Relationship Marketing, Orientation, Brand Equity and Firm Value: The Mediating Role of Customer Value—An Emerging Market Perspective

Abstract

This study investigates how customer value mediates the relationship between relationship marketing and firm value, and how brand equity mediates the relationship between relationship marketing and firm value in the telecommunications industry in Ghana. A quantitative research design was adopted. Data were collected from 1,000 customers from four main telecommunications companies in Accra, the capital city of Ghana. Structural equation modelling was used to analyze the relationship among the variables. The findings demonstrate that all five dimensions of RM—trust, empathy, shared value, communication, and bonding—have a significant positive influence on brand equity. The test further revealed that brand equity significantly leads to firm value and customer value. The research findings indicate that the relationship marketing concept and brand equity can be used to improve customer value and firm value issues in the telecommunications industry in Ghana. Moreover, the study revealed the usefulness of brand equity scales adopted in evaluating context-specific issues as exist in the telephony industry. The findings also indicate that customer value partially mediates firm value and brand equity. The study shows that brand equity components have varying mediating effects on firm value.