<p>In recent years, the successful expansions of Swedish fashion companies have mainly relied on their ability to turn fashion into brands. However, when companies grow it seems to be difficult to maintain the original brand identity as well as to establish a unique brand image in the minds of the consumers. With regard to this matter the purpose of our thesis was to investigate the brand image of Acne Jeans. Our ambition was to examine to what extent the brand image coincided with the brand identity and if brand associations differed between different consumer segments. In order to fulfil our purpose, we have conducted a questionnaire study of a sample of 130 students at Stockholm University. The findings of our study show that the brand image of Acne Jeans did not coincide with the brand identity regarding the aspects of individuality and innovativeness. We further concluded that there were several differences between the associations of those in possession of Acne apparel and those who did not own any Acne items. Finally, the associations of early adopters were investigated. The result indicated that the brand associations in this group did not deviate from the general opinion of the total sample.</p>

In recent years, the successful expansions of Swedish fashion companies have mainly relied on their ability to turn fashion into brands. However, when companies grow it seems to be difficult to maintain the original brand identity as well as to establish a unique brand image in the minds of the consumers. With regard to this matter the purpose of our thesis was to investigate the brand image of Acne Jeans. Our ambition was to examine to what extent the brand image coincided with the brand identity and if brand associations differed between different consumer segments. In order to fulfil our purpose, we have conducted a questionnaire study of a sample of 130 students at Stockholm University. The findings of our study show that the brand image of Acne Jeans did not coincide with the brand identity regarding the aspects of individuality and innovativeness. We further concluded that there were several differences between the associations of those in possession of Acne apparel and those who did not own any Acne items. Finally, the associations of early adopters were investigated. The result indicated that the brand associations in this group did not deviate from the general opinion of the total sample.

Detta arbete undersöker mobilt socialt nätverkande med smartphones som verktyg och har som syfte att belysa subjektiva värden i användandet hos en grupp så kallade ”early adopters”. Vi tittar närmare på hur samhället förändras i takt med att tekniken utvecklas, och ser till vilka konsekvenser och behov denna utveckling skapar. Vidare analyserar vi en grupp yrkesverksamma personer inom IT – och Mediabranschen, som ligger i framkant vad gäller teknikanpassning. Vi studerar hur de använder det sociala mediet Facebook i kombination med produkten iPhone, och analyserar det resultat vi får fram från intervjuer och observationer mot den teoretiska modellen Theory of Consumption Values. Denna modell används för att reda ut olika typer av upplevda värden hos vår nämnda intressegrupp, såsom; funktionella värden, sociala värden, emotionella värden, epistemiska värden samt situationsberoende värden. Genom att göra en resultatanalys kommer vi fram till att de främsta värden som vår intressegrupp ser med det kombinerade användandet av Facebook och iPhone handlar om tillgänglighet och information. Vi ser också hur det sociala nätverkandet är fokuserat på den personliga framtoningen, dvs. det personliga varumärkets betydelse för dessa människor, samt att kunskap om ny teknik och trender är mycket viktigt för dessa i deras arbete. / This thesis analyzes mobile social networking, with the use of smartphones. The purpose is to illustrate what subjective user values there are for the user type known as "early adopters". We look deeper into how society is changing due to how technology is advancing, and what consequences these changes bring us. Furthermore, we study a specific group of people, professionally engaged within the IT and Media business and therefore progressive in adopting new technologies. We study their use of the social network Facebook combined with Apple’s iPhone, and analyze the result of interview research and observations, using the theoretical model Theory of Consumption Values. This model is used to clarify different types of user-experienced values, such as functional values, social values, emotional values, epistemic values and conditional values. By analyzing the result, we find that the prime values among our participants concern availability and information. Distinguishing how social networking among our participants focuses on personal approach, the value of the personal trademark, and how knowledge and accessibility with new technologies and trends come to be extremely important within their profession.

I takt med att Internethandeln ökar och fler och fler använder smartphones, introduceras alternativa betallösningar på marknaden. En betalmetod som redan är etablerad är SMS-betalning. Med tanke på detta borde inte steget till att använda mobilbetalningstjänster i fysisk butik vara så stort. Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka de huvudfaktorer som påverkar användandet av mobilbetalningstjänster i fysiska butiker. Det huvudsakliga perspektivet ligger på användarna av tjänsterna, snarare än de butiker som erbjuder dem. Både kvalitativa och kvantitativa metoder har användt. Resultaten är baserade på data från en enkätundersökning, intervjuer och användartester. En intressant upptäckt från enkätundersökningen var att även fast människor har erfarenhet av SMS-betalning så verkar det som att få har vetskap om att mobilbetalningstjänster i fysisk butik existerar och därför inte börjat använda dem. I denna studie presenteras någa förslag på faktorer som kan tas i beaktande för att öka kunskapen och användarfrekvensen. De viktigaste faktorerna tycks vara uppfattad nytta, ekonomiska fördelar, uppfattade risker, standardisering och förenlighet med mäniskors existerande beteendemönser. / As Internet shopping increases and more and more people use smartphones, alternative payment solutions are introduced to the market. One payment method that is already established is SMS payment. Given these developments, mobile payment services in physical stores ought not be far from being adopted. The purpose of this essay is to examine the key factors that influence the use of mobile payment services in physical stores. The main focus is the perspective of the users of the services rather than the stores offering them. Both qualitative and quantitative methods have been applied. The results are based on data from a survey, interviews and usability tests. One interesting survey finding was that even though people have first-hand experience of SMS payment it seems that few people have knowledge of mobile payment services in physical stores, and therefore not adopted them. To increase the knowledge and adopting rate a suggestion of factors that can be taken into consideration is introduced in the study. The most important factors seem to be perceived usefulness, economic advantage, perceived risks, standardization and reconcilability with existing behavioural patterns.

This thesis deals with creating of unique shopping lists management application and we used the newest startup techniques and principles during its development. All our hypotheses were tested by early adopters and the new courses of development were based on their feedback. The result of this thesis is a mobile application for Android operating system which is placed on Google Play market and two its components which will extend the application on the market. The main component is inteligent sorting of items on the shopping list by the supermarket model, which is created from last purchases in this supermarket. The second one is web application enabling us send new shopping lists to the mobile device.

Abstract                                                    This thesis provides an in-depth research of five VR suppliers working with creating VR experiences targeted to elderly within the elder care sector in Sweden. Furthermore, a technological knowledge gap between elderly and VR technology are researched. The focus of this thesis is therefore how VR suppliers, as early adopters, design VR experiences to elderly, as digital immigrants. To investigate the chosen topics, two research questions was formulated; RQ1. How do VR suppliers design a VR experience targeted to digital immigrants within the elderly care sector? RQ2. How do VR suppliers, as early adopters, bridge the digital gap between VR-technology and digital immigrants?  This thesis constitutes of a qualitative research where the empirical findings are based on interviews with the VR suppliers. The research took an inductive approach in order to get close to the respondents and interpret their realities. Theories about Customer experience, Value, Value Co-creation, Digital immigrants and Early and Late adopters, have thereafter helped to connect the empirical findings with aspects within these theories, to further understand important aspects for the VR suppliers when they design their VR experiences.  The results of the study present the aspects that are important to take under consideration when VR suppliers design their VR experiences towards elderly within the elder care sector. A model showing the steps when designing the VR experience has been provided and constitutes of identifying needs, customize the service, create trust and security, set the environment, inform and educate personnel, handling impairments and bridging the gap. Furthermore, the participants confirmed a knowledge gap within technology amongst elderly and that there is a need to bridge the gap in order for the VR service to be successfully implemented.

This study aims to provide an overview of the attitude toward mobile banking among early adopters in Myanmar. By conducting exploratory interviews with ten bank employees, factors that are important for the adoption of mobile banking were also identified. The qualitative method allowed factors beyond the existing technology adoption frameworks to emerge. From the results, it was concluded that the attitude toward mobile banking is overall positive among the early adopters. Findings were aligned with the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), suggesting that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use are important factors for the usage of mobile banking. Social influence did not show any consistent results, but external barriers such as regulations and cash-based society were evidently important factors for adoption. Moreover, experience showed to have an impact on the participants’ attitude and the adoption of mobile banking. The findings from this paper could work as a foundation when formulating future hypotheses for mobile banking adoption in Myanmar. Regarding practical contributions, banks can get an insight into what is important to focus on when designing a strategy to increase the rate of mobile banking adoption. For future research, it would be of interest to extend the sample and collect data from both users and non-users. / Denna studie syftar till att ge en övergripande bild av attityden mot mobila banktjänster bland tidiga användare i Myanmar. Genom explorativa intervjuer med tio bankanställda, identifierades också faktorer som är viktiga för att anamma mobila banktjänster. Den kvalitativa metoden möjliggjorde faktorer som ligger utanför de befintliga teoretiska ramverken att vara del av studien. Från resultaten drogs slutsatsen att attityden mot mobila banktjänster är övergripande positiv bland de tidiga användarna. Resultaten låg i linje med modellen Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), vilket tyder på att uppskattad användbarhet och uppskattad användarvänlighet är viktiga faktorer för anammandet av mobila banktjänster. Socialt inflytande visade inga konsekventa resultat, men externa barriärer som regleringar samt kontantbaserat samhälle visade sig vara viktiga faktorer för anammandet till mobila banktjänster. Dessutom påverkade erfarenhet deltagarnas attityd mot och anammandet av mobila banktjänster. Resultaten från denna rapport kan användas som en grund vid formulering av hypoteser i framtida forskning inom implementering av mobila banktjänster i Myanmar. Vad gäller det praktiska bidrag från denna studie, kan bankerna få en inblick i vad som är viktigt att fokusera på vid utformning av strategi för att öka användningen av mobila banktjänster. För framtida forskning vore det intressant att utöka urvalet av deltagare och samla in data från både användare och icke-användare.

The transport industry makes up a significant portion of the carbon dioxide emissions and theg reenhouse effect. Although the transition to electric cars is already happening, the transition is not happening fast enough to meet the EU targets. Because of this, our study has the aim to investigate how the transition to electric cars can be accelerated in Sweden. The study has the goal to identify driving forces and barriers to the adoption of electric cars. Our study starts with a literature review used to gather insight into the research area and construct the data collection, which is done using a survey and interviews. Based on the empirical data, identified aspects are presented. The data from the survey and interviews are combined to label each aspect as a driving force or barrier. Multiple driving forces for electric cars were identified. One of them was the driving experience. Another was the low operational cost, which the potential adopters expected to remain low in the future. It was also found that the potential adopters have good faith in the future development of the charging infrastructure. Lastly, the visibility of electric cars in information channels and media was found to be prominent. With these aspects already being considered relatively good for potential adopters in Sweden, the focus should instead be put on the barriers. However, multiple barriers of significance were found. Most of these stem from limited range, slow recharging, and insufficient infrastructure. It was found that the slow charging and low density of fast charging stations made electric cars impractical except for shorter distances. Also, these factors create range anxiety for the drivers. To solve these issues, the government should incentivize the expansion of the fast-charging network. The purchase cost and total cost of the electric car were also found to be barriers. This is mainly due to the cost of the battery, which is significant. One suggestion is to remove the VAT for electric cars, such economic incentives have proven efficient in other places globally and will also be efficient in Sweden. / Transportbranschen utgör en betydande del av koldioxidutsläppen och växthuseffekten. Även om övergången till elbilar redan sker, sker inte övergången tillräckligt snabbt för att uppfylla EU:s emissionsmål. På grund av detta syftar vår studie till att undersöka hur övergången till elbilar kan påskyndas i Sverige. Studien har som mål att identifiera drivkrafter och hinder för införandet av elbilar. Vår studie börjar med en litteraturöversikt som används för att samla inblick i forskningsområdet och konstruera datainsamlingen, vilket görs med hjälp av en enkät och intervjuer. Baserat på empiriska data presenteras identifierade aspekter. Uppgifterna från undersökningen och intervjuerna kombineras för att märka varje aspekt som en drivkraft eller barriär. Flera drivkrafter för elbilar identifierades. En av dem var körupplevelsen. En annan var de låga driftskostnaderna, som de potentiella användare antog skulle förbli låga i framtiden. Det konstaterades också att de potentiella användare har god tro på den framtida utvecklingen av laddningsinfrastrukturen. Slutligen visade sig elbilarnas synlighet i informationskanaler och media vara framträdande. Eftersom dessa aspekter redan betraktas som relativt bra för potentiella adopterare i Sverige, bör fokuset istället läggas på hindren. Emellertid hittades flera hinder av betydelse. De flesta av dessa härrör från begränsat räckvidd, långsam laddning och otillräcklig infrastruktur. Det visade sig att den långsamma laddningen och den låga densiteten hos snabbladdningsstationer gjorde elbilar opraktiska förutom vid kortare sträckor. Dessa faktorer skapar också räckviddsångest för förarna. För att lösa dessa frågor bör regeringen uppmuntra utbyggnaden av snabbladdningsnätverket. Elbilens inköpskostnad och totalkostnad visade sig också vara hinder. Detta beror främst på kostnaden för batteriet, vilket är betydande. Ett förslag är att ta bort mervärdesskatten för elbilar, sådana ekonomiska incitament har visat sig vara effektiva på andra globala lägen, vilket kommer också att vara effektiva i Sverige.

To remain relevant, even the successful social networks need to evolve. Vertical Social Networks (VSN) are the response of this, satisfying people who are seeking more niched and personalized content. However, this is a highly competitive environment where taking advantage of the first mover advantages is crucial for the future success. This study concerns diffusion of innovations and segmentation according to the technology adoption lifecycle to investigate how a VSN can reach user growth by understanding their current users better. We have built this study upon an explorative case study of a case company operating in the VSN landscape providing their users with an application. Building on extensive literature research, theory, surveys and conducting interviews, differences in user characteristics were identified. Theoretical and empirical evidence was further analyzed based on user behavior and level of satisfaction. Our recommendations suggest that considerations for different phases of the diffusion journey has to be made by targeting the appropriate users as this is vital for satisfying the existing users, and for reaching new ones. / För att bibehålla relevans, måste även de mest framgångsrika sociala nätverken utvecklas. Vertikala Sociala Nätverk (VSN) är svaret på detta, genom att tillfredsställa människor som söker mer nischade och personifierat innehåll. Detta landskap är dock präglat av hög konkurrens där vikten av att vara först på marknaden är avgörande för framtida framgång. Denna studie belyser Innovationsspridning och segmentering enligt Technology Adoption Lifecycle för att undersöka hur ett VSN kan nå användartillväxt genom att förstå sina nuvarande användare bättre. Vi har genomfört en undersökande fallstudie av ett företag inom VSN branschen som bistår sina användare med en applikation. Baserat på tidigare forskning, teori, enkäter och intervjuer identifierades olikheter i karaktärsdrag hos deras användare. Teoretiska och empiriska bevis beträffande olikheter i karaktärsdrag analyserades och diskuterades vidare baserat på användarbeteende och nivå av tillfredsställelse. De föreslagna rekommendationerna innefattar att ett övervägande för olika faser av diffusionsresan måste göras för att tilltala lämpliga målgrupper, då detta är avgörande för att tillfredsställa befintliga användare, och för att nå nya.

新商品上市後造成流行的機率低於25%（Cooper & Kleinschmidt, 1990；Cooper, 2011），但Rogers（唐錦超，民95）的創新擴散模型實驗卻提出若早期採用者接受新商品並分享他們的創意使用價值，則能影響早期消費大眾較快且容易接受新商品且在市場上誘發流行。因此本研究的動機是希望透過資訊技術，首先確認早期採用者存在於網路族群之中，再萃取被網際網路大量資料包圍的網路早期採用者與其在新商品的創意使用價值資料，希望能夠藉此影響早期消費大眾的接受意願，並跨越他們之間的鴻溝(Moore, 1991)。 本研究目的是探討即使網路早期採用者與早期消費大眾兩者之間無實體的社會關係網絡時，網路早期採用者所創造的新商品創意使用價值，還是能夠影響早期大眾消費者購買的意願，以形成一種新型創新擴散模式。實作上是將網路早期採用者的創意使用價值，設計成廣告宣傳單直接刺激早期消費大眾，觀察新商品是否被他們接受。經過購買意願問卷回收、整理和分析消費者族群與接受程度，證實網路早期採用者的創意使用價值確實能引起早期消費大眾往高購買意願的族群移動。 再者，企業為了能夠在市場生存競爭獲勝，必須比其他同業更早挖掘出稀少且有價值的資訊幫助新商品跨越鴻溝，協助企業獲得更多的利益。雖然本研究提出的新型創新擴散模式，能提高早期消費大眾接受新商品的意願，但是在人機互動的資料分析過程中，耗費過多人力。因此本研究再根據文字探勘的IDF概念提出ICF演算法，藉以縮小決策範圍並且得到效率前緣的機會點，依然能在眾多的資料中也萃取出網路早期採用者的微弱創意使用價值，同時降低人工作業、專家主觀解讀和決策制定的複雜度的問題，得到高品質的效率方案。 / The chance for a new product to be prevalent is lower than 25% (Cooper & Kleinschmidt, 1990; Cooper, 2011). However, in Rogers’ innovative diffusion model (Rogers, 2003), he proposed that if early adopters accepted new products and shared their innovative use value with others, the early majority may accept the new products quickly and readily. First of all, this study intends to use information technology to make sure that the early adopters exist on the Internet world. Then the author tries to extract innovative use information employed by the early adopters who are surrounded by huge amount of information. Hopefully, the early majority can be affected by such measures. That is, in the process of consuming merchandise, consumers tend to build mutual affections, value, and psychological sensation. This may enable the new products to cross over the chasm between the early adopters and early majority (Moore, 1991; 1995). The purpose of this study is to explore the innovative use value created by early adopters existing on the Internet world. It is to affect the purchasing intention of the early majority when there is no social relationship network between early adopters and early majority so as to build a new innovative diffusion model. In order to achieve this, the innovative use value created in the Internet by the early adopters was designed as commercial fliers to directly stimulate the early majority. It is used to observe whether new products are accepted by the early majority. The experimental results proved that this measurement surely can move the early majority toward groups with high intention. Moreover, talking about the continuing existence of a business, one needs to find out the rare and valuable information in the early stage in order to make the new products to cross over the chasm. The new innovative diffusion proposed by this study is able to extract the innovative use value created by the early adopters in Internet. And, for the purpose of reducing manpower and contracting the weak innovative information created by the early adopters, this study was conducted by using ICF algorithm which is derived from IDF concept existing in the text mining. It is to narrow the range of policy making, gain the chance point from the effect frontier, improve the quality and efficiency when making a decision, and reduce subjective judgement made by experts, which may help decision makers to make an effective policy based on their advantage and preference, and in the end, to reduce the complexity of making a policy.