In der vorliegenden Masterarbeit wird die Thematik eines Service-Level-Modells für das Kunden-Reporting eines hochtechnologisierten Unternehmens analysiert. Die stetig kürzer werdenden Technologiezyklen, der zunehmende Druck von anderen Wettbewerbern sowie die Flut an aufkommenden Kleinkunden, durch Technologien des Internet der Dinge, verlangen nach einer konsequenten Report-Standardisierung. Aufgrund der unterschiedlichen Ansätze im Kunden-Reporting des Unternehmens wurde untersucht, inwiefern die Erfahrungen mit Großkunden auf Kleinkunden nachhaltig und zielgerichtet adaptiert werden können. Die Analyse der theoretischen Grundlagen unterstreicht die Relevanz dieser Thematik und verdeutlicht die Gemeinsamkeiten zwischen dem unternehmensinternen Management-Reporting sowie dem Reporting für B2B-Kunden. Im Anschluss daran erfolgt eine Bestandsaufnahme des Customer-Reportings in Bezug auf das Foundry-Unternehmen. Dabei wurden alle kundenrelevanten Berichte der Fachabteilungen begutachtet. Im Nachgang dazu konnten entsprechende Optimierungsansätze herausgearbeitet sowie ein nachhaltiges Reporting-Konzept für Kleinkunden aufgezeigt werden. Das erarbeitete Konzept soll zukünftig seitens der Foundry als Grundlage für aufkommende Neukunden mit niedrigem Produkt-Volumina dienen. Betrachtet man nun das Resultat dieser Untersuchung bleibt festzuhalten, dass durch dieses Instrument dem Effekt der Informationsüberflutung auf Kundenseite deutlich entgegengewirkt wird. Überdies wird erreicht, dass auf Seiten der Foundry sowie dem B2B-Kunden ein homogenes Verständnis, in Bezug auf die technischen Inhalte, generiert wird. Insgesamt betrachtet, liefert diese Arbeit einen wertvollen Beitrag zum Thema Customer-Reporting im hochtechnologisierten Umfeld. Man kann daher den Schluss ziehen, dass es gelingen kann, den vielfältigen Anforderungen der aufkommenden Kleinkunden mit einem generellen Reporting-Standard zu begegnen.

Bakgrund: Digitaliseringen har gett upphov till flertalet sociala medieplattformar för individer samt företag att kommunicera på, vilket kan ifrågasätta den traditionella marknadsföringen. Fintechbranschen är ett exempel på en bransch som tagit tillvara på de möjligheter som kommit med digitaliseringen. Tidigare forskning visar på att få B2B-företag använder sig av sociala medier i sin marknadsföring. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka och skapa förståelse för hur och varför sociala medier kan användas som marknadsföringskanal hos fintechbolag verksamma inom B2B samt undersöka sociala mediers betydelse för relationsmarknadsföring och kundengagemang. Metod: Arbetet har tillämpat en kvalitativ metod där semistrukturerade intervjuer med respondenter från fem olika fallföretag har genomförts. Studien kombinerar en induktiv samt deduktiv ansats. Slutsats: Studien visar att det finns flertalet incitament som talar för en användning av sociala medier inom B2B. En närvaro på sociala medier anses vara viktigt för B2B-företag. Det framgår att sociala medier är en lämplig kanal för företagens arbete med relationsmarknadsföring både gällande etablerandet samt upprätthållandet av kundrelationer. Sociala medier blir även betydelsefullt för företagens arbete med kundengagemang. Dock blir det tydligt att sociala medier ej ersätter den traditionella marknadsföringen utan de anses istället komplettera varandra. / Background: The digitalisation has given rise to multiple social media platforms which implies new ways for individuals as well as businesses to communicate on, which in turn questions the traditional way of marketing. Financial technology is an example of an industry which has taken advantage of the possibilities that are generated out of digitalization. Previous studies show that few B2B-businesses have adapted to the use of social media by incorporating it in their marketing strategies. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate and create an understanding of how and why social media can be used as a marketing channel for fintech companies operating within B2B as well as research the importance of social media for relationship marketing and customer engagement. Methodology: The study has applied a qualitative method. Its data was obtained by semi structured interviews with respondents from five different companies. The study has a combination of an inductive and deductive approach. Conclusion: The study concludes that there are multiple incentives for a use of social media in a B2B-context. Being present on social media is assumed to be important for B2B-companies. Social media is a suitable channel for working with relationship marketing, both regarding maintaining as well as establishing customer relations. Furthermore, social media is shown to be important for businesses to work with customer engagement. However, it becomes clear that social media do not replace traditional marketing. Instead the two are considered to complement each other.

The digital world is constantly growing. This contributes to increasing expectations and demands in the technical aspect. Digitization is powerful, but it further contributes to a number of challenges, such as the coordination of physical and digital stores. During the corona pandemic, the digital transformation has accelerated for companies to adapt to customers. Therefore, the purpose of the research is to understand how swedish retailers can manage technological touchpoints in customer journeys in the furniture sector. Further the purpose is to investigate how retailers can use technological touchpoints to change the quality and customer engagement in the customer journey.  To be able to answer the empirical findings, six semi-structured interviews were obtained through a multiple case study. The theory from previous research and the empirical results were then discussed in the analysis. The conclusion of the thesis resulted in the management of digital touchpoints is different depending on whether it concerns companies using physical stores or e-commerce. This thesis has identified that retailers in the furniture sector manage technological touchpoints to create a seamless customer experience, increase customer satisfaction, more easily engage customers and to be able to integrate with customers in several ways. Digital touchpoints have made it easier for companies to measure results and to be able to improve the customer journey. One identification was that customer engagement has increased in relation to the increased digitalization, but also that the researched companies believe that digitization is vital for increasing customer engagement. Due to the technology, opportunities are created to be able to develop the quality of the customer journey. Further, by being able to measure the customer journey, the companies gain an insight into what should be constantly improved.

Firms in the service industry have experienced a 15-30% drop in customer satisfaction ratings and an estimated $10 billion annually due to the unpredictable tendencies of one of the most significant and fastest growing consumer segments in the marketplace, Generation Y customers. The distinctive behavior of this sizeable generational cohort may be reshaping the business landscape of the 21st century regarding how consumers will relate to service providers in the future. Using the theory of customer satisfaction management system, the purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the customer satisfaction strategies that business leaders in southern Nigeria use to retain Generation Y customers. The participants included business leaders who have successfully retained Generation Y customers by applying customer satisfaction business strategies in Akwa Ibom state, Nigeria. The data were collected through semistructured one-on-one interviews with 3 business leaders from different sectors of the service industry. To enhance the credibility and trustworthiness of the interpretations, methodological triangulation of the data sources and member checking were used. The process of data analysis included word frequency analysis, coding of related phrases, identification of patterns, and generation of themes around the codes. The themes that emerged from the study were (a) positive brand image creation, (b) social media as an enabler, and (c) quality service and timely delivery. This study may create awareness for business leaders on how to satisfy and retain Generation Y customers. This awareness has the potential of promoting positive social change among business leaders because of the significant contribution profitable businesses bring to the societies and communities.

There is little doubt that crises have a major impact on both companies and humanity. However, the picture is less clear when it comes to what challenges small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have to overcome when facing the crisis. Regulations and recommendations of the government are influencing the challenges to conduct business for SMEs. Social media marketing and the associated communication seems to form a great opportunity to overcome the challenges of the crisis. Additionally, the formation of groups in social media and the associated communication among users can be another beneficial factor during a pandemic crisis. The purpose of this paper is to examine how companies may use social media marketing as a strategy to acquire new customers during a pandemic crisis and comply with challenges arising due to the crisis. Interview data has been gathered from eight owner-managers of SMEs in Sweden; the focus was on Restaurants in Sundsvall. They have been interviewed on aspects of their approach to the COVID-19 crisis, their usage of social media marketing as well as customer acquisition during these times. A thematic analysis was used in order to connect the findings with the theory as well as detecting themes. Themes are: Challenges of a crisis for SMEs, social media marketing, and customer acquisition. The overall picture did show that all the informants suffered from the challenges due to the crisis at some point. Nevertheless, social media is a very useful tool for SMEs like restaurants to market their activities and offers, especially during times of crisis when budgets and income are lower.

Background: Crowdfunding is a new form of financing that has gained popularity among entrepreneurs seeking to fund innovative and creative projects. It involves collecting small amounts of money from a large number of potential backers through specialised websites. Crowdfunding has the potential to democratize access to capital, facilitate market validation, foster community engagement, and drive social impact, making it a powerful tool for innovation, economic growth, and positive change. The success of a crowdfunding campaign is influenced by the number of backers, the degree of interaction and engagement between creators and backers, as well as effective communication and engagement strategies. This study focuses on Customer Engagement, Service-Dominant (S-D) logic, and Value Co-Creation in the context of tabletop Kickstarter campaigns, since the platform has become a popular destination for game designers to fund their projects. Research Purpose: The development of an in-depth understanding of the role of customer engagement and co-creation of value in crowdfunding campaigns on Kickstarter.  Research Problem: The existing literature on crowdfunding success has explored various factors, but there is a lack of understanding regarding the evolving nature of customer engagement. While the concepts of value co-creation and interactive experiences in marketing relationships offer a foundation, further research is required to gain a comprehensive understanding of how customer engagement and co-creation affect both successful and less-studied unsuccessful campaigns. Further exploration of this topic is necessary due to the challenges faced in crowdfunding entrepreneurial development, such as engaging communities in co-creation activities in dynamic online environments.  Research Question:  How do customer engagement and co-creation impact crowdfunding campaigns on Kickstarter?  Method: Research Philosophy – Constructivism Paradigm; Methodology – Multiple-case Study Approach; Data Collection – 6 Semi-structured Interviews (with the inclusion of both successful and unsuccessful campaigns); Data Analysis – Thematic Analysis (using Abductive Approach with Cross-case Analysis);  Conclusion: To increase the likelihood of success, creators must carefully plan and execute their campaigns while taking into account the principles of Service-Dominant logic. This involves co-creating value with customers, engaging with them through feedback efforts, and demonstrating organizational competence. By following these principles, creators can increase the likelihood of success and create a positive experience for their backers.

I en affärsvärld där företag är ständigt utsatta för konkurrens är det viktigt för företagen att veta hur de ska inneha lojala kunder. Syftet med studien är att undersöka vilken påverkan kundengagemang, kundupplevelser inom sociala medier och tillfredsställelse har på kundlojalitet. Det teoretiska ramverket presenterar grunden för studiens nyckelord. Därefter kommer det konceptuella ramverket som synliggör att det existerar en hypotes för varje oberoende variabel. H1 är den första hypotesen: “Kundengagemang genom sociala medier har en positiv inverkan på kundlojalitet.”. Den andra hypotesen är H2: “Kundupplevelser genom sociala medier har en positiv inverkan på kundlojalitet.”. Den tredje hypotesen är H3 “Tillfredsställelse har en positiv inverkan på kundlojalitet”.  För att samla in data till studien så valdes det att göra en enkätundersökning med en likertskala där respondenterna fick svara på flera påståenden. För att få fram ett resultat från datan så gjordes flera multipla regressionsanalyser i spss. I resultatet framkom det att H1 inte accepteras då det inte fanns en tillräckligt hög signifikansnivå, medan H2 och H3 accepteras. Detta innebär att Kundupplevelser inom sociala medier och Tillfredsställelse har en positiv inverkan på Kundlojalitet, medan Kundengagemang inom sociala medier har en negativ inverkan på Kundlojalitet. / In a business world where companies encounter constant competition it becomes important to know how to hold customers' loyalty. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of customer engagement, customer experience in social media and satisfaction on customer loyalty. The theoretical framework presents the theoretical foundation of study’s keywords. The next chapter is the conceptual framework and here is where the hypotheses are presented. The first hypothesis  H1 “Customer engagement through social media has a positive outcome on customer loyalty.”  The second hypothesis H2 ``Customer experience through social media has a positive outcome on customer loyalty.” The third hypothesis H3 "Satisfaction has a positive outcome on customer loyalty.  To gather the data a survey was used with a likert scale.The participants got to answer a number of statements. To produce a result SPSS was used to perform several multiple regression analyses. The results indicate that H1 cannot be accepted because the p-value does not meet the necessary threshold to be significant, whilst both H2 and H3 surpass the threshold of significance. This implies that the use of customer experiences and satisfaction has a positive outcome on customer loyalty. On the other hand the use of customer engagement has a negative outcome on customer loyalty.

Sammanfattning  Titel: Hur kan IKEA Family utvecklas för att skapa ökad kundlojalitet?   Datum: 2022-06-03  Nivå: Kandidatuppsats i Företagsekonomi, 15 hp   Författare: Johanna Lundh och Flora Trast  Handledare: Anders Parment  Sökord: IKEA Family, IKEA, kundlojalitet, kundklubb, kundnöjdhet, kundengagemang  Problemformulering: Denna uppsats ämnar undersöka om det finns potentiella brister inom IKEA Family, vilka dessa brister är samt vilken förbättringspotential det finns för IKEA Family för att generera högre kundlojalitet.   Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att öka kunskapen om hur IKEA Family bör vara utformad utifrån ett kundlojalitetsperspektiv, samt om det finns några specifika förmåner och möjliga förbättringspunkter som är avgörande för att medlemmarna ska vara lojala. Dessutom kommer det undersökas vilka förmåner kundklubbsmedlemmar anser är avgörande för en väl fungerande kundklubb.  Teori: Teorikapitlet behandlar teorier inom kundlojalitet, kundklubbar, kundnöjdhet, kundengagemang, relationsmarknadsföring och Word of mouth.   Metod: Uppsatsen är baserad på en kvalitativ forskningsstrategi med strukturerade intervjuer. Angreppssättet är abduktiv och forskningsdesignen som har används är en fallstudie då det är ett enskilt företag som undersöks.   Slutsatser: IKEA Familys medlemmarna efterfrågar fler förmåner i form av rabatter och andra erbjudanden som inte erbjuds av kundklubben idag. De förmåner som efterfrågas är främst personliga erbjudanden, rabatter och bonusar. Utöver detta visar denna studie på en avsaknad av kommunikation, där en ökad kommunikation krävs för att medlemmarna ska bli mer engagerade i IKEA Family och på så sätt skapa högre kundlojalitet. Det som bör utvecklas inom IKEA Family är att utöka förmånspaketet till medlemmarna. Det är således dessa förmåner som anses vara avgörande för en välfungerande kundklubb med lojala medlemmar. / Abstract  Title: How can IKEA Family be developed to create increased customer loyalty?   Date: 2022-06-03  Academic level: Bachelor Thesis in Business Administration, 15 credits   Authors: Johanna Lundh and Flora Trast  Supervisor: Anders Parment  Keywords: IKEA, IKEA Family, customer loyalty, customer clubs, customer satisfaction, customer engagement  Problematization: This study aims to investigate potential shortcomings within IKEA Family and what potential for improvement there is for IKEA to generate higher customer loyalty.   Purpose: The purpose of this study is to increase knowledge about how IKEA Family should be designed from a customer loyalty perspective, and if there are any specific benefits and possible points of improvement which are crucial for the members to be loyal. In addition, it will be investigated which benefits customer club members consider to be crucial for a well-functioning customer club.   Theories: The theories used in this research are within the fields of customer loyalty, customer clubs, customer satisfaction, customer engagement, relationship marketing and Word of mouth.   Method: This study is based on a qualitative research strategy with structured interviews. The research approach is abductive and the research design is a case study.   Conclusions: The members of IKEA Family request more benefits, in the form of discounts and other benefits that are not offered by IKEA Family today. The benefits requested are mainly personal benefits, discounts and bonuses. In addition, this study shows a lack of communication. This is required for members to become more engaged in the customer club and thus create higher customer loyalty. Therefore, IKEA Family should expand their benefit package for members. These benefits are thus the benefits that are considered crucial for a well-functioning customer club with loyal members.

Customer engagement is a relatively new topic in research and due to its importance, it has recently received a lot of attention in both academia and practice. Although the attention, it still lacks knowledge regarding its components and driving factors. While previous research solely has included high involvement product categories, the purpose of this study was to shed light on low involvement product categories, by examining the driving factors of customer engagement within low involvement product categories. A qualitative method was chosen by implementing an inductive approach, and conducting eight in-depth unstructured interviews, with sensitizing concepts as a theoretical background. The reason for the method of choice in this thesis was based on the argument that the authors wanted to contribute new insights into the research field. The findings indicated seven prominent themes that were interpreted as driving factors of customer engagement within low involvement product categories, namely, marketing communication, brand traits, brand activations, brand ambassadors, brand values, brand-self connection, and fellowship. Since the purposive sample only focused on customers, the brand perspective was excluded.

In marketing literature, the consumer engagement concept has gained the significant attention of researchers. Based on the stimuli-organism-response (S-O-R) framework, current research proposed to analyze the association between consumers' perception of characteristics of firm-generated content (FGC) on Instagram and positive electronic word of mouth by consumers through affective consumer engagement. The quantitative research technique was employed to evaluate the hypotheses and theoretical framework, and an online survey was developed for this research. The backdrop for this study is Pakistan’s restaurant Instagram accounts due to the importance of engagement in the food sector. To test the hypotheses, SPSS software is used. From the analysis and results generated from different tools, it is found that Customer engagement is significantly affected by perceived enjoyment which they get from original Instagram post of the brands they follow. Additionally, it is found that if a firm or brand puts in effort in enhancing their content catering to better perceived enjoyment and perceived originality for improving customers’ engagement, then they are more likely to improve the WOM numbers which can bring in more followers and evidently more business.