The focus of the thesis is to examine the regional branding ofpublic libraries in Norrbotten, with the main focus on Piteå public library, in order to find trends that indicate a successful branding based on Hariff & Rowley’s (2011) identified key factors.The empirical data has been collected through a triangulation of interviews and documents. The findings show that they have done a proficient preparatory work prior to the regional branding of the public libraries, and that the libraries have worked together with a communication bureau in their marketing strategies since the beginning of the public library cooperation. The results also show that Piteå public library, through branding efforts, received another relationship with the media where the media now occasionally contact the library.The conclusion of the thesis is that Piteå public library promoted the library through campaigns that provide the opportunity for activities and experiences, and that they want to convey the image of itself as a venue for social interaction. The marketing of the libraries fulfill the most of the criteria, but there are still areas of branding that needs to be further explored. / Program: Bibliotekarie

Dagens konsument exponeras dagligen av en stor mängd reklambudskap. Här spelar företags varumärke en viktig roll. Varumärket fungerar som en identitetsbärare och ger företaget en möjlighet att sticka ut på marknaden. Lyckad marknadskommunikation skapar konkurrensfördelar och resulterar i goda relationer till kunden. Varumärket är en samling tankar, känslor och åsikter som kanaliseras i en både medveten och omedveten förväntan på en produkt eller tjänst. Konsumenter är mycket medvetna och håller sig aktivt uppdaterade samtidigt som de sällan är särskilt lojala. Detta resulterar i att det är mycket viktigt att ladda varumärket med positiva associationer och förtroende. Idag är det allt viktigare att finna nya och kreativa kommunikationsvägar för att få en strak roll på marknaden samt att kunna göra konsumenten delaktig. I detta sammanhang blir de sociala medierna allt viktigare då man där kan skapa en bra och fungerande tvåvägskommunikation på ett kostnadseffektivt sätt.Vi har undersökt olika vägar för mindre företag att skapa en identitet på marknaden och på ett kreativt sätt kommunicera med konsumenten. Tillsammans med företaget LL1903, beläget i Lysekil, har vi lokaliserat fram olika problem som kan finnas för mindre företag. Med hjälp av en rad olika butiker har vi samlat tankar och idéer som på olika sätt kan användas i företags marknadsföring.Vi har kommit fram till att det inte finns en lösning på problemet utan man måste se till sin marknad och hur man byggt sin målgrupp. Det är viktigt att vara konsekvent och tro på sin idé samtidigt som man måste vara beredd att tänja på vissa gränser för att nå ut med sitt budskap. Man måste finna den kommunikationskanal som passar bäst efter förutsättningar som företaget har sett utifrån målgrupp, marknad och ekonomi. Vilket innebär att företag inte får vara rädda för att investera tid i att lära sig nya tekniker samt att använda innovativa och obeprövade kanaler. Vår slutsats bygger på att vi samlat en rad olika idéer som vi önskar ska väcka inspiration för mindre företag i deras arbete med marknadsföring och varumärkesbyggande.Today's consumers are daily exposed to a large amount of different kinds of advertising. The brand has an important role in this context. The brand acts as an identity platform, giving the company an opportunity to stand out on the market. Successful marketing communication gives competitive advantage and results in a good relationship with the customer. The brand is a collection of thoughts, feelings and opinions that are channeled into both conscious and unconscious expectations of a product or service. Consumers today are very aware and remain actively updated while they are seldom loyal. As a result, it is very important to fill the brand with positive associations and trust. Today it is more important to find new and creative ways of communication to get advantage, and to make the consumer involved. In this context, the social networks become more important in order to create a two-way communication in a cost-effective manner.We have investigated different ways for small businesses to create an identity in the market and in a creative way communicate with consumers. Together with the company LL1903, located in Lysekil, we have recognized various problems that may exist for smaller companies. By meeting a variety of stores, we have collected thoughts and ideas in various ways that can be used in corporate marketing. We have come to the conclusion that there is not just one single solution to the problem. Instead you need to study the market and how you have built the audience. It is important to be consistent and believe in your idea while you must be prepared to push the limits to get your message known. You must find the communication channel that best serve the company seen from the target, market and economy. This means that companies must not be afraid to invest time in learning new techniques and to use innovative and untried channels. Our conclusion is based on what we have collected, a variety of ideas that we hope will bring inspiration to small businesses in their efforts in marketing and brand building. / Program: Textil produktutveckling med entreprenörs- och affärsinriktning

Idag är varumärken några av de mest värdefulla resurser företag har, och dessa har utvecklatsfrån att särskilja likartade produkter till att även särskilja platser, människor och företag. Nuapplicerar även företag varumärkesaktiviteter för att särskilja sina egenskaper som arbetsplatsför att kunna attrahera de bästa medarbetarna samt att behålla sina befintliga; detta arbetekallas employer branding och är vad denna studie behandlar. Syftet med föreliggande studievar att undersöka hur företag genom fördjupad kunskap kring vad ekonomistudenterefterfrågar kan anpassa sina employer brands för att bli en employer of choice. För att kunnabesvara syftet har två undersökningar genomförts. I den första studien, som var av kvantitativkaraktär, har 206 ekonomistudenter besvarat en enkät bestående av 19 olika faktorer som devärderat; dessa faktorer var egenskaper och attribut som en arbetsgivare kan erbjuda. Dennaenkät har även tre svenska företag besvarat; där de angav vad de tror att ekonomistudenterefterfrågar. Den andra undersökningen, som var av kvalitativ karaktär, var intervjuer somgenomfördes med de tidigare nämnda företagen för att ta reda på hur dessa arbetade medemployer branding.Resultatet från enkäterna har analyserats på ett kvantitativt sätt både separat och kombineratmed varandra. Med hjälp av diagram samt en tabell har en överskådlig bild skapats över hurpass viktig varje faktor var, både ur studenternas och företagens perspektiv. Sedan har dessajämförts med varandra för att ge en tydlig bild över hur de skiljde sig åt samt vilka likheter dehade. Resultatet visade att studenterna värdesatte intressant och meningsfullt arbete,karriärmöjligheter samt trevliga arbetskamrater; dessa stämde överens med företagens tro omvad ekonomi-studenter efterfrågade. Faktorer som skiljde sig åt var bland andra fastanställning och anställningstrygghet. Intervjuerna som genomfördes med de tre företagenanalyserades på ett kvalitativt sätt där data erhållen från dessa sattes i relation till denteoretiska referensramen; i analysen framkom både skillnader och likheter mellan dessa.Genom undersökningarna har det identifierats att företag arbetar mer och mer med employerbranding samt att de trodde att det kommer få ökad betydelse i framtiden. Genom denkvantitativa undersökningen har slutsatser dragits kring att det fanns både skillnader ochlikheter mellan ekonomistudenternas och företagens syn på vad som ansågs vara en attraktivarbetsgivare. Med hjälp av en fördjupad kunskap kring vad som värdesätts avekonomistudenter finns avslutningsvis förslag och synpunkter på hur företag kan organiserasina employer branding-aktiviteter. / Program: Kandidatutbildning i företagsekonomi

Purpose: This research studies the relationship between corporate heritage brand identity and customer satisfaction of John Lewis Partnership (JLP) which is one of the most successful British retail heritage brands internationally. It conceptualizes and addresses the key factors of corporate heritage brand identity including brand price, quality, design, and symbol. It examines the corporate heritage brand experience of JLP customers through which corporate heritage brand identity influences customer satisfaction. It also establishes the moderating role of brand innovation, word of mouth and multiple time dimensions on these relationships. Design/methodology/approach: A conceptual framework of corporate heritage brand identity is developed from the literature review. To improve the validity of this study, semi-structured interviews were carried out with JLP managers, senior partners and their loyal customers recommended by JLP. These interviews have verified and advanced the hypotheses informed from the reviewed literature. This study mainly adopts the quantitative survey research method approach to test the conceptual framework. An online questionnaire was sent to JLP customers through social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Off-line paper-based survey questionnaires were collected from customers in JLP stores located in five cities in the UK (London, Manchester, Liverpool, Leicester and Southampton). In total, a sample of 596 clean questionnaire responses were collected and used for this study to test the developed hypotheses. Findings: Data analysis results have confirmed the dynamic and essential role of heritage brand identity on attaining and sustaining customers' satisfaction of a corporate heritage brand from the retailing industry in the UK. The results revealed that corporate heritage brand identity dimensions (price, quality, design and symbol) are effective in representing the strength of corporate heritage brand identity. The confirmed that the dimensions of the corporate heritage brand identities of this study are indicating positive impacts on corporate heritage brand experience according to the data analysis results. The findings also suggest that these brand experience dimensions (sensory, affective, behavioural and intellectual) have a positive influence on improving customer satisfaction. Additionally, brand innovation and the time stream in this study strengthens the relation between corporate heritage brand identity and corporate heritage brand experience. Furthermore, word of mouth and the prospect future of a corporate heritage brand are of significance to improve customers' satisfaction through positive heritage brand experience. Originality/value: This is one of the few attempts to develop a conceptual framework of corporate heritage brand identity. The conceptual framework has confirmed the multiple dimensions of corporate heritage brand identity (including brand price, quality, design and symbol) and their impact on customers' experience and satisfaction. This study also identified the moderating role of brand innovation, word of mouth and multiple time dimensions on the relationships between corporate heritage brand identity and customers' experience and satisfaction. This is one of the first attempts to study corporate heritage branding management in the retailing industry sector. Managerial implications: The corporate heritage brand identity dimensions identified from this study have the potential to help brand managers develop and augment their corporate heritage brand management strategy, especially for the retailing industry as revealed in this study. Marketers and brand managers need to be aware of their corporate heritage brand treats such as price, quality, design and symbol to satisfy and sustain their customers. The findings reflect the importance of sustaining the traits of corporate heritage brand and being responsive and innovative to the market on time. Additionally, the fundamental function of Word of Mouth (WOM) in extending the communication channels between a brand and customers. The findings confirmed that Time Streams have a central role in demonstrating the identity and sustainability of a corporate heritage brand.

abstract: Future autonomous vehicle systems will be diverse in design and functionality since they will be produced by different brands. In the automotive industry, trustworthiness of a vehicle is closely tied to its perceived safety. Trust involves dependence on another agent in an uncertain situation. Perceptions of system safety, trustworthiness, and performance are important because they guide people’s behavior towards automation. Specifically, these perceptions impact how reliant people believe they can be on the system to do a certain task. Over or under reliance can be a concern for safety because they involve the person allocating tasks between themselves and the system in inappropriate ways. If a person trusts a brand they may also believe the brand’s technology will keep them safe. The present study measured brand trust associations and performance expectations for safety between twelve different automobile brands using an online survey. The literature and results of the present study suggest perceived trustworthiness for safety of the automation and the brand of the automation, could together impact trust. Results revelated that brands closely related to the trust-based attributes, Confidence, Secure, Integrity, and Trustworthiness were expected to produce autonomous vehicle technology that performs in a safer way. While, brands more related to the trust-based attributes Harmful, Deceptive, Underhanded, Suspicious, Beware, and Familiar were expected to produce autonomous vehicle technology that performs in a less safe way. These findings contribute to both the fields of Human-Automation Interaction and Consumer Psychology. Typically, brands and automation are discussed separately however, this work suggests an important relationship may exist. A deeper understanding of brand trust as it relates to autonomous vehicles can help producers understand potential for over or under reliance and create safer systems that help users calibrate trust appropriately. Considering the impact on safety, more research should be conducted to explore brand trust and expectations for performance between various brands. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Human Systems Engineering 2018

Denna studie studerar hur organisk tillväxt påverkar en stor organisations identitet och vidare hur den organiska tillväxten påverkar samspelet mellan organisationens identitet och ett företags medarbetarerbjudande. För att undersöka studiens syfte har en fallstudie genomförts på ett stort teknikkonsultföretag som uteslutande vuxit genom organisk tillväxt. Åtta semistrukturerade intervjuer har genomförts med anställda på företaget, detta för att fånga de karaktärsdrag som kan illustrera teknikkonsultföretagets identitet. Empirin visar att följande fem karaktärsdrag: företagets storlek, ägarform och struktur, frihet och flexibilitet, utvecklingsmöjligheter samt hjälpsamhet och öppenhet kan beskriva organisationens identitet. Hur den organiska tillväxten har påverkat teknikkonsultföretagets identitet har främst visat sig genom en ökad anonymitet, en minskad flexibilitet samt en något högre grad av hierarki. Dessutom kan den organiska tillväxten eventuellt bidragit till större utvecklingsmöjligheter. Dock har stora delar av identiteten bevarats vilket kan bero på teknikkonsultföretagets ägarform, en mindre genomförd omorganisation samt att företagets värderingar i form av värdeord genomsyrar och efterlevs i verksamheten.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management of Strategic Marketing, Johannesburg, 2016 / Place branding is defined as the application of marketing techniques and activities, to differentiate and attract interest to promote the social and economic growth of cities, regions and countries. If marketers are to market their respective places effectively, they need to get a sense of the key characteristics that make up a place identity, with particular attention paid to what is perceived or understood as the image. The role of local residents is emphasised in the process of identifying the key attributes that comprise the identity and image of a place. The purpose of this research is to establish the identity of the City of Johannesburg from the perspective of stakeholders responsible for branding the metropolitan and to investigate the perceptions and image of the metropolitan by local residents. The research methodology adopted was a mixed method approach. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with destination marketing practitioners and the results were content analysed to identify key themes. The quantitative study sought to investigate the perceptions and image of the City of Johannesburg held by local residents using a structured questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of questions relating to views on place identity, place image and communicated identity. Structural equation modelling was employed in the study for the purpose of analysing the quantitative data. Given the common brand associations made by practitioners and local residents interviewed, one can conclude that the City of Johannesburg is fundamentally South Africa's business hub and associated with opportunities and these associations are unlikely to change and will stay constant as the City goes through various growth cycles. The multi-faceted image of the City of Johannesburg was demonstrated by the different responses elicited from marketing practitioners and local residents. The crime association image does not bode well for the metropolitan and concerted ii efforts are required from all stakeholders involved in marketing the City to deal with the city's negative image / GR2018

My final thesis project analyzes self-branding, online influencers, and microcelebrity culture that contribute to shaping self-identity on social media. The project focuses on online identity through the lens of digitally created or cyborg accounts made for the purpose of promoting consumer culture lifestyle. Cultural notions around celebrity culture as a means of profit are expanding and are more inclusive due to social media formats that nurture self-branding and self-promotion. Companies take advantage of personalized media creation and distribution by using online influencers to promote products because of the minimal payouts and labor required. Therefore, ideologies of buying and selling become deeply rooted online and have come to change its users’ conceptions of themselves and shape an identity linked almost exclusively with the internet across platforms. Self-branding, online influencers, and microcelebrity culture are distinct forms of labor on social media that generate value through branding and shaping a profit driven self-identity that leads to the erosion of a meaningful distinction between notions of the self and the production and consumption imperatives that benefit digital entrepreneurialism.

The economic impact of legalized marijuana has been massive, but does legal marijuana have the impact to create new types of urban spaces? The legalization of formerly illicit vices has created urban spaces thematically constructed around vice, such as The Strip in Las Vegas (gambling) or The Wallen in Amsterdam (prostitution). This paper suggests that legalized marijuana similarly has the potential to construct vice-themed urban spaces in a post-industrial economic paradigm defined by consumption. Using Denver’s South Broadway (an urban area that has been rebranded as “The Green Mile” due to the outgrowth of marijuana businesses in the area) as the foundation for the analysis, this paper uses qualitative methodologies including historical and content analysis and interviews to examine how marijuana becomes normalized through legalization and resituated for mass consumption, in turn creating the possibility for the construction of thematic urban spaces.

Private international schools in India are considered by many to be a quality brand. They have grown rapidly leading to competition among schools for student enrollments. The purpose of this case study was to explore the branding strategies used by leaders of Indian private international schools. The study population consisted of private international school leaders in India as well as the faculty and parents from the study site. The double vortex brand model served as the conceptual framework for the study. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 5 school leaders, 5 faculty, and 5 parents from an international school in Chennai. Participants were selected using purposive sampling. Secondary data was collected from school website and school policy manual. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The major themes that emerged related to vision, mission, values, culture of the school, and the school's functional capabilities. Study findings suggest international schools in India adopt branding strategies based on core values to inspire, motivate, and educate employees to implement internal branding and communicate their school's brand story using social media tools. School administrators looking to enhance their school brand may find social benefits through improved sustainability, resource availability, and a more harmonious relationship between school leaders and parents. Social implications include better educational outcomes for students who then become better prepared to continue their academic pursuits after high school. The study may be of value to school leaders looking to enhance their school brand.