Brand Equity for E-recruitment companies : A quantitative research on individuals´ intention to use e-recruitment websites

Sammanfattning: Background: Internet has brought radical changes in the recruitment industry where individuals are increasingly turning to the Internet when seeking jobs. The increased use of e-recruitment is partly because it is considered to be the most effective way to reach the target group of applicants, and partly because of the cost savings and competitive pressure in the market. Therefore, is the brand a crucial factor for online companies such as e-recruitment websites thus having a strong brand can lead to competitive advantage in the market. The role of branding in e-marketing is increasingly getting more important. Previous research has used intention to purchase as an outcome of brand equity. However, this research studies brand equity towards intention to use as most e-recruitment websites offer free services. Purpose: To describe the determinants of brand equity of e-recruitment websites and how they affect individuals’ intention to use such websites. Methodology: A quantitative research was chosen to collect the data using an online questionnaire to be able to describe the variables relationship in this research. Conclusion: The findings of this research suggests that brand equity as a whole increases individuals’ intention to use an e-recruitment website. The determinant of brand equity; brand awareness, perceived quality and brand loyalty gave a positive and significant relationship towards individuals’ intention to use. The findings involving the moderator were found to be significant when using brand equity as whole, while being rejected when involving the determinants of brand equity.