<p>Many brands are using celebrities as spokespeople, to enhance the brand image. This investigation aims to research the effects of athlete endorsements on brand image, in particular, whether Nike has been affected by the change in Tiger Woods’ image due to his recent personal life difficulties. Firstly, whether the perceived brand image is concurrent with the brand’s identity, and if not then if the image gap could be caused by the brand’s association to Tiger Woods. The topic is very current as the number of athletes who drastically deviate from their image has increased, at the same time as athlete endorsements are very popular. If changes in the image of an endorser come to affect consumer perception of the brand, then one could assume that there would be a decline in such endorsements.</p><p>In investigating the research question, literature and articles regarding endorsements and brand associations was consulted to gain a deeper understanding of how associations work. Data regarding Nike was collected from secondary sources in order to form an accurate view of the company identity. This would be compared to data collected on consumer attitudes toward Nike and Tiger Woods using a questionnaire sent out to participants with a variety of characteristics so as to be able to see if there were differences in attitudes between segments.</p><p>It was found that there is an image gap between Nike’s desired image and its perceived image. However, the low number of respondents who claimed that their opinions of Nike had changed because of Tiger Woods suggests that his association to Nike is not to blame for the gap. Reasons discussed for the low level of transferability of Tiger Woods’ ‘new’ characteristics to Nike are that the fit between the brand and the athlete is good in the relevant categories, whereas they are irrelevant to the collaboration. Furthermore, the strength of the associations is seen as a factor – it is not strong enough to or too connected to Tiger Woods to transfer – as well as the respondent attributes and background. Finally, the attachment to Nike is seen as possibly a contributing factor, as people who own Nike seem to stay loyal to the brand despite the so called ‘<em>Tigergate’.</em></p>

Many brands are using celebrities as spokespeople, to enhance the brand image. This investigation aims to research the effects of athlete endorsements on brand image, in particular, whether Nike has been affected by the change in Tiger Woods’ image due to his recent personal life difficulties. Firstly, whether the perceived brand image is concurrent with the brand’s identity, and if not then if the image gap could be caused by the brand’s association to Tiger Woods. The topic is very current as the number of athletes who drastically deviate from their image has increased, at the same time as athlete endorsements are very popular. If changes in the image of an endorser come to affect consumer perception of the brand, then one could assume that there would be a decline in such endorsements. In investigating the research question, literature and articles regarding endorsements and brand associations was consulted to gain a deeper understanding of how associations work. Data regarding Nike was collected from secondary sources in order to form an accurate view of the company identity. This would be compared to data collected on consumer attitudes toward Nike and Tiger Woods using a questionnaire sent out to participants with a variety of characteristics so as to be able to see if there were differences in attitudes between segments. It was found that there is an image gap between Nike’s desired image and its perceived image. However, the low number of respondents who claimed that their opinions of Nike had changed because of Tiger Woods suggests that his association to Nike is not to blame for the gap. Reasons discussed for the low level of transferability of Tiger Woods’ ‘new’ characteristics to Nike are that the fit between the brand and the athlete is good in the relevant categories, whereas they are irrelevant to the collaboration. Furthermore, the strength of the associations is seen as a factor – it is not strong enough to or too connected to Tiger Woods to transfer – as well as the respondent attributes and background. Finally, the attachment to Nike is seen as possibly a contributing factor, as people who own Nike seem to stay loyal to the brand despite the so called ‘Tigergate’.

Title: A quantitative study extending the understanding regarding the influence of sales promotion on brand knowledge   Background: Sales promotion is a marketing communication activity that aims to promote a purchase, usage or trial of a particular brand. Sales promotion activities can provide significant benefits and incentives that could help the brand to differentiate from competitors and can contribute to the consumer’s brand knowledge. Prior to this thesis, there has been little attempt to integrate research to determine the relationship between the use of sales promotions and brand knowledge, which is why this study intends to extend the existent understanding. Purpose: The aim of this study is to extend the understanding regarding the relationship between sales promotion and brand knowledge and its drivers. Research questions: R1: What influence does monetary promotions have on brand awareness? R2: What influence does monetary promotions have on brand image? R3: What influence does non-monetary promotions have on brand awareness? R4: What influence does non-monetary promotions have on brand image? Hypotheses: H1: Monetary promotions of a brand influence brand awareness H2: Non-monetary promotions of a brand influence brand awareness H3: Monetary promotions of a brand influence brand image H4: Non-monetary promotions of a brand influence brand image   Methodology: In order to test the hypotheses a quantitative research approach was conducted and a questionnaire was used to collect data from Swedish consumers, the data was analyzed in the IBM SPSS program to find out if the hypotheses was supported or rejected.   Conclusions: H1,H3 and H4: May from this study be supported. H2: May from this study be rejected.

In the business-to-business sector, the brand owner´s employees are increasingly playing a key role in terms of representing the brand to existing and potential customer. The role of a well-established internal brand equity can give a business-to Business Company the edge it needs in the market today. Internal branding has recently emerged as an important issue in industrial market. This study aims to find out how internal brand equity and its determinants affect the external brand equity of business-to-business companies. This study is based on previous research of internal brand equity in business-to-business setting. In this study four hypothesis were tested. Surveys were conducted among manufacturing and promotional companies in Sweden and Latvia, which resulted in 94 complete and useful response with a response-rate of 28.3%. The findings offer evidence, that internal brand equity with determinants have a great impact on the external brand equity of a firm.

Background. Previous research on the investigation of brand personality (BP) can be found to use the personification metaphor of brands through celebrities, occupations and animals. Brand image research aims to discover the human characteristics attached to a brand. In this regard, the author suggests that as music can tell much of the personality of a person, then it would be possible to know the personality of a brand through music. The rationale behind is that music elicits “extramusical” information, such as emotions, values, dress codes and stereotypes of people; in relation to musical-genres. Purpose. This research aims to explore how music can help to produce brand knowledge. In particular how the extramusical information conveyed by musical-genres can be used as language to talk about the personality of a brand. Methodology. The empirical research was developed within an Interpretive research paradigm to learn from the perspective of consumers of hip-hop music in Sweden, how brand knowledge can be obtained from music as cognitive schema (CS). The data was gathered using a mixed-method research design. Two different projective techniques were employed in group sessions. On one session (N=11), visual collages were used to visually represent the brands using images of musicians and their description with brand personality traits. The second session (N=12) consisted of an associative task using music, followed by the application of the brand personality scale. The interpretation and analysis of findings was done through the triangulation of the methods’ data. Conclusions. The use of music genres as CS to produce brand knowledge can provide insightful information on the lifestyle and type of users that buy, consume or wear the brand. Extramusical information helps understand characteristics of BP through the lifestyle and profile of the musician or music-fan that was associated with the brand. In particular, brand knowledge can be gained in terms of demographic and psychographic characteristics associated to the brand. However, several theoretical implications for further research were identified in order to consolidate the BP/consumer/music relationship.

Modeindustrin har historiskt sett låtit människor uttrycka sin kreativitet och personlighet genom kläder, men den har också bidragit till överkonsumtion och negativa miljö- och sociala konsekvenser. För att skapa en mer hållbar modeindustri har cirkulära affärsmodeller utvecklats, där återanvändning och återvinning av kläder spelar en viktig roll. Second hand-försäljning möjliggör att kläder får ett nytt liv och minskar efterfrågan på nya produkter. Idag finns olika alternativ för second hand-försäljning, inklusive traditionella välgörenhetsorganisationer, second hand-butiker och digitala peer-to-peer plattformar. Studiens syfte är att fylla en viktig kunskapslucka genom att undersöka vilken varumärkesbyggande potential det finns med second hand-försäljning av sitt eget varumärke. I studien har både Aakers och Kellers varumärkesmodeller använts som en guide för den analysmodell som legat till grund för analys av resultatet. En tematisk analys har utförts för att analysera transkriberingen av de semistrukturerade intervjuerna som genomförts med både konsumenter samt medelstora svenska modeföretag. Resultatet av denna studie visar på att det finns betydande varumärkesbyggande potential med second hand-försäljning hos svenska modeföretag. Genom att fokusera på hållbarhet, kvalitet och bekvämlighet kan företagen skapa positiva varumärkesassociationer och attrahera olika kundsegment. Genom att involvera kunderna i cirkulära affärsmodeller kan företagen bygga och upprätthålla varumärkeslojalitet och skapa en stark gemenskap med sina kunder. / The fashion industry has historically allowed people to express their creativity and personality through clothing, but it has also contributed to overconsumption and negative environmental and social consequences. To create a more sustainable fashion industry, circular business models have emerged, where clothing reuse and recycling play a crucial role. Second hand sales give clothes a new life and reduce the demand for new products. Today, there are various options for second hand sales, including traditional charities, thrift stores, and digital peer-to-peer platforms. The purpose of the study is to fill a significant knowledge gap by investigating the brand building potential that could be achieved through second hand sales. Both Aaker's and Keller's brand models have been used as a guide for the analysis framework based on the thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with both consumers and medium-sized Swedish fashion companies. The results of this study demonstrate significant brand-building potential through second hand sales for Swedish fashion companies. By focusing on sustainability, quality, and convenience, companies can create positive brand associations and attract different customer segments. By involving customers in circular business models, companies can build and maintain brand loyalty and create a strong community with their customers.