Titel: Konsumenters emotioner gentemot det personliga varumärket – En kvalitativ studie. Nivå: Examensarbete på Grundnivå (kandidatexamen) i ämnet företagsekonomi. Författare: Rebecca Enblom och Amanda Pettersson. Handledare: Jonas Molin och Lars-Johan Åge. Datum: 2019 – Juni. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att bidra till en djupare förståelse för hur skriftliga självpresentationer påverkar potentiella konsumenters emotioner gentemot det personliga varumärket. Metod: Studien utgår från en kvalitativ forskningsmetod med ett induktivt förhållningssätt samt hermeneutiken som forskningstradition. För att studera potentiella konsumenters emotioner gentemot det personliga varumärket har data främst samlats in via tio semistrukturerade intervjuer. Dessa har sedan analyserats genom en tematisk analys. Resultat & slutsats: Resultat från denna uppsats visar på att strukturerade samt korta men koncisa självpresentationer skapar ett gott första intryck. Dessa ska sedan byggas upp på ett sätt som skapar en nyfikenhet hos potentiella konsumenter. Det är även viktigt att via självpresentationen få fram ett engagemang samt känslan av förtroende. Examensarbetets bidrag: Denna forskning bidrar med kunskap om hur fastighetsmäklare och andra professionellt yrkesverksamma individer kan skapa ett personligt varumärke i form av en självpresentation. Detta i syfte att generera positiva emotioner hos potentiella konsumenter. I och med detta fyller studien det forskningsgap vi funnit på området gällande det personliga varumärket. Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Med tanke på att en kvalitativ forskningsmetod använts blir resultatet omöjligt att generalisera. Därför efterfrågar vi en liknande  studie av kvantitativ art. Intressant vore även att djupare studera korrelationen mellan emotioner inför det personliga varumärket samt personlighetstyp. Till sist föreslår vi även vidare forskning gällande sociala mediers inverkan på konsumenters emotioner gentemot det personliga varumärket. Nyckelord: Personligt varumärke, branding, digital marknadsföring, online marknadsföring, självpresentation, emotioner. / Title: Consumers emotions towards the personal brand – A qualitative study. Level: Student thesis, final assignment for Bachelor Degree in Business Administration. Author: Rebecca Enblom and Amanda Pettersson. Supervisor: Jonas Molin and Lars-Johan Åge. Date: 2019 – June. Aim: The aim of this study is to contribute to a deeper understanding of how written self-presentations affect the potential consumers’ emotions towards the personal brand. Method: The study is based on a qualitative research method with an inductive approach and a hermeneutic research tradition. In order to study the potential consumers’ emotions towards the personal brand, data has mainly been collected through ten semi-structured interviews. These have later been analyzed by using a thematic analysis. Result & Conclusions: Findings from this study show that short and well-structured self-presentations create a good first impression. The self-presentations should be formed in a way that creates curiosity among potential consumers. It is also important that the presentations bring out a feeling of commitment and trust. Contribution of the thesis: This research contributes knowledge about how real estate agents and other professionals can create a personal brand in form of a self-presentation. This with the purpose to generate positive emotions among potential consumers. As a result, the study fills the research gap we found on the subject of the personal brand. Suggestions for future research: Given that a qualitative research method has been used, the result is not possible to generalize. Therefore, we are requesting a similar study with a quantitative approach. It would also be interesting to study the correlation between emotions towards the personal brand and personality features. Finally, we propose a continued research about social media’s impact on consumers’ emotions towards the personal brand.  Key words: Personal brand, branding, digital marketing, online marketing, self-presentation, emotions.

Authors: Phia Bergdahl & Karin Tydén Title: This is the era of the personal brand – a study about the role of a personal brand in a professional context in modern society Level: BA Thesis in Media and Communication Studies Location: Linnaeus University Language: Swedish Number of pages: 54 Background In pursuit of being unique and stand out, it has become fashionable to market yourself as a personal brand. According to some experts on the subject, this has become a necessity for survival in the tough competition about the jobs and the customers. With Internet and social media as a natural element in our society, we also have to relate to these channels when it comes to communicating ourselves. Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the role of the personal brand in a professional context in modern society and to explore Internet involvement in communicating the brand. Theories We have used Bauman’s theory of “consumer society”, how we live in a society where we are both the consumers and the goods consumed. We have also used Castells’s theory of "network society" and how its growth is changing our culture. We have also used some general brand theories. Methodology Our study is based on two methodological approaches. We have chosen to use a qualitative study consisting of interviews with experts within the field, and a quantitative study in the form of a questionnaire with a strategic selection of respondents. Conclusions A personal brand plays a significant role in today's society, both professional and private. A strong personal brand reflects who the individual are, what the person stands for and contribute to the environment. It is a contributory factor for success in business and in the creation of identity. Internet and social media are good tools to communicate the personal brand. Regardless of financial means or status in society, the individual can build a platform to spread the message. The purpose of the visibility is important and it must be kept in mind that these channels may not only increase, but also reduce the credibility. Key words Personal brand, branding, communication, Internet, social media, consumer society, network society

För att få drömjobbet inom en konkurrenskraftig bransch som grafiskdesign krävs det lilla extra. Syftet med denna undersökning är att ta redapå vad detta extra är och därigenom underlätta för arbetssökandegrafiska designers på vägen till drömjobbet.Genom tre djupgående intervjuer med anställda på medelstora byråer iMellansverige undersöktes vad arbetsgivare uppskattar och förväntar sigav en arbetssökande grafisk designer. Frågeställningen behandladeportfolions framtid med branschens digitalisering som bakgrund, samthur en arbetssökande fångar arbetsgivarens intresse.Resultatet visar att även om portfolion utgör en stor del av underlaget förrekrytering av personal, är personen bakom portfolion och vad den haratt berätta om innehållet det som är viktigast. En portfolio som intebeskriver sammanhang duger inte som marknadsföringsmaterial. Attvårda det personliga varumärket framstår som viktigt för framgång. Dendigitala portfolion dominerar marknaden, men fysiska arbetsproverupplevs som ett möjligt sätt att stå ut från mängden. Digitala nätverkmottas positivt av branschen, men webbplatser anses ha mer substans. / To get the job of your dreams in a competitive industry like graphicdesign you need that special something. The purpose of this survey is tofind out what that something is and thereby make it easier for jobseeking graphic designers on the road to their dream job.Through three in-depth interviews with employees at medium-sizedfirms in central Sweden investigations were made to find out what theemployers appreciate and expect from a job seeking graphic designer.The issues treated were the role of the portfolio with the industry'sdigitization as a background, and how a job seeker captures theemployer's interest.The results show that although the portfolio represents a large part of thebasis in recruitment of staff, the person behind the portfolio and what ithas to tell about the content is the most important. A portfolio that doesnot describe the context is no good as promotional material. To take careof the personal brand stands out as important to succeed. The digitalportfolio dominates the market, but physical work samples are seen as apossible way to stand out from the crowd. Digital networks arepositively received by the industry, but personal websites are consideredto have more substance.

De flesta professionella idrottare har förstått hur viktigt sociala medier har blivit för att bygga en stark image för sitt personliga varumärke. Få vet dock hur de ska gå till väga för att lyckas med detta. Denna studies syfte är att försöka beskriva hur idrottare kan gå till väga för att lyckas genom att beskriva genom vilka sociala mediekanaler fans föredrar att följa idrottare på samt vilken typ av innehåll de föredrar att idrottaren publicerar. För att försöka beskriva detta har en kundundersökning i form utav en enkät genomförts. Resultatet av enkätundersökningen visade att kvinnliga fans helst följer professionella idrottare via bildbaserade sociala medier medan männen i större utsträckning föredrar textbaserade eller kombination av bild och text. Det mest uppskattade innehållet bland fansen var motiverande och/eller inspirerande budskap tätt följt av innehåll kopplat direkt eller indirekt till idrottarens yrkesroll som professionell idrottare. Ämnet visade sig dock vara mer komplext än vad utgångspunkten till denna studie baserat på den lilla mängd tidigare forskning pekade på vid formulerandet av frågeställningen. Då resultatet analyserades med den teoretiska referensramen som bakgrund tyder det på att fler parter har stora intressen i den professionella idrottarens sociala mediakommunikation än vad utgångspunkten för denna studie var. Slutsatser från denna studie är att det är viktigt att idrottaren sätter sina fans/följare i centrum för att lyckas bygga en stark personlig image på sociala medier. Att idrottaren också interagerar med och har en personlig kommunikation med fansen tycks även det vara en viktig i varumärkesbyggandet. Samt att vidare studier inom ämnet skulle behövas för att kunna dra slutsatser om hur de olika parternas intressen påverkar varandra och hur intressekonflikter kan undvikas. / Most professional athletes have understood how important social media have become to build a strong brand image for their personal brand. However, few athletes know how to succeed in doing this. The purpose of this study is to try to describe how athletes can build and improve their personal brand image on social media by examining on which social media platforms fans prefer to follow athletes and what kind of content they prefer the athlete to publish. To study this, a customer survey has been conducted. The results of the survey showed that female fans prefer to follow professional athletes through image-based social media while men to a greater extent prefer text-based or a combination of image and text. The most appreciated content among the fans was motivating and / or inspiring content closely followed by content linked directly or indirectly to the athlete's professional role as an athlete. However, the subject proved to be more complex than the what was assumed at the starting point of this study. When this studys result was analyzed with the theoretical reference frame as background, it appears that more parties have major interests in the professional athletes social media communication than what was assumed. Conclusions from this study are that it is important that the athlete puts hers / his fans and followers at the center of hers / his social media strategies to successfully be able to build a strong personal brand image on social media. It also seems to be important that the athlete interacts with and has a personal communication with the fans to build their personal brand. Further studies on the subject would be needed to draw conclusions about how the parties different interests affect each other and how conflicts of interests can be avoided.

El Internet permitió que las microempresas compitieran en el mercado con las empresas de mayor prestigio, dándoles accesibilidad para conectar de una manera más rápida y efectiva con sus consumidores. Las microempresas se centran en este medio y buscan siempre innovar para seguir conectando con el cliente. El objetivo de la investigación es examinar la marca personal como estrategia comunicacional que permite a las microempresas generar engagement con los consumidores El empresario se conecta con su público objetivo de manera emocional al relacionar la empresa con su propio estilo de vida generando mayor credibilidad y confianza para la empresa. La metodología que se utilizó fue cualitativa, en la cual se realizó un análisis de contenido en redes sociales a través de los comentarios de publicaciones de la compañía Dulce Compañía dedicada a la venta de papelería. Comenzó como empresa digital y fue expandiéndose colocando módulos en los distintos centros comerciales y actualmente cuenta con una tienda. Se analizó el engagement de sus consumidores a través de sus comentarios en su cuenta de Instagram, fue de esta manera que hallamos el tipo de engagement que genera la marca Dulce Compañía, basándose en una conexión emocional con sus clientas al sentirse identificadas con los gustos y preferencias que la dueña muestra a través de la cuenta de Instagram de la empresa. / The Internet allowed micro-companies to compete in the market with the most prestigious companies, giving them accessibility to connect more quickly and effectively with their consumers. Digital marketing had different strategies according to their approach to generate sales. Micro-enterprises focused on this medium and always sought to innovate to continue connecting with the customer. The objective of this research is to examine personal branding as a communication strategy that allows micro-businesses to generate engagement with consumers. The entrepreneur connects with his target audience emotionally by relating the company to his own lifestyle, generating greater credibility and trust for the company. The methodology to be used will be qualitative, in which an analysis of content on social networks will be carried out through the comments of publications of the company Dulce Compañía, which is based on the sale of stationery that began as a digital company and expanded, Placing modules in the different shopping malls and currently having a store, the engagement of its consumers will be analyzed through their comments on their Instagram account.sale of stationery that started as a digital company and expanded by placing modules in different shopping centers and currently has a store, the closeness of its consumers will be analyzed through their comments on their Instagram account, It was in this way that we found the type of commitment that the Dulce Compañía brand generates, identified in an emotional connection with its customers by feeling identified with the tastes and modifications that the owner shows through the company's Instagram account. / Trabajo de investigación

Una masa está conformada por individuos orientados hacia una dirección fija, quienes pueden perder su personalidad de forma consciente y orientar sus sentimientos y pensamientos hacia una dirección definida. Así se evidenció en el Mundial Rusia 2018 cuando la selección de fútbol peruana logró clasificar gracias al capitán de la selección, Paolo Guerrero, quien generó un gran movimiento comercial en razón a esta proeza tan anhelada por los peruanos. Esta investigación tiene como propósito diagnosticar y profundizar el conocimiento sobre el caso de Paolo Guerrero y la psicología de masas que generó a nivel comercial como consecuencia de la clasificación. Se revisará cómo las marcas personales conectan con las personas por medio de su accionar e influencia mediática que brindan los medios de comunicación. Se planteó una metodología de estudio exploratorio cualitativo mediante entrevistas a profundidad a especialistas y dos grupos focales integrado por universitarios, seguidores del fútbol peruano. / A mass is made up of individuals oriented towards a fixed direction, who can consciously lose their personality and direct their feelings and thoughts towards a defined direction. This was evidenced in the 2018 World Cup in Russia when the Peruvian soccer team managed to qualify thanks to the captain of the team, Paolo Guerrero, who generated a great commercial movement due to this feat so longed for by Peruvians. The purpose of this research is to diagnose and deepen the knowledge about the case of Paolo Guerrero and the mass psychology that it generated at a commercial level as a result of the classification. It will review how personal brands connect with people through their actions and media influence provided by the media. A qualitative exploratory study methodology was proposed through in-depth interviews with specialists and two focus groups made up of university students, followers of Peruvian soccer. / Tesis

В данной работе автор подробно рассматривает теоретико-методологические основания изучения личного бренда и его продвижения в социальных сетях, особое внимание уделяет изучению самопрезентацию в Instagram как средства для продвижения личного бренда. Раскрываются такие понятия как личный бренд, личностная идентичность, социальные сети, самопрезентация, выделяются элементы личного бренда и уровни восприятия личности. Эмпирическую базу ВКР составили результаты исследований, проведенных с использованием двух методов: опрос и контент-анализ. Опрос позволил проанализировать отношение пользователей Instagram к самопрезентации в данной социальной сети как к инструменту продвижения личного бренда. С помощью контент-анализа выявлено, прослеживаются ли элементы личного бренда в аккаунтах блогеров на основе их публикаций в социальной сети Instagram. / The author examines in detail the theoretical and methodological foundations of the study of a personal brand and its promotion in social networks, pays special attention to the study of self-presentation on Instagram as a means of promoting a personal brand in this work. Such concepts as personal brand, personal identity, social networks, self-presentation are revealed, elements of a personal brand and levels of personality perception are highlighted. The empirical base of the FQP was formed by the results of studies carried out using two methods: polling and content analysis. The survey allowed us to analyze the attitude of Instagram users to self-presentation in this social network as a tool for promoting a personal brand. Using content analysis, it was revealed whether elements of a personal brand can be traced in bloggers' accounts based on their posts on the Instagram social network.

A qualitative study of the Swedish party leader’s presentation on Instagram.  Social media has become a big part of political communication. It makes it possible to spread messages and information directly to its voters without having to go through the traditional media, which they needed to before the age of social media. After finding a research gap about politicians' presentation on Instagram in a Swedish context, this study aims to examine four Swedish party leaders' presentations on Instagram by using qualitative methods where their image and text art studied. The study is based on Goffman's dramaturgical perspective and the phenomenon of personal branding.  The study shows that the party leaders' posts have a clear political focus with varied personal elements in the self-presentation depending on the party leader and the political affiliation. Posts with political content show a prominence that aims to emphasize its role as a leader, which is enhanced by the formal dress and the setting shown in the pictures. These posts are aimed to influence, inform and enlighten. The more private and personal pictures are supposed to present an ordinary side of the party leader and create recognition that the voters can relate to by showing emotions, family life and hobbies. But even though these pictures may feel personal and look like the party leader lets the followers into private life, there is an impression control, where they themselves have chosen what they want to share and highlight the sides in the self that they want to associate their personal brand with.

Syftet med uppsatsen var att ta reda på vilka bloggstrategier några av Sveriges framstående bloggskribenter använt/använder för att nå framgång med sin blogg, hur de skapat sig ett framgångsrikt personligt varumärke via bloggen, samt vad de tror motiverar företag att använda deras blogg som marknadsföringskanal. Bloggskribenternas syn kompletteras med två företags perspektiv på fenomenet, dels ett företag som arbetar som annonsförmedlare mellan företag och bloggare, dels ett modeföretag som har god vana av denna marknadsföringskanal. För få frågeställningarna besvarade har en kvalitativ studie genomförts med hjälp av en webbenkät med totalt elva respondenter. Resultatet visade att bloggskribenterna själva anser att de inte använder några utstuderade bloggstrategier för att nå framgång. Vidare visade resultatet att skapandet av ett personligt varumärke via en blogg möjliggörs av en utav bloggaren utmärkande personlighet och bloggstrategier. I sin tur motiveras företagen att använda bloggen som marknadsföringskanal främst av tre orsaker – bloggens totala räckvidd, möjligheten till ökad målgruppsträff och bloggskribentens trovärdighet gentemot läsarna. Företagen är ute efter en marknadsföringskanal där de lättare når sin målgrupp via viral marknadsföring från en ur läsarnas perspektiv trovärdig person. För att bloggaren ska lyckas behålla sin trovärdighet gentemot läsarna måste denne sälja in företagens produkter på ett förtroendeingivande sätt. Alla bloggskribenter har inte en utmärkande personlighet, ett starkt personligt varumärke, fungerande bloggstrategier och talangen samt finessen att marknadsföra produkter vilket leder till att enbart en minoritet når framgång med sin blogg. / The purpose of this paper was to find out which blog strategies some of Sweden's leading blog writers used / are using to achieve success with their blog, how they created a successful personal brand through their blog, and what they think motivates companies to use their blog as a marketing channel. Blog writers view is complemented by two corporate perspective on the phenomenon, one company working as an advertising intermediary between companies and blog authors, and one fashion company that have good experience of this marketing channel. To get the questions answered a qualitative study was used, with the help of a web survey eleven respondents participated. The results showed that the blog writers themselves believe that they are not using any special blog strategies for reaching success. Furthermore, results showed that the creation of a personal brand through a blog is made possible by the bloggers’ distinctive personality and blog strategies. Corporations are motivated to use the blog as a marketing channel for three main reasons- the blogs overall range, the possibility of increased target hit and the blog writer's credibility towards the readers. Corporations are looking for a marketing channel where they easier reach their main audience through viral marketing from a, out of the readers' perspective, trustworthy person. For the blogger to retain credibility towards the readers, they must sell the products in trustworthy manner. All blog writers do not have a distinctive personality, a strong personal brand, functioning blog strategies and the talent and finesse to market products, which results in a minority of bloggers reaching success with their blog.