ABSTRACT Background: The marketing efforts made by firms have been forced to change dramatically during the past year as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Online communication and social media platforms have seen a boom in users and firms have been forced to switch both their sales and marketing efforts to the online world. By applying the definition and observable characteristics of Social Media Marketing Strategies (SMMS) in combination with Consumer Engagement Theory, the authors of this paper aim to explore which strategies have been applied by three IKEA Instagram accounts and how social media users are reacting to these applied SMMSs in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Problem: It has previously been suggested to conduct further studies on the combination of social media and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) in order to help firms develop stronger and more meaningful consumer relationships. Researchers further suggest that there is a current research gap regarding the factors which might influence user-generated content (such as comments), positive Word of Mouth (WoM) and brand engagement among social media users. Further it was recognized that social media reaches across national borders which leaves room for cross-cultural research to be made on the following consequences.  Purpose: The exploratory purpose of this study aims in developing a deeper understanding of the applied SMMSs by firms and the resulting consumer engagement as well as social media user’s reactions to those strategies. Research Questions: “What social media marketing strategies (SMMSs) are IKEA applying during the COVID-19 pandemic?” and, “How do social media users respond to IKEA’s social media marketing strategies (SMMSs) during the COVID-19 Pandemic?” Method: With a relativist ontology and social constructionist epistemology, the study inductively explores the SMMSs applied by three Instagram accounts from the retailer IKEA in Australia, UK and Sweden. Through a case study-approach and the application of qualitative content analysis, the accounts have been analyzed and coded separately by two independent researchers. Intercoder reliability was measured between the researchers through Cohen’s Kappa. The findings from each case were then compared in a cross-case analysis. Practical Implications: This research will help marketing managers by providing insights into how consumers respond and perceive different SMMS during the COVID-19 pandemic and to enhance their consumer engagement by adapting an appropriate communication strategy to reach their business objectives. Result and Conclusions: Within the chosen timeframe of 6 months during COVID-19, the analyzed IKEA accounts applied disparate SMMS, namely, ‘Social Commerce Strategy’, ‘Social Content Analysis’ and ‘Social Monitoring Strategy’. The Instagram users' reactions differed across the three accounts, where the strategy which received the most positive consumer reactions, as well as the highest level of consumer engagement, was the ‘Social Content Strategy’ which was applied by IKEA Australia. Thus, the findings suggest that the three Instagram accounts apply unique SMMSs adapted to each country and thus achieve distinctive results in terms of consumer engagement.

Title: How companies handle eCRM via social media depending on company size Level: Student thesis, final assignment for Bachelor Degree in Business Administration Author: Din Jahic & Robin Issa Supervisor: Michelle Rydback Date: 2022 - May 25th Aim: The aim is to increase understanding of how companies handle e-customer relationship management (eCRM) via social media, and to investigate whether size affects companies' strategies. Method: In this essay, a qualitative research approach is applied where the empirical material is collected through a multiple-case study. This multiple case study consisted of six companies where half of them were counted as large companies and the other half as small companies. A total of six semi-structured interviews were conducted with respondents in three different industries; the retail industry, the restaurant industry and the grocery industry. Results & Conclusions: The results of the study shows that the most used marketing strategies were "Social Content" and "Social Monitoring". The smaller companies mostly used "Social Content", as it was the most suitable option in terms of resource capacity. Furthermore, it is concluded that larger companies dominate "Social Monitoring". The final result shows that larger companies with more resources have a more systematic customer relationship management. Contributions of the thesis: This thesis has contributed to companies being able to obtain information regarding marketing strategies and customer relationship management via social media, as well as the implementation of concepts that are suitable for the company's size and resources. Suggestions for future research: A future area of research may be to carry out similar studies with other criterias. For example, only interviewing digital stores, as the approaches are different in comparison with physical stores. The interesting contribution would then be to investigate how digital stores proceed with marketing activities and customer relationship management, as opposed to physical stores. Key words: Customer Relationship Management (CRM) · electronic Customer Relationship Management (eCRM) · Social media · Social Media Marketing Strategy · Marketing Strategy