Relationship between brand equity and consumer buying behaviors: A study on fiva stars hotel businesses in İstanbul

With the dramatic change in today?s markets, the importance of concepts like brand and brand equity has increased in today?s heavily competitive market conditions. The concept of ?brand? has also become an important factor contributing to buying decisions of customers. The aim of this study is to look into the relationship between the perceived brand equity of customers of 5-star hotels in Istanbul and their buying behaviors. Brand equity is measured through such dimensions as brand loyalty, brand awareness, perceived quality, brand association and brand image while buying behavior is measured through such dimensions as product / service, price, promotion and distribution (place), which are the components of marketing mix that affects purchasing habits. This study is important in that it identifies the brand equity of 5-star hotels in Istanbul. The universe of the study consists of the customers in 37 5-star hotels in Istanbul. A sample group was obtained from this universe and 7 hotels out of those 37 hotels were chosen using convenient sampling method. As part of data collection, 400 hotel customers were administered survey using survey. The data obtained from the survey were analyzed using SPSS 15.0. The study has revealed that perceived quality dimension is the most important factor in determining brand equity of hotels. Brand image, brand awareness, brand loyalty and brand association dimensions follow perceived quality dimension respectively. It can be understood that customers are generally content with the product and service quality of hotels in Istanbul. As a general consideration, there is a significant relationship between brand equity and buying behaviors of customers.Keywords: Brand, Brand Equity, Buying Behavior, Hotel Businesses