Brands are recognised as one of the most valuable assets that a company can
possess and therefore brands are key role-players in the business strategies of
organisations. The rivalry amongst competitors in the pharmaceutical industry is
fierce and companies should design their strategies in such a way in order to
achieve competitive advantage. Brand loyalty is regarded as a powerful tool in the
development of pharmaceutical brands.
The main aim of this study was to measure brand loyalty in the pharmaceutical
industry of South Africa and to establish whether patients are brand loyal to original
pharmaceutical brands and the influence of generics on pharmaceutical brand
loyalty. The measurement of brand loyalty in the pharmaceutical industry is based on
Moolla’s brand loyalty framework for the FMCG (fast moving consumer goods)
industry. This study also aimed to determine whether Moolla’s FMCG brand loyalty
framework is applicable to the pharmaceutical industry. The twelve brand loyalty
influences identified by Moolla are: Customer satisfaction; Switching costs; Brand
trust; Repeat purchase; Involvement; Perceived value; Commitment; Relationship
proneness; Brand affect; Brand relevance; Brand performance and Culture.
The empirical study was conducted among 250 over-the-counter medicine
consumers with different demographic profiles. The methodology included the
sampling procedure, data collection, questionnaire development and statistical
techniques used. Results were analysed with regards to Factor analysis; the Kaiser-
Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy; Cronbach Alpha coefficients; Bartlett’s
test of sphericity, mean values and effect sizes. The Empirical results through
quantitative analysis included the validity of the research instruments, the calculation
of the reliability coefficients which reported on the significance of the research
variables. The results were presented in a conceptual framework to measure
pharmaceutical brand loyalty.
The results of this study concluded that the brand loyalty influences as identified by
Moolla are important for measuring pharmaceutical brand loyalty. The results of this
study also concluded that patients are indeed brand loyal and do prefer branded pharmaceuticals to generic pharmaceuticals in the over-the-counter medicine
industry of South Africa. The importance of this study is the contribution of a brand
loyalty framework to measure pharmaceutical brand loyalty which will aid
pharmaceutical companies in the strategic management thereof. / Thesis (MBA)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:NWUBOLOKA1/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/8685 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Du Plooy, Hilde |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | North-West University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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