Abstract:

Focusing our attention on the role that public higher education plays in Mexico, the UNAM indicates that there are 177 public universities today, considering that the system has had high growth in recent years. Thus, according to Anzaldo (2004), the first public university in Mexico (the National University) was sponsored by three other universities in the world: Paris, Salamanca, and California. With this, and according to Malásquez (2008), the Mexican public university has become a key player in local development, both in terms of improving the human capabilities of the population and in the training and qualification of local human resources.

Parallel to this, brands have evolved over time to become a life experience for consumers, having acquired emotional importance that is reflected in the satisfaction of the people who buy and consume it (Camacho, 2008). Thus, and considering that the market is increasingly complex and competitive, every educational center must bet on generating marketing and brand strategy adapted to the new consumer reality (Llorente, 2019).

In this framework, the objectives of the present research were to:
(1) establish which are the most determinant variables of brand capital in the higher education sector, and
(2) decipher which are the most outstanding variables by Mexican university students.

Thus, and after reviewing the seven major proposals on brand capital models in the literature (Farquhar, 1989; Aaker, 1992; Keller, 1993; Faircloth, Capella and Alford, 2001; Yoo and Donthu, 2001; Delgado and Munuera, 2002; Buil, Martínez and De Chernatony, 2010), we have considered four elements that are identified by these authors and were also deemed to be of importance in previous studies. These are:
(1) brand awareness,
(2) brand image,
(3) perceived quality and
(4) brand loyalty.

Together with these contributions, research that supports each of the elements of brand capital in its application to the education sector was reviewed. In order to corroborate the established hypothesis, we accomplished empirical research quantitative in nature, obtaining an amount of 401 useful surveys for our research.

Grade 5 Likert scales were used to measure the concepts of:
(1) brand awareness,
(2) brand image,
(3) perceived brand quality, and
(4) brand loyalty.

These scales are based on the measurement scales proposed by Aaker (1992) and Keller (1993) and were adapted to our field of study, higher education. The techniques for data analysis were based on descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis, using as a working tool SPSS v19 for Windows for descriptive techniques of data and SmartPLS 2.0 for executing multivariate techniques.

The realisation of the present research supposes a scientific advance in the discipline of marketing; although there has been specific research into brand capital and the variables that compose it (Saavedra, 2007) it is considered that they do not exist research that thoroughly analyses the perception of brand capital through the opinions of university students in Mexico. It can also help university managers because, based on the results obtained on the significance of each of the variables of the educational brand capital and, especially, brand loyalty, they can generate appropriate strategies to maintain or improve it.

Keywords:

Marketing, brand capital, higher education, public universities, Mexico.