Brand identity: theory versus practice in the South African banking sector

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine whether brand identity theory is congruent to practice in the South African banking sector. Furthermore, this paper seeks to determine whether documented brand identity (of a South African bank brand ‘A’) is aligned to employees’ decoding and understanding of the bank’s brand identity (brand identity alignment). Finally, the article establishes, which brand resonance brand-building blocks and sub-dimensions are applicable in the South African banking sector. Brand identity theory was drawn from current literature, with a specific focus on internal brand identity elements of the Brand Identity Prism, as well as internal brand-building blocks and sub-dimensions of the brand resonance model. A qualitative approach, using semi-structured individual in-depth interviews, was adopted to collect the data from marketing executives, branch managers, and frontline staff at branches of the reference bank brand ‘A’. This study found brand identity theory to be congruent with documented brand identity in the sector that was investigated. However, brand identity theory and documented brand identity are misaligned in respect to practice in this sector. Furthermore, brand resonance internal brand-building blocks and sub-dimensions were confirmed in the South African banking sector, with the exception of the salience brand building block, as well as efficiency sub-dimension. The study's conclusions were drawn from findings that were extrapolated from one (bank brand 'A') of the four dominant bank brands in the South African banking sector.A