance in cyberspace. As a result, trust becomes one of the fundamental elements in forming online brand equity. The purpose of this paper thus, is to examine the importance of online brand trust towards the formation of brand equity on top of the factors used by Aaker in Brand Equity's Model. Novelty – The formation of Online brand equity in Malaysia setting Type of Paper: Conceptual Keywords: Online Brand Association; Online Brand Equity; Online Brand Loyalty, Online Brand Trust