The purpose of this thesis is to show what advantages and opportunities social media offer for B2B-companies (business-to-business), and how they can be used for marketing communications. We have studied how companies can use social media, for example evolving the organization, developing products/services, staying up-to-date, building relations, creating customer loyalty and engagement, building the company’s identity and image, and affecting the buying decisions. We have also studied how B2B-companies can choose media channels, set goals, and measure the results. We have carried out interviews, through phone and visits, with four chosen companies that fit our criterias: Swedish B2B-company that is successful in social media. The result of the interviews show that B2B-companies use social media for various purposes, for example networking (to create and build long term relations with other companies) and to improve the company’s image among the end customers. Most of our interviewees reach their end customers (consumers) in first place and customers (companies) in second place, since many B2B-companies do not yet use social media. Half of our respondents mention that social media should not be used for advertising and campaigns (one way communication). Instead they should be used for building relations and conversations (two way communication). The majority of our respondents believe that it is essential to participate in the social channels where their consumers are, and let the target group control the choice of the channels. By being next to the consumers, a relationship will be formed that will lead to an increased loyalty. Three of the interviewed companies have noticed a growth in demand and sales, and a better recognition of the company. Most of our respondents are strongly convinced that their presence in social media has an effect on the customers’ buying decisions, though they cannot statistically prove it. They do however see that the preference that individuals form around the brand have a significant meaning. All of the companies that we interviewed state that they use both quantitative and qualitative measurements to find out what effect their activities in social media have on sales, commercial benefits, and what subjects that will raise interest and engagement. From one extreme to another, one of the companies can directly see, with help of statistics, if the activities in social media are increasing the sales, while another company claims that it is impossible to jump to conclusions about that connection, since there are many things that affect the customers’ buying decisions.

Syftet med denna Kandidatuppsats var att undersöka hur YouTube-vloggare attraherar en stor publik med lojala följare. Detta syfte uppnåddes genom att granska vlogg-konsumenters uppfattningar om YouTube-vloggare och deras digitala personliga varumärke. Närmare bestämt undersöktes konsumenternas uppfattningar om vloggarnas trovärdighet, intimitet och autenticitet. Utifrån tidigare forskning identifierade uppsatsen sex teorier eller begrepp som relaterar till vloggares förmåga att attrahera lojala följare. Dessa begrepp är trovärdighet, intimitet, autenticitet, attityd, parasocial interaktion och överlagt beteende. Dessa begrepp kom att fungera som teman för uppsatsens frågeformulär och analys. Intervjusvaren samlades in genom kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer av sex stycken vlogg-konsumenter. Dessa konsumenter kommenterade totalt tolv videoklipp av två kända och två okända svenska livsstilsvloggare. Uppsatsens slutsatser blev att vloggarnas största tillgång var deras personliga individualitet och äkthet. Det visade sig även att vlogg-konsumenternas preferenser för diverse vloggare baserades på konsumenternas kön, socioekonomiska situation och framtidsdrömmar. Det framkom dessutom att de livsstilsvloggare som på ett genuint, ärligt och personligt sätt kunde symbolisera konsumenternas framtidsdrömmar lyckades attrahera en lojal publik. Avslutningsvis konstaterades att forskningen behöver vidareutvecklas inom detta fält.

Sociala plattformar växer så det knakar och unga såväl gamla börjar flytta sitt fokus från traditionella linjära medieplattformar till de nya interaktiva. Den största kanalen hos unga svenska ungdomar idag är Youtube. Eftersom människor spenderar en stor del av sin tid på Youtube vill annonsörer vara närvarande och exponeras. Författarna ställde sig frågan hur väl annonsörer använder plattformen och om deras användning uppfattas korrekt av konsumenterna.     Syftet med arbetet var att undersöka om varumärken på plattformen Youtube agerar på ett sätt som kan vara skadligt företagets varumärkesvärde och positionering.     Till hjälp att besvara syftet gjordes en litteraturundersökning för att förstå kommunikation och varumärkesbyggande aktiviteter för företag och vidare för att förstå de sociala medieplattformarna. Teorier och forskning samlades in kring Sociala medier på användningen av dessa plattformar.   I metodkapitlet formulerades hur undersökningen skulle gå, hur data skulle samlas in och hur den skulle analyseras. Data samlades in genom en enkät med 51 respondenter och intervjuer med 9 respondenter. De frågor som ställdes var relaterade till syftet, hur konsumenterna uppfattar företag och deras varumärkesbyggande aktivitet på Youtube samt om aktiviteterna påverkar konsumenternas uppfattning av varumärket.     Den slutsats som drogs var att marknadsaktiviteter på Youtube kan ha en skadlig inverkan på ett varumärkes positionering och värde. Det som identifierades som den mest varumärkeshämmande egenskapen var att företagen inte publicerar material som konsumenten vill se. Genom att inte exponeras i de största kanalerna hos unga riskerar varumärken att försvaga deras positionering och värde. Användandet av påverkarmarknadsföring (eng. influencers) har bäst potential att generera effekt då varumärket kan rida på dessa redan etablerade enheter på Youtube. Generiska varumärkeshämmande aktiviteter identifierades även men som inte hade exklusivt med sociala medier att göra.    Om varumärken planerar att bli en del av Youtube behöver de lägga ner energi och tid på att skapa och underhålla sin publik. Exklusivt material som ger konsumenterna mervärde bör skapas för att styra bort deras tankar om att det är reklam.     Genom att använda dessa rekommendationer kan varumärket nå ut till fler konsumenter och bygga en lojal, engagerad följarbas. / As social media platforms continue to grow, both youth and adults are shifting their focus from traditional media platforms to new interactive platforms. The biggest media platform for Swedish youth is YouTube, and because people spend a great deal of their time on YouTube, advertisers want to be present in promoting their brand. In this paper, the authors asked the questions: how well do advertisers use YouTube as a platform, and is their use correctly perceived by consumers?    The purpose of the thesis is to examine if brands on YouTube act in a way that could be harmful for the brand’s image and market positioning. In helping to answer this question, the authors conducted a literature study to understand the communication and brand-building activities a company makes and further understand the social media platforms. Research and theory was gathered to understand companies’ usage of social media.    The method chapter was created in order to decide how the data collection would be put together and how the data should be analysed. The data was gathered through 51 respondents in an internet survey and 9 people who were interviewed. The questions that were asked was related to the purpose of this paper: How do consumers perceive a brand and its market activities and do how the activities affect the consumer's perception of the brand?    The conclusion that was made from the research results showed the authors that market activities on YouTube could have a harmful impact on a brand’s positioning and brand value. It was identified that the most harmful activity is to create content that the consumer is not interested in. By not being exposed on one of the biggest media channels for youth, the brand risks weakening their position and brand value. The use of influencers has the best potential to generate a good effect as the brand can ride on the wave of popularity on the platform, already established by the influencer. Many harmful brand activities were identified in this research but are not exclusive to YouTube and social media.    If a brand is planning to reach an audience on YouTube they must spend resources on creating content that entertains their audience. Creating exclusive content for the consumer gives the brand added value and steers the consumer’s thought away from the content being advertising.    By using these recommendations, a brand could reach out to a bigger audience and start building a loyal and engaged following.

The thesis "YouTubers and their influence on the values and development of teenagers in the Czech Republic" aims to determine the influence of people producing and presenting their own videos on the video-sharing website YouTube, the so-called YouTubers, on the social and educational development of teenagers. YouTube is a phenomenon of today's young generation which spends much more time on social networks than in front of television or print media, so the impact of this media on young people is considerable. The YouTubers have become within a very short period of time, approximately five years, idols of adolescents and they are influencing their values, way of expression, clothing style or their opinions on the events around them. However, for many adults this phenomenon is completely unknown or misunderstood. That is also why one of the objectives of this work is to clarify the phenomenon of YouTubers. The work focuses on the analysis of the Czech YouTube scene, its production and content. The first part is devoted to defining concepts which are important for adolescence, and theoretical bases for value creation or socialization. The second part aims to analyze YouTube as a powerful media which influences socio-cultural environment of teenagers through the videos uploaded by YouTubers. This...

Influencer marketing passed through a significant development toward social media in last few years. Influencers, who are in power to influence through their channels, grew into more important part of brand marketing communication. The purpose of this thesis is an analysis of typical signs, tendencies and measurements of campaigns on certain current examples of biggest czech influencers.

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The thesis Use of Web 2.0 technologies in education introduces the concept of Web 2.0 and its basic characteristics. The first chapter is based on the explanation of major tools and technologies labelled as Web 2.0. The second chapter deals with specific services which have already found its place in education process. The same chapter evaluates the ways of dealing with their appropriate use, particularly in higher education. This chapter contains also the examples of successful use in education. The thesis is mainly concerned about using Web 2.0 tools in the environment of Czech schools. As Web 2.0 services are not new, I asked students and teachers at the University of Economics in Prague and asked what experience they have with such instruments in their personal life, so in context of education. The third chapter is entirely devoted to survey the use of Web 2.0 tools in the practice of The University of Economics in Prague. Content of the final chapter is a reflection of what direction the web will evolve in the coming years. It also evaluates social issues associated with the turbulent development of the Internet and Web 2.0.

The purpose of this study was to determinate the differences and similarities in the use of Internet and New Media between Czech Republic and Spain. This thesis defined the Internet user's profile and the usage of the Internet in both nations. It was also analyzed the social software Facebook, Tuenti (Spain) and Lidé (Czech Republic); the online encyclopedia Wikipedia and the server YouTube (and its closest competitor in each country). The information was mainly gathered from Internet. Then it was analyzed and compared. The author used her personal experience and knowledge of both cultures for the interpretation of the results. This work showed that there is not a big difference in the usage of Internet and New Media between these countries. For example, the difference in the Internet usage is not bigger than 5%. It also showed that Czech Republic has experienced the biggest growth in the area, even though Spain has more users. Both countries showed similar interest in web pages such as Facebook, Google and YouTube. Additionally, it demonstrated that the Spanish market is reacting better to the new opportunities offered by the social software. For this reason, they had created their own -- called Tuenti -- which is the main competition of Facebook in this country. On the other hand, Czech Republic does not have a website that counts with all the services offered by Facebook, which can explain the growth on the numbers of Czech users the last year. Wikipedia has versions available on the native languages of both countries. It is widely used, not only by the students who use it as a source for their paper work, but also in areas like marketing and journalism. YouTube is one of the most popular servers in these nations. They have their local video servers, but none of them have the same importance as YouTube. The author hopes this work will be a base for future investigators who will be interested on the comparison of these countries on the new technologies.

The goals of the thesis are to present YouTube in the Czech Republic, to discuss its entire business model, analyze the main local competitors and mostly to suggest marketing strategy that will strengthen the position of YouTube as an online medium. The current trends in the internet society are introduced as well as the role of social media in order to understand how these factors are related to the position of YouTube in marketing. From general YouTube introduction the situation of this platform in the Czech market is analyzed. Based on this deep analysis, the key factors that should be taken into account in the Czech YouTube marketing strategy will be discussed.

This master´s thesis is called The Phenomenon of Youtubers and their Utilisation in Marketing. It presents Youtubers as idols of today´s young people and introduces options of utilization of their power for marketing purposes. The first chapter introduces the reader to the general matters of online marketing and offers basic knowledge about this area. The second chapter is dedicated to social networks and their utilisation in marketing field. The third chapter introduces the topic YouTube. It explains the term Youtuber and presents the types of videos mostly published by them. The last chapter is dedicated to the concrete examples of marketing activities which were realised within the Czech market. The main part of this chapter is three case studies which analyse three concrete marketing campaigns realised in cooperation with Youtubers. The goal of this thesis is to offer an integrated overview of the phenomenon of Youtubers and the mechanism of their commercial cooperation with brands and also to evaluate the effectiveness of the campaigns involving Youtubers in comparison with campaigns which use the traditional online marketing tools.