Do high brand equity and very high brand equity require different conditions? An empirical study using fsQCA

This research was performed to investigate the necessary and sufficient conditions to obtain different degrees of brand equity. The results show that different configurations and different levels of the antecedent conditions are necessary and sufficient when analysing high and very high levels of consumer-based brand equity. Although brand loyalty could be sufficient to achieve high consumer-based brand equity, to obtain very high consumer-based brand equity the joint presence of very high brand loyalty and very high perceived quality is necessary. These findings show that the phenomenon of brand equity is complex and that a linear approach could be insufficient to understand it fully. Furthermore, the findings enable marketing managers to be more effective and efficient in the pursuit of their goals, by shedding some light on the necessary and sufficient conditions to obtain different levels of brand equity.