Aim: This study deals with Brand Management after acquisitions. Since this subject is still quite unexplored, a case study backed the theoretical review in order to answer the two research questions. Furthermore, the work educes a model which shows the ascendancies that are involved in the field of Brand Management after acquisitions. It is the aim to reveal the necessity of strong branding for acquired companies and the importance of the continuity of their presenting brand values. I hope this paper adds new knowledge in the Brand Management sector in connection with acquisitions and gives the reader a proper understanding about the issue. Method: The study occupies a theoretical and an empirical study. The theory part presents a selection of theories and models developed by scholars in the field of business administration. While the first research question concerning brand equity after acquisitions is addressed in the theoretical review in chapter 3, the second question regarding brand image is mainly discussed during the empirical part. The data for the latter was primarily obtained by a case study which is a qualitative method and occupies interviews and discussions. Result: Brand Management has become a key issue for companies and is a sensitive subject in the context of Merger and Acquisition. Hence, it is a challenge for the acquirer and the acquired company to manage control and adapt to the new situation. Brand equity as a key asset of Brand Management is the amount of loyalty a customer has towards a brand and it is certainly influenced by such transactions as M&A. In the real-life comparison of the specific case it proved to be successful for the acquirer to maintain the autonomy of the acquired brand and continue the meaning of the brand. In addition, the loyalty of the customers is of great importance to assure a smooth process of the business operations. Suggestions for future research: Due to the current situation and constant changes it would be interesting to repeat the study some time in the future for a final conclusion. Furthermore, since the findings for the empirical part of this study are based on a strong acquired brand, it would be interesting to investigate the case of another company of weaker nature, and maybe of a different branch. The high profile of the target firm and its strong brand values had a remarkable influence on the revelations of this study. Contribution of the thesis: The result of this study helps companies to maintain their brand values during an acquisition. The research adds new knowledge in the brand management sector in connection with acquisitions, and it is useful for companies which are involved in M&A activities.

The purpose of this research is to develop a marketing plan for a new brand, which intends to enter a foreign market. The basis of the research is a proposal of marketing plan for LUXGEN7 SUV, the vehicle, which the company Yulon Motor is going to introduce into the Russian market in Q3 of 2013. Russia is an absolutely new market for Yulon. Russia has a severe climate and specific road conditions. There is a huge cultural gap between the Taiwanese and the Russians: the customs, traditions, way of life, values and preferences of the Russian consumers are strikingly different from the Taiwanese. The main premise of the research is that the cultural-centric marketing approach will be the key mechanism for LUXGEN to increase its brand awareness among the Russian consumers, to build a reputation of the brand, which puts their traditions, cultural values and preferences on the first place and to establish warm and sincere relationship with the Russian people. The theoretical framework of this research is not limited by only marketing study literature, but it also includes the analysis of the books and articles on psychology and culture studies for deeper understanding of the subject. The main results of the research are: - Choosing females as main targeted customers of LUXGEN in Russia; - Finding out what localization of its brand name and exterior design LUXGEN should undertake according to the linguistic and color preferences of the Russians; - Creating a special advertisement campaign for LUXGEN taking into consideration psychological and cultural aspects and defined what communication media should be used to make advertisement message reach the potential customers; - Designing several marketing events and activities for LUXGEN to organize in order to provide its consumers with special experiences.

A trend of environmental consciousness is developing for some years in every market and sometimes gave birth to a sub-market such as the organic-cosmetic market. This market represents an important part of cosmetics in general and major companies can be identified. Marketers have noticed this trend and sometimes use it into their communication strategy but it still has to be studied properly in order to determine its impact on the purchasing behavior of consumers and their perception of the brand. Indeed, we think that this environmental consciousness can challenge the balance between Brand Image and Brand Awareness in this market.   This paper is aiming to explore the impact of this specific trend on the organic-cosmetic market and studies its influence over the Brand Knowledge management, more precisely the relationship between Brand Image and Brand Awareness. In that goal, we chose to make interviews in front of the shops of two companies interacting on this market: The Body Shop and L’Occitane en Provence. Combined with data collected from previous research into a deductive approach, it led us to some general conclusion concerning the level of Brand Image and Awareness of those companies, their relationship and the impact of environmental consciousness on this relationship.   We concluded from those results that the brand L’Occitane en Provence had a slightly lower Brand Awareness than its competitor but its customers had a more important environmental consciousness that led them to this company due to its values and specific type of product. We can then conclude that on such markets impacted with this type of external factor, if the company implements it in its communication strategy or its core values, then its need for Brand Awareness is lower. One can now wonder if this trend in particular or any other external factor can be used in other markets on the same way.

Date: May 30, 2012  University: Mälardalen University, Sweden  Program: MIMA- International Marketing  Course Name: Master Thesis (EFO705)  Title: Creating Brand Awareness Through Event Marketing  The Off-Field Competition of Sportswear Companies in the Olympics  Authors: Laura Dolge and Malin Marmbrandt  Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to research how companies are promoting themselves efficiently to increase brand awareness through advertisement in major sporting events, through viral marketing and athlete endorsement.  Research Questions: Firstly: What are the major differences and similarities between the official and non-official sponsors and their marketing activities when creating brand awareness in sporting events?  Secondly: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through viral marketing activities?  Thirdly: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through athlete endorsement?  Method: Data was collected with a qualitative multi-method approach that consists of observations of online social networks and media (netnography), and semi-structured interviews was applied.  Conclusion: The main differences between the official and the non-official sponsor´s marketing campaigns are that the official sponsor has the advantage of using the event’s logo in its campaigns, and is able to advertise during the event. Whilst, there are many rules that restricts the non-official company´s campaigns. Regardless, non-official sponsors are still able to associate themselves with the event by using creative viral marketing campaigns and endorsing athletes, thus create brand awareness by so called ambush marketing.

Background: In the past decade, Social Media has been an interesting Internet phenomenon. Social Media has increased the ability for Internet users to communicate and interact with one another, allowing them to overcome boundaries that once made communication difficult and slow. It has become a big part of everyday life and has fundamentally changed the way we send and receive information. This transformation has led to businesses acknowledging the need for a change in the way they communicate with their customers. The purpose of this thesis is to understand what makes a business successful in Social Media and what are the tools that businesses may use in order to communicate with their consumer community. Method: This study is exploratory and qualitative in nature. Authors conducted a case study research and used an inductive approach in order to answer research questions. Several methods of gathering data are used in the thesis for the full analysis of the case study: interview, survey, netnography (“internet – based ethnography”). Qualitative measures are used to draw conclusions regarding Social Media metrics and consumer engagement. Conclusion: Authors state that there is no universal communication strategy suitable for every company, but the appropriate one may be build according to the company goals and means. Process of creating the communication strategy should focus on several targets which companies may identify by themselves or with the help of guides. One of those targets is identifying appropriate ways of engaging with the customers with the combination of Brand Awareness, Brand Engagement and Word of Mouth. Three main parts of the communication strategy are interconnected: Brand Awareness, Brand Engagement and Word of Mouth. Effectiveness of communication strategy (different combination of Brand Awareness, Brand Engagement and Word of Mouth) may be measured by specific metrics or statistical ones. Increasing those interconnected metrics depends on ability to follow the customer needs and the quality of content. Main B2C Social Media tools nowadays are Facebook, Twitter, YouTube. This thesis found out strong relationship between those three (“Social Media Triangle” model). Company having accounts in each of those networks should use it as a whole and not as separate tools.

The underlying motivation of this paper is the investigation of the impact sport sponsorship has on a brand. As sport sponsorship is scholarly considered to be a powerful brand equity building method, this communication tool gains globally in importance by contributing essentially to business success. While the popularity increases, simultaneously the investments, necessary for an efficient realization, rise. Nonetheless even though sponsorship is frequently applied, the evaluation is mainly based on quantitative terms (e.g. media tracking), neglecting the qualitative impacts. In order to gain meaningful data, which allows generalization, the study is based on the sport sponsorship involvement of Löfbergs Lila AB at the hockey club Färjestad BK. A quantitative research strategy is applied by the conduction of a survey within the pre-defined target audience of hockey affine people. Three propositions from different perspectives are used to investigate the main research question and provide a broader picture of the topic. Therefore in order to answer the research question, Does sport sponsorship especially in terms of brand image and brand awareness in a particular target group affect the sponsor’s brand?, brand awareness, brand image and sponsor-fit are examined separately. The study has shown that brand knowledge (brand awareness, brand image) is directly influenced by sport sponsorship efforts. The findings state a positive impact and associations, whereby no direct effect in terms of customers’ brand loyalty can be observed. Nevertheless according to the in the paper developed conceptual model, an influence on brand loyalty building variables is not dependent on sponsorship efforts, rather on the brand’s underlying product attributes, satisfying customer needs and requirements. In general sport sponsorship is a meaningful tool, but requires integration in a diversified marketing communication-mix in order to tap the full potential.

I dagens samhälle ökar varumärken i betydelse vilket innebär ett ökat behov för företag att ha kunskap om vilken image konsumenter tillskriver deras varumärke. Varumärkesmedvetenhet och köpbeslut är teoretiska områden inom konsumentbeteende som tidigare studerats utförligt. Dock har det saknats studier kring hur varumärkesimage påverkar konsumenters köpbeslut inom livsmedelsbranschen.Köttkonsumtionen i Sverige har ökat under senare år och charkuteriprodukter ses som väsentliga livsmedelsvaror att ha hemma. För att skapa konkurrenskraft på marknaden är det viktigt för företag inom charkuteribranschen att tillhandahålla vetskap om den image konsumenter tillskriver deras varumärke. Det lokala Örebroföretaget Robertsons Charkuteri AB har idag inte en klar bild över vilka som utgör deras kundgrupp och har under de senaste åren känt av en ökad konkurrens och efterfrågade därför en marknadsundersökning gällande hur varumärkesmedvetenheten ser ut bland invånarna i Örebro stad samt vilken image de tillskriver varumärket. Varumärkesmedvetenhet och image kom därför att studeras samt sannolikheten för att varumärkesimage påverkar köpbeslut. Detta genomfördes med hjälp av en enkätundersökning där 200 respondenter i Örebro stad deltog.Studien visar att Robertsons Charkuteri AB har en hög medvetenhet bland Örebro stads invånare och att de tillskrivs imagen kvalitet och svenskt kött. Dessa associationer visar sig vara av betydelse för konsumenter vid köpbeslutet av charkuteriprodukter. Det framkommer även att varumärkesimage påverkar konsumenters köpbeslut, vilket tillför vetskap inom ämnesområdet konsumentbeteende. / In the society today brands are being seen as more valuable which indicate an increased importance for companies to understand what kind of image consumers dedicate their brand. Brand awareness and consumer purchase decision are theoretical areas within consumer behavior, which both have been studied in detail. However, there is a lack of studies about how brand image influence consumer purchase decision in the food industry.The meat consumption in Sweden has increased in the later years and charcuterie products are seen as more essential to have at home. It is of importance for business to have knowledge of how the consumers perceive their image of the brand to be able to compete on the market. The local charcuterie business in Örebro, Robertsons Charkuteri AB, has requested a market survey on how extensive the brand awareness is among the citizens in Örebro and also what kind of image the consumers prescribe to the brand. Robertsons Charkuteri AB has requested a market survey due to the increased competition in the later years. Therefore, brand awareness and brand image is being studied as well as the probability of brand image influencing purchase decisions. The study was conducted through a survey consisting of 200 respondents in Örebro.The study shows that Robertsons Charkuteri AB has high brand awareness among the citizens of Örebro and the consumers associated the brand with high quality and Swedish meat. These were also the highest valued associations in the purchase decision. The result also shows that brand image influences consumers purchase decision. These results contribute an increased knowledge within the area of consumer behavior.

PURPOSEThe main purpose of this research is to determine the consumer level approach of brand equity in Citibank N.A using empirical information based on its brand awareness. The awareness of a brand would show the level of the brand recognition. A telephone interview was conducted to explain the different aspects that constitute the recognition of brand equity and brand awareness of Citibank N.A-Cameroon in addition to its ads. RESEARCH QUESTIONHow can Citibank N.A, Cameroon subsidiary, measure the level of its brand equity from its brand awareness? RESEARCH APPROACH/METHODOLOGYIn order to answer the research question and achieve the research objective established for this research, a structured research method was required. In this research a qualitative research approach was applied to suit the content of the research. A telephone interview was conducted to give a qualitative view of this research. FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONSAwareness (aided, unaided), contributes to the recognition of brand equity. In the empirical part of the thesis brand recognition and awareness can be facilitated by Citibank-Cameroon subsidiary being participative in its social corporate responsibility plan to develop the community by planting trees and organizing football competition every summer holidays. This brand strategy has been used for several years to keep a positive brand image of the bank.

<p><em>Background: </em>Sponsoring is a topic that has always been present but in different forms. Recently however, it has become even more popular and companies today invest small fortunes on becoming sponsors of different events, individuals and teams. However, there is still not much research done within this field, hence we find it interesting to investigate further.</p><p><em>Purpose:<strong> </strong></em>The purpose of this thesis is to investigate, from a strategic marketing perspective, what a sponsoring organization wants to accomplish by sponsoring a sports team and how it affects brand awareness<strong><em>.</em></strong><strong><em></em></strong></p><p><em>Method: </em>In order to solve our purpose, we have conducted a case study concerning HV71 and four of their sponsors, to understand why they have become sponsors, and also to test whether this sponsorship affects brand awareness amongst viewers. This information was gathered by collecting qualitative data to be able to understand the motives behind sponsoring, as well as quantitative data where the aim was to test brand awareness and its affection. The qualitative data was gathered by conducting interviews with four different sponsoring organizations; Kinnarps, Säkra Försäkringar, Elmia and M-Clean Papertech, while the quantitative data was gathered by the use of questionnaires which were handed out to viewers at three different occasions.<em>          </em></p><p><em>Conclusion: </em>This thesis shows that there is a common denominator in why to engage in sponsorship within sports amongst the sponsors of HV71 namely, the need for media exposure and getting the brand name out in the market. By possessing various sponsorship rights, varying results of brand exposure and awareness can be achieved. In strategic marketing sponsoring aims at a more long term increase in Brand Awareness.</p>

<p>A cruise, meaning a travel on a ship where one visit a number of places is a form of holiday alternative that has grown rapidly the last decade.</p><p>Royal Caribbean International (RCI) is the largest actor on the Swedish market and is now changing its target market strategy. The company is transitioning its focus from the old traditional more affluent clientele, to target a wider span of customers where the people between 30 and 50 years of age are in focus and have become the main target group. Therefore activities aboard are added to suit these customers specifically.</p><p>What the authors of this thesis want to find out by using both interviews and questionnaires is whether the general opinion about cruising is coherent with the message that Royal Caribbean International is trying to convey. The authors also want to know if the targeting efforts are optimal when trying to alter people’s mindset and attract a new type of younger customers.</p><p>According to the performed survey, the brand awareness of RCI was best within the main target group. The most efficient media vehicle in communicating RCI’s brand has been brochures followed by newspapers and word of mouth. Somewhat surprisingly neither TV nor Internet was among top three of the most awareness creating media vehicles.</p><p>Through these media vehicles RCI tries to convey that younger people are now more in focus. However, people older than 50 are the most positive towards going on a cruise themselves. At the same time the whole population seem to think that cruising is best suited for people older than 50. No matter how old the respondents to the questionnaire were they believed that cruising was better suited for people older than themselves.</p><p>The population is getting older and the proportion of people over 50 years will increase dramatically compared to younger people within the next decades. Still RCI is focusing on adding activities and market themselves towards a younger group. Family behavior is changing and people tend to start a family later. RCI is therefore targeting families to a greater extent in order to attract the young but at the same time retain the older and proportionally growing customers groups.</p><p>Cruise prices have decreased and RCI is now more than ever not only targeting more affluent people. It is supposed to be afforded by a wide span. Even so, people tend to think that cruising is better suited for high-income takers. At the same time it is widely associated with luxury, not affordability.</p><p>Associations to cruising are overall positive but they are not necessarily exactly the ones that RCI is trying to communicate the most. Some perceptions are in line with the message RCI are trying to convey while others are based on the established prejudices that surrounds the cruise line industry and that are hard to erase. Even though people typically see cruising as something positive, they are still according to this study not to any great extent considering going on a cruise.</p>