New empirical perspectives on brand loyality: Implications for segementation strategy and equity

There has been much written about the role of brand loyalty as a primary measure of effective brands marketing and a partial measure of brand equity. To date, however, the progress in providing a practical measure of the construct has been very limited. In this empirical study of grocery brands, we have developed such a measure in which both brand commitment and brand support were found to be necessary and sufficient conditions for loyalty to exist. Based on this measure, we identify four consumer purchasing styles which we characterised as "Loyals", "Habituals", "Variety Seekers" and "Switchers". The strategic implications of segmenting grocery markets on this basis is discussed both in the context of the marketing of brands and managing brand equity.