Relationship between Internal Branding, Employee Brand and Brand Endorsement
Efficient internal branding practices give service organisations competitive advantage. While the impact of internal branding on employees behaviours has already been examined by academicians and practitioners, its role in developing a favourable employee brand remains unexplored. This article aims to analyse the influence of internal branding activities on employees’ brand knowledge, commitment and employee brand in higher education institutions in India and United States of America. Further the relationship between employee brand and brand endorsement is also examined. Using an online survey, data were collected from the teaching faculty members of higher educational institutions in India (274 samples) and the United States of America (274 samples). The partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) results showed that internal branding influence employees’ knowledge, commitment and image of the brand. The results also proved that employee brand significantly influences employees’ brand endorsement in both countries. The administrators of the institutes in both countries should strengthen the internal branding activities by enhancing brand-centric rewards and promotions to motivate employees to deliver the desired brand image to students and other stakeholders. They must get feedback from employees at regular intervals to know their perception regarding the brand and its image to maintain favorable employee brand.