The browser you are using is not supported by this website. All versions of Internet Explorer are no longer supported, either by us or Microsoft (read more here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/windows/end-of-ie-support).

Please use a modern browser to fully experience our website, such as the newest versions of Edge, Chrome, Firefox or Safari etc.

Portrait of Johan Anselmsson. Photo.

Johan Anselmsson

Assistant head Marketing, Department of Business Administration

Portrait of Johan Anselmsson. Photo.

Customer-based brand equity and human resource management image : Do retail customers really care about HRM and the employer brand?

Author

  • Johan Anselmsson
  • Frans Melin
  • Niklas Bondesson

Summary, in English

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between an organization’s human resource management (HRM) image and its customer-based brand equity. Research into HRM in relation to branding has mostly dealt with how to attract and maintain employees through employer branding. The present study attempts to link HRM directly to marketing and branding aimed at customers as an altruistic dimension of the brand image and as something that applies to customers’ sociological needs. Design/methodology/approach: The study is based on a survey of Swedish customers in two different retail categories: groceries and home decoration. Findings: The results show that HRM image is distinct from a more traditional service image and that there is a significant relationship between favourable customer perceptions of an organization’s HRM and customers’ willingness to buy and pay a premium for products provided by the retail chain. This finding leads to the conclusion that HRM is not only relevant for employer branding, internal branding and operations management but also plays a significant role in building customer-based brand equity. The results show that further integration of HRM and brand management is needed, both in theory and practice. Originality/value: This study takes a holistic approach to marketing and is one of the first attempts to incorporate HRM and employer branding into the customer-based brand equity framework. Implications for future research, retailing and other businesses are discussed in the conclusion.

Department/s

  • Department of Business Administration

Publishing year

2016-07-11

Language

English

Pages

1185-1208

Publication/Series

European Journal of Marketing

Volume

50

Issue

7-8

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Topic

  • Business Administration

Keywords

  • Brand equity
  • Brand image
  • Brand management
  • Human resource management
  • Retailing

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 0309-0566