Date: May 30, 2011 Program: MIMA- International Marketing Course Name: Master Thesis (EFO705) Title: The Study of Consumer’s Post-Purchase Evaluation toward Brand Equity of Five Stars Hotels in Thailand Research Problem: What are the characteristics of brand equity of five star luxury hotels in Thailand and which components of brand equity are the majority concerns from customers’ evaluation? Purpose: The study aims to investigate and analyze the interrelationship of brand equity of five stars hotels in Bangkok, Thailand and post-purchase evaluation in order to provide valuable information on how five stars luxury hotels in Thailand can successfully and appropriately exploit the hotel brand equity so as to create the branding strategy and to create a competitive advantage in the long run. Method: Qualitative approach was used to observe the data in the form of content analysis. While, the quantitative approach is employed in order to summarize the finding result. The data collection, the secondary source is the heart of this research such as hotel reviews, brand equity books and related articles. Conclusion: The empirical findings from hotel guest’s post-purchase evaluation reveal the most significant components of brand equity for five stars Thai hotel industry which are perceived quality and brand loyalty. Whereas, brand awareness and brand association are considered the least significant of all brand equity components from customer’s perception. Keywords: Brand equity, Brand loyalty, Brand awareness, Perceived quality, Brand association, Five Stars Hotel in Thailand, Thai Hotels Industry

This thesis explores the issues around the process of brand management in SMEs. Most of conventional principles prescribed in the brand management literature are invalid to be applied to the SMEs’ marketing problems, but there are some relevant researches regarding some proposed branding policies for small businesses.   The purpose of this thesis is to find an effective and practical brand strategy for SMEs, which means I expect to generate a framework for the SME branding process. After I developed a conceptual model, some proposed branding guidelines were examined through a case study. Qualitative interviewing was used to collect data within a Swedish SME –HastaAB.   The empirical findings indicate that the SME branding policies are highly influenced by these factors: brand awareness, marketing strategies, brand recognition and resource etc. Based on the empirical findings, my conceptual model was adjusted by assessing the effect of proposed policies. In conclusion, I came up with a final model of brand management in SMEs which helps SMEs to build and develop their brands. The model involves some executable branding policies for SMEs.

Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to provide a holistic understanding of how Facebook is used by professional team sport organizations to strengthen customer based-brand equity and how these attempts are perceived by the customers with a focus on the derived benefits. Frame of reference: Customer-based brand equity is conceptualized, modified and employed to the realm of Facebook. Moreover, a communication model is modified in order to link marketing communications in a hypermedia environment with customer-based brand equity.  Methodology: An abductive approach is chosen and a collective case study applied as research strategy. The selected cases are Manchester United and Arsenal London. Firstly, quantitative content analysis is used to analyze the Facebook pages of both cases. Secondly, eleven semi-structured interviews are conducted to understand the customer’s perception of and values associated with the respective club’s Facebook page. Conclusions: The findings of this thesis show that a firm’s usage of Facebook as a medium of communication can strengthen customer-based brand equity. While in both cases most Facebook content evolves around product related posts, it is found that the clubs communicate slightly different. Arsenal posts significantly more non-product related content involving fans than ManU. The communication tool that is most intensively used by both organizations is the link, forwarding users to the official website. The identified benefits on behalf of the interviewees embrace fan identification and peer-group acceptance as well as socializing/companionship, emotions and entertainment. Visuals have been identified as important among the sample. Customers strongly value content that evolves around non-product related posts that focus on fans, while fan integration is generally demanded in a more qualitative manner

Varumärken är viktiga för företags vara eller icke vara. Ett företag vars varumärke är dåligt eller döende kan gå samma öde till mötes som varumärket. Därför är det förvånande att, enligt en undersökning gjord av en varumärkesbyrå publicerad i en branschtidning, marknads- och informationschefer i Stockholm har dålig koll på sitt varumärke. I vår studie undersöks vilka problem som kundföretag oftast har när de söker hjälp av en varumärkesbyrå. Vi försöker sedan att identifiera varför, och möjliga lösningar för att lösa eller förminska dessa problem. För att kunna göra detta har vi genomfört fyra intervjuer med varumärkesbyråer i Stockholm, varav vissa är erkänt bland de bästa i Sverige. Resultatet är att de vanligaste problemen som varumärkesbyråerna identifierat egentligen inte har med varumärkena i sig att göra, utan mest är av organisatorisk och kunskapsmässig art. Exempelvis gör företag för många undersökningar utan att veta vad dessa ska leda till, varumärkets och företagets värderingar är relativt okända inom företaget, företaget har ett kortsiktigt synsätt, och marknadsföringsavdelningar har för bristfälligt samarbete med ledning samt lite makt att kunna styra nödvändiga förändringar. Vi menar att dessa problem kan lösas genom högre utbildning av dem som har hand om varumärket, brand managers, en generell kunskapshöjning inom marknadsföringsavdelningen vad gäller marknadsföring, och en mer integrerad marknadsföringsavdelning som tar plats med ledning för ökat samspel.

With the prosperity of economy, the increase of national income, and the improvement of living standards, female consumers¡¦ requirement of underwear are changing gradually from the function of simple cover and warmth to the pursuit of fashion and self-expression. As a result, we can see the underwear market has a substantially growth in the recent years. When observing the market activities, we found that the branches opened one after another. The underwear industry continues to develop. In this study, we took ¡§EASY SHOP¡¨, the sub brand of Audrey Taiwan, as an example to discuss the effects between channel characteristic and brand equity, and then to see if the latter would affect consumer¡¦s behavior. Furthermore, we regard channel characteristic as independent variable, brand awareness, brand loyalty, perceived quality, brand association and brand image as intervening variables, and finally consumer characteristic as moderating variable to discover the impact on consumer behavior. The purposes of this study are as following¡G1. To discuss the degree of effect on brand equity which caused by channel characteristic. 2. To study the degree of effect on brand equity which caused by consuming behavior. 3. To exam the degree of moderate on consuming behavior caused by consumer characteristics. Our target interviewers are female consumers that have visited ¡§EASY SHOP¡¨ and bought underwear by themselves. Through the questionnaire analysis, we are intent on understanding the views of consumers. And also, we use SPSS to conduct the analysis process to see if channel characteristic and brand equity have an impact on consumer behaviors. We found that¡G1. The service quality of Physical channel are more reliable by consumers. 2. Channel characteristic has an impact on brand image and brand association. 3. Brand equity has an impact on consuming behavior. 4. Brand loyalty has a deeper impact on consumer behavior. 5. Consumer characteristic has moderating effect on underwear consuming behavior.

According to ACNeilsen survey, the consumers in Taiwan have more brand awareness toward private label of retailers. In 2005, there had 87% consumers who went shopping in supermarkets or hypermarkets knew private label. Moreover, according to ITIS research which revealed the total amount of food private brand are 1,088 in Taiwan, and the average amount in hypermarket are 363, and second are convenience stores and supermarkets. However there is still huge gap between hypermarkets and convenience stores. Thus this situation reveals the potential market for private label of convenience stores. In 2008, 7-11 launched its own private brand 7-SELECT, and to differentiate from other low price position, 7-SELECT provide best price for the value. And it had great performance when it first time to market. Therefore this research will investigate the key success factor of 7-SELECT, and through four dimensions which are price, product and design, store image and promote and the intervening variable brand equity to explore purchase intention. According to data analysis, it is obvious that price, product and design, store image and promote affected purchase intention. This means a customer bought 7-SELECT may base on these factors. However brand equity did not have effect on purchase intention, the reasons could be it is still a new brand for one year, and its new product did not promote intensively, and the 7-SELECT layout can not attract customers¡¦ attention. Otherwise, the analysis outcome reveals there is not strong linkage between brand equity and 7-SELECT, and this result can provide the reference to retailers who develop their own private label.

With the gradual decline in gross margin in OEM industry, the development of the brand has been seem as the key to improve revenue performance. Taiwan's industries mostly started from OEM industry, and facing increasingly fierce international competition in recent years, government and industry are also actively promoting the branding. This study takes Taiwan¡¦s notebook industry in 3C industry as the research object and study to explore the relationship between brand equity and purchase intentions and examine the factors that may affect the brand equity. This research uses consumer survey results of the statistical data analysis to explore what key elements should industry pay attention to when they are doing branding. The result shows that by enhancing brand equity, it will also enhance purchase intention. Better brand equity can be achieve by strengthen the brand image, brand trust and customer satisfaction. Moreover, the degree of loyalty will be affected by price and therefore it affects brand equity.

Firms constantly try their best to build up added value for products or services in order to raise their profitability in the wave of the global economy in 21th century. Originally, brands are simply used to distinguish the sellers of products or services, but once brand contacts with consumers, the interaction between firms marketing strategy and consumers¡¦ response begins. Hence the unique brand attributes and differentiation are developed based on product and brand positioning. The uniqueness and differentiation of brand attributes can attract consumers¡¦ recognition of brand, and it will gradually accumulate to become consumer based brand equity. Smartphone product knowledge is widely open and only one click away from consumers on internet, thus product involvement is gradually getting high. Moreover, the market is flooded with similar products since fierce industrial competition environment. For this reason, consumers¡¦ complex decision-making process among the numerous varieties of products interests me. After relevant literature review, the influence on brand equity, product involvement, perceived risk on smartphone is chosen to be the subject, in order to understand consumers¡¦ perceptions of brand recognition of smartphone. The study employs questionnaires with anonymous and convenience sampling. Total distribution of questionnaires was 347pcs, 342 were received, after deduction of invalid 37pcs, the valid questionnaires reached a total of 305. The empirical study conclusions are: 1. Brand equity affects consumers¡¦ perceived level of product involvement. High brand equity will bring out consumers¡¦ attention and importance of product. 2. Brand equity has direct influence on purchase intention. The objectives of this study are easily influenced by the constructs-perceived quality, brand awareness and different attributes-of brand equity when the decision-making process occurs. 3. Perceived risk does not have mediating effects among brand equity, product involvement and purchase intention. Consumers have no expectation of risk or uncertainty that would cause any loss of smartphone purchase behavior. 4. Product involvement is the mediating variable of brand equity and purchase intention. Strong brand equity can effectively seduce consumers¡¦ needs and interests and go a step further to raise their purchase intention indirectly. Key words: brand equity, product involvement, perceived risk, purchase intention and smartphone.

The combination of brand and art provides people unlimited imagination. The idea of the fashion industry cooperating with artists started from the 19th century in Europe. The combination of luxury merchandise and art can enhance the personal sense of beauty seen within a product and the brand image ascends through the pursuit of aesthetic perfection as well. Taiwan cultural and creative brands produce high-value recognized products, bring the related art and culture into everyone¡¦s life and promote the further development of Taiwan¡¦s cultural and creative industries. Such is the value of culture by branding. Examples like Franz, Jimmy and Tittot, all introduce Taiwanese and Chinese culture to the world through the promotion of commodities to the international market. The various elements of branding, including: the establishment of the brand core value, brand strategy development and brand marketing strategy development, are all decisive factors of the brand advantage. This study combines Aaker, Keller and Urde¡¦s concept of branding. Through multiple cases, analyzing secondary data and interviewing with GP DEVA¡¦s brand managers of their branding strategy, the study has reached several conclusions and can be summarized as follows: (1) The founder plays an important role in the development of the artistic brand¡¦s core value. (2) The conception of artistic luxury derives itself from inherent cultural values. (3) The key elements of the brand are a result of original concepts and creation. (4) Successful marketing must connect to the spiritual and emotional beliefs held by customers. (5) To strengthen and leverage a product brand, brand associations are made using ideas associated with the art form and brand knowledge. (6) Franz's business model shifted from being product-oriented to brand-oriented.

¡@Due to the advancement of technology and technique, the differences between products and product function gradually decrease. To avoid unnecessary competition among the peers, the most productive method is by establishing unique brand value within consumers¡¦ perspective. In the case of instant noodle market, which suffers with limited funding and low-priced and low-profited product, it is necessary to implement the methodology of market segregation and target marketing. Therefore, a minimum investment with appropriate marketing approach can also receive a rewardable profit. ¡@This study is based on the instant noodle brand ¡§UU¡¨, it is mainly focus on consumers in the Kaoshung area. By using the method of public questionnaire investigation, the 180 valid samples are collected for the study. Based on the interviewers¡¦ ¡§descriptive characteristics¡¨ and ¡§behavioral considerations¡¨, the group is segregated by factors analysis and group analysis. According to the characteristics of each segment, appropriate market is determined for the development of brand value that contributes to target marketing. Purpose of this study: ¡@1.An outline of the instant noodle consumer ¡@2.The eating habit of instant noodle consumer ¡@3.Brand equilty ¡@4.Brand loyalty ¡@5.Product experience and brand value ¡@According to the study result, consumer can be classified into three different segments: fashion (trendy) group, traditional (mature) group, and passionate (personal) group. Among the three segments, there are significant differences mostly on population, eating habit, the rights of brand, product experience, and brand value. By clarifying the characteristics of each group; this study is able to provide a suggestion for ¡§UU¡¨ to implement different marketing stredagy for different market segment.