Brand Equity

I've been reading a number of things lately regarding the definition of "brand equity." I find it interesting that almost all of these definitions are couched in financial terms. This is the traditional way of looking at brand equity, but I'm not sure that it is a sufficient way of defining the term.

In most business schools and text books, brand equity is essentially defined as the amount of value a company can attribute to its brand. In other words the difference between the asset value of a company and its total market value. While it is a nice way to financially define brand value, I think it misses the emotional content that brand has with customers and consumers. Using this equation some companies with strong brands in the marketplace can have low brand value in financial terms and vice versa.

My refined definition of brand equity is:

Brand Equity = The level of market enthusiasm for your brand

By defining brand equity in terms of "enthusiasm" we are able to capture multiple aspects of equity beyond just a simple financial measure. For example, when Apple was going through its "lean years" in the 1990's it had very low brand equity in financial terms, but very high enthusiasm among believers. When the company rebounded, that market enthusiasm was once again translated into financial equity.

How much enthusiasm does the market have for your brand? Are your customers loyal even when your earnings are not what they should be? Is there enough enthusiasm in the marketplace for your brand that as your business grows you can translate it into financial success? Finally, how would you define your brand equity?