Date: 2021/06/03 Level: Master Thesis in Business Administration, 15 cr Institution: School of Business, Society and Engineering, Mälardalen University Authors: Shadi Botros, Yacoub Said (87/07/24) (95/01/01) Title: LUXURIOUS BRAND AND SOCIAL MEDIA Tutor: Edward Gillmore Keywords: Luxury brands, Social media marketing activities, Brand perceptions, Brand awareness, Purchase intention. Research questions: What are the outcomes of social media marketing used by luxury brands, brand awareness and brand perception, on purchase attention? Purpose: The purpose of this research is to study if social media marketing can have an effect on luxuries brands perception in consumers mind and if social media can influence consumers purchase intention. Method: This study is following a quantitative approach by using statistical methods to test the hypothesis. Conclusion: Luxury brands are considered as exclusive and expensive brands. Social media is a mass communication tool that is usually used to reach a broad segment of consumers. The authors found out through the gathered data that consumers are aware about the brand and they perceive the brand as a luxury brand. However, consumers were not only relying on the official home page of the brand to obtain information.

<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.

This research addresses an urgent contemporary problem within advertising and brand management in the new era of social networks - how do companies act on social networking platforms and how is this perceived by consumers? Being successful on Facebook is, seemingly, not as straight forward as many might think, and the misuse deriving from misperceptions can create negative brand impacts. This research aims to shed light on the yet under researched topic of firm-created Social Media advertising and its effects on the consumer mindset. This has lead to three overarching research questions, which provides a strong theoretical and practical contribution to the status quo:   RQ1:          What is the influence of the gap between motivational factors to “Like” a brand’s Facebook page and the subsequent firm-created Facebook advertising on perceived advertising value?   RQ2:          What is the influence of perceived advertising value on consumer brand-related activities?   RQ3:                      What is the influence of (1) perceived advertising value and (2) consumer brand-related activities on brand equity?   A quantitative research approach was adopted using a self-administered survey among 101 European Facebook users between 18 and 35. The framework of this research comes from four elements of theory; Uses and Gratifications (U&amp;G) theory to identify the underlying motivational factors to engage with a brand on Facebook, advertising value by Ducoffe (1995), to measure how the brand’s advertising is perceived, consumer brand-related activities (COBRA) by Muntinga, et al. (2011) to classify the level of consumer involvement with the brand on Facebook, and the brand value chain by Keller &amp; Lehmann (2003), which is closely related to consumer-based brand equity as developed by Aaker (1991) and Keller (1993).   The main conclusions of this research include that the gap between initial motivations to start a brand-relationship on Facebook and the subsequent activities performed by the firm is smaller for those in a currently active brand-relationship while it is considerable larger for those who have decided to exit the relationship. Moreover, while not statistically confirmed a clear tendency was identified that the perceived advertising value of a brand on Facebook is attributable to the extent of this gap. In the same vein, the decision to continue or exit a brand-relationship on Facebook is attributable by the level of perceived advertising value. The type and level of interaction with a brand is influenced by the perceived advertising value, however, can be influenced by targeting specific motivations to interact. Both the perceived advertising value and the level/type of interaction with a brand were found to influence the consumer mindset. Especially the form (entertaining, enjoyable) in which advertising is dispersed on Facebook proves to be important.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore video brand storytelling’s affect on the antecedents of brand perceptions. Design/Methodology/Approach: This study has a qualitative and an exploratory nature. The data collection method is in-depth semi-structured interviews. The authors conducted a pre-study in order to gain more knowledge about the topic , and enhance the operationalization for the main data collection method. Findings: The study concludes that video brand storytelling and its elements affect all the brand perceptions’ antecedents. Video brand storytelling is proved to be a powerful tool in content marketing since it can positively affect, even when consumers' perceptions towards the story are negative. A new antecedent of brand perceptions is proposed. Furthermore, a new element of video brand storytelling is also created. This study goes even deeper by connecting each of the elements of brand storytelling to the brand perceptions’ antecedents. Managerial and Theoretical contribution: This paper can be of great value to marketers and practitioners, since they will get suggestions about video brand storytelling’s use, in order to affect consumers as intended. The theoretical contributions of this study are also of great value since videos, brand storytelling and brand perceptions were never researched in the same context. New concepts and a new model are created, which can be a basis for future research. Quality: To add quality and validity to this study the authors include detailed processes through all the paper and provide thick descriptions and explanations.