Tourism social networking sites (SNSs) are websites that provide users with templates for describing their travel experiences and an infrastructure to share such travel posts with a network of like-minded individuals. Tourism SNSs represent an important advertising channel for the tourism industry, as they may assist travelers in selecting destinations and planning vacations on the basis of other travelers’ experiences, which may further stimulate travel and generate income for the tourism industry (Yazdanifard & Yee, 2014). User-generated content (UGC) in the form of travel posts is the core offering and key success factor of tourism SNSs. Travel posts constitute a valuable resource that attracts users to these websites, and they serve as a key data feed into the data mining process that is used to develop travel products on tourism SNSs. However, one problem with tourism SNSs is that their users, especially the new ones, do not publish their travel experiences on these SNSs as often as they do on traditional SNSs, such as Facebook. This may result in a lack of content and, therefore, a loss of potential consumers and, consequently, revenue. Therefore, a study on self-disclosure behavior in writing travel posts may contribute to understanding the reasons why this problem exists and help tourism SNSs improve their service accordingly. The author used multiple theoretical perspectives (social exchange theory and social cognition theory) to develop a comprehensive self-disclosure framework. The framework was tested by using a partial least squares based structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) approach with data from 443 participants recruited from the two most popular Chinese tourism SNSs: Qyer.com and mafengwo.cn. The findings show that self-disclosure behavior on tourism SNSs was significantly affected by self-benefit, positive feedback from other users, social benefits, rewards, tourism SNSs’ security mechanism, and ease of use. However, habit and motive did not have a statistically significant effect on self-disclosure behavior. Moreover, self-disclosure behavior positively affected electronic word of mouth (EWOM) relating to the tourism SNSs. Finally, the findings have theoretical and practical implications, and the thesis ends with a discussion of the limitations of this study and suggestions for future research.

Vid ett e-handelsköp finns det två alternativ för informationssamling om produkten som skall köpas, produktinformation från e-handlaren och kundomdömen från tidigare konsumenter. Postnords e-barometer har flera år visat att svenska konsumenter önskade att e-handlare utvecklade kundomdömen på sina plattformar vilket denna studie har intresserat sig för att undersöka. Arbetet är av kvantitativ karaktär och har som syfte att undersöka svenska konsumenters användning av kundomdömen inför ett köp och vilka faktorer som påverkar användningen. För detta används en teoretisk modell med tillhörande hypoteser som är en förläning på TAM-modellen. Undersökningen bestod av en surveyundersökning där enkät har använts som datainsamlingsmetod. Resultatet visar på att de flesta respondenter till underökningen är positivt inställda till kundomdömen. De tycker att det är användbart, användarvänligt, betydelsefullt och har även en avsikt att använda dem innan köp. Dock är det väldigt få som använder omdömessystemet efter köp för att dela med sig av sina åsikter eller på annat sätt använda omdömessystemet. Studien föreslår att svenska konsumenter är mycket mer tystlåtna när det gäller eWOM än var tidigare studier har visat. Kundomdömen upplevs inte som trovärdiga, vilket dock inte visade sig vara en faktor som har en påverkan på användandet av kundomdömen vid köp. De faktorer som visade sig ha en stark direkt påverkan på avsikten att använda kundomdömen vid ett köp är omdömessystemets användbarhet och betydelse. En indirekt påverkan visade det sig att användarvänligheten har vilket påverkar användbarheten. Detta resultat skiljer sig från den ursprungliga TAM-modellen som menar att även användarvänligheten direkt påverkar avsikten att använda. Vidare har det i studien även identifierats olika demografiska grupper med olika datorvanor vilket har en medelmåttig effekt på hur användarvänligt ett omdömessystem upplevs. Resultaten visar också att det finns statistisk signifikanta skillnader mellan demografiska grupper och deras förhållning till kundomdömen. Kvinnor har en mer positiv syn på omdömessystem och har dessutom ett större förtroende till dem än män. Vidare upplever de kunder som ofta eller aldrig returnerar varor efter ett köp att kundomdömen är mer betydelsefulla och användbara. / When purchasing online there are two alternatives to collect information about the product of interest, product information from the e-retailer and customer reviews from previous customers. Postnord’s e-barometer has several years shown that Swedish customers wish that e-commerce providers developed customer reviews on their platforms, which are the main topic for this study. This work is of a quantitative nature and aims to explore Swedish online customers use of customer reviews before making a purchase and factors that influence their use. For this, a theoretical model with associated hypotheses has been used which is an extension on the original TAM-model. The study is a survey study where a survey was used as a primary data collection to test the model and analyze about factors that influence each other. The result of this study shows that most of the study’s respondents have a positive attitude towards customer reviews, they believe it is useful, easy to use, important and have intentions to use it before a purchase online. However, very few respondents tend to use customer review systems after purchases to share their purchase experience or use it in other ways. The study proposes that Swedish customers are much more of a silent observer when it comes to eWOM than what previous studies have found. Customer reviews is not perceived to be trustworthy, which however this study shows is not a factor that influence the intention to use customer reviews, in other words, customer reviews are perceived useful even if they are not trustworthy. The factors that proved to have strong direct influence on the intention to use customer reviews is the usefulness of the customer reviews system and the perceived importance of it. Additionally, the ease of use has an indirect influence, which differs from the original TAM-model which means that the ease of use directly influences the intention to use. Furthermore, different demographic groups with different computer experience has been identified, which has a moderate effect on the perceived ease of use customer reviews systems. The result also shows that there are statistically significant differences between demographical groups, and their relation to customer reviews. Women has a more positive view of customer reviews and perceive them to be more trustworthy than men. Furthermore, customers with different product return behaviors has different perceptions of the importance of customer review systems and the ones who never or often return products after a purchase online tend to perceive customer reviews more important.

Background: The development of social media brings traditional marketing into a newera - social media marketing - which offers new platforms through which brands cancarry out marketing activities and connect with their customers. Thus, social mediamarketing has become important for brands and marketers to reach their customers andsocial media marketing activities (SMMAs) include entertainment, trendiness,customisation, interaction, and word of mouth (WOM). Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explain the impact of social media marketingactivities (SMMAs) on customer satisfaction.  Methodology: A quantitative method and deductive research approach were adopted inthis research as a means of gathering data. Through a cross-sectional research design, anonline self-completion questionnaire was created and conducted with consideration ofethical and societal issues; as a result, 165 valid responses were collected. The collecteddata from the respondents were analysed through frequency analysis, descriptiveanalysis, explore analysis, reliability analysis, correlation analysis as well as multipleregression analysis. Findings: The results of this research revealed that both H3 and H4 were accepted,meaning that customisation and interaction have a significant positive impact oncustomer satisfaction. Conversely, H1, H2, and H3, i.e., entertainment, trendiness, andword of mouth (WOM), were rejected. Conclusion: This study concluded that customisation on social media (H3) positivelyinfluences customer satisfaction which can be understood as customised content isaimed in a way to suit the customers’ own preferences. Furthermore, interaction onsocial media (H4) was revealed to have a significant and positive impact on customersatisfaction. As firms and businesses interact with their customers on social media, theyallow for communication between a brand and the customer. Whereas, entertainment(H1), trendiness (H2) and WOM (H5) on social media do not significantly impactcustomer satisfaction.

Dagens digitala teknologi och sociala medier har alltmer satt sin prägel inom handeln och detta beror främst på att majoriteten människor idag har en smartphone där man ständigt är uppkopplad och aktiv inom sociala medier. Sociala medier används idag även av de flesta handelsföretag inom detaljhandeln och fungerar som en plattform där man kan nå ut till en större och bredare publik. Trenden växer och yttrar sig i att fler plattformar bildas och därav sätter press på småföretag för att kunna sticka ut bland mängden. I detta skede blir det därför allt viktigare för småföretag att vara aktiva på sociala medier för att väcka ett behov hos kunderna och fånga upp deras intresse vilket kan göras genom att publicera en variation av aktiviteter. Aktiviteterna kan inkludera marknadsföring med senaste nyheter och trender, tävlingar och även personliga inlägg. Detta engagemang ska fungera som en vägledning för att sedan locka och leda sina följare in till den fysiska butiken eftersom det är där köpet genomförs. Studien har utformats via en kvalitativ forskningsmetod med en abduktiv ansats som utgångspunkt. Studien innefattade totalt sex intervjuer varav fem av de var fysiskt på plats medan den sjätte var via telefon. Intervjuerna bidrog med det empiriska materialet i syfte att kunna få fram en analys där vi jämförde den teoretiska referensramen med det empiriska materialet. Ur analysen kunde vi se ett samband och resonerade fram vilka aspekter som sociala medier bidrog med för småföretag när de ska kommunicera sina aktiviteter och locka kunderna in till den fysiska butiken. Resultatet av studien yttrade sig i att sociala medier är ett viktigt hjälpmedel för småföretag då det inkluderar en gratis marknadsföring och att man kan nå ut till fler kunder och även utanför det geografiska området butiken befinner sig i. Kommunikation, interaktion och respons är viktiga faktorer för småföretag när de ska eller etablerar sig via sociala medieplattformar. Studiens resultat redogör även för småföretag vikten av att ständigt vara aktiv på sociala medier, publicera varierande aktiviteter, engagera sig i kunder genom att interagera och få feedback. När dessa aspekter interagerar ökar chansen för företagen att bygga långsiktiga kundrelationer. / Today's digital technology and social media have increasingly left their mark on commerce and this is mainly due to the fact that the majority of people today have a smartphone where they are constantly connected and active in social media. Today, social media is also used by most retail companies in the retail trade and acts as a platform where you can reach a larger and wider audience. The trend is growing and is reflected in the fact that more platforms are being formed and as a result put pressure on small companies to be able to stand out among the crowd. At this stage, it therefore becomes increasingly important for small companies to be active on social media in order to arouse a need in customers and capture their interest, which can be done by publishing a variety of activities. Activities can include marketing with the latest news and trends, contests and even personal posts. This commitment should serve as a guide to then attract and lead their followers into the physical store because that is where the purchase is made. The study has been designed via a qualitative research method with an abductive approach as a starting point. The study included a total of six interviews, five of which were physically in place while the sixth was by telephone. The interviews contributed with the empirical material in order to be able to obtain an analysis in which we compared the theoretical frame of reference with the empirical material. From the analysis, we could see a connection and reasoned out which aspects social media contributed to small companies when they have to communicate their activities and attract customers to the physical store. The result of the study was that social media is an important tool for small businesses as it includes free marketing and that you can reach more customers and also outside the geographical area the store is in. Communication, interaction and response are important factors for small businesses when they are going or establishing themselves via socialmedia platforms. The results of the study also explain to small companies the importance of being constantly active on social media, publishing various activities, engaging with customers by interacting and receiving feedback. When these aspects interact, companies' chances of building long-term customer relationships increase.

Sociala mediemiljön är ständigt i förändring och det lanseras kontinuerligt nya plattformar som användare etablerar sig på. Syftet med studien var att undersöka hur företag använder nya sociala medieplattformar som marknadskommunikationskanaler, samt om företagens tidigare erfarenheter inom sociala mediemarknadsföring underlättar utformningen av marknadsföringsstrategier på nya plattformar. Två frågeställningar formulerades där den första frågeställningen berör hur företag använder nya sociala medieplattformar i jämförelse med äldre plattformar. Den andra frågeställningen berör hur tidigare erfarenheter av sociala medieplattformar spelar roll när företag etablerar sig på nya plattformar.  Studiens teoretiska ramverk tog avstamp i teorier om marknadsföring i sociala medier, visuell kommunikation, electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) samt social customer relationship management (SCRM). Empiriskt material har samlats in genom semistrukturerade intervjuer. Resultatet visar att plattformar används i olika syften och att företagen därför har skilda marknadsföringsstrategier för dem. Tidigare erfarenheter underlättar utformningen av marknadsföringsstrategier på nya plattformar till viss del eftersom det ofta innebär att företagen redan har ett sociala medieteam, resurserna som krävs och kunskapen kring hur sociala medier fungerar i stort.

People's engagements in social communities online have over recent years proven to be of great importance on others' opinions when purchasing products. Word-of-Mouth (WOM) has been around since ancient times and is a concept about consumers communicating with each other about their experience about services and products. Over the last decades research on Word-of-Mouth has increased when it was discovered how it has the power to influence consumers' purchase behaviours. The modern era of the introduction of the internet gave Word-of-Mouth a new concept called Electronic Word-of-Mouth (eWOM) that has given people the opportunity to share their negative and positive experiences online with others by leaving reviews. These reviews can be read by customers with access to the internet and could change their purchase intentions and therefore affect the company's sales and reputation. It has given the companies the opportunity to read about customers reviews and the chance to respond to the reviews by leaving comments online. This gave this study the opportunity to research if companies in Luleå are responding to negative reviews. As well, if the customers believe that their purchase intention is being affected by other users' reviews, and if the customers believe the companies can change the outcome of a review by responding to them.  In this study, quantitative research was used to collect data through surveys in Facebook groups with questions limited to Luleå. The questions were divided into three sections: Reading reviews, Responding to reviews, and Purchase intention. The study found that there was a relationship between the variables reading reviews, responding to reviews, and purchase intention. Previous literature has meant that people write more negative reviews when they have the ability to complain and write reviews through the Internet. However, for this study in Luleå, it was shown that this is not the case. It was found that few of the respondents gave negative reviews about the businesses in Luleå and that the businesses in Luleå did not respond to them. It was also found that respondents read reviews before buying, which affected their intention to buy, with negative reviews being more important than positive ones. People in Luleå consider negative reviews trustworthy and believe that businesses can change the outcome of negative reviews by responding to them. Therefore, it is of interest for local businesses in Luleå to review and respond to negative online reviews as they will impact their business.

No description available.

A 3 (crisis response strategy) x 3 (medium) factorial design experiment was conducted to determine if information graphics conveyed through online news sources may be more beneficial for organizational reputations during some crisis situations than the use of news videos and text-based news stories. Variables examined include cognitive and affective appraisal, third-person effect, behavioral response and crisis response strategy. Recent research in organizational crisis communications has pointed to the fact that more information is needed regarding how individuals react cognitively and affectively to crisis communications. Current crisis communications literature is also sparse concerning the behavioral aspects of crisis message reception and social media usage. This study addressed these concerns and built on the established framework of Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT).

Background: Electronic Word of Mouth (eWOM) is something that lately has gained increasing relevance and importance when it comes to consumers purchase decisions. Online reviews are considered to be the most important and reliable form of eWOM and it refers to when consumers communicate with other consumers online regarding their previous shopping experiences. In order to increase the generalizability and understanding of motives that influence consumers intention to write online reviews, authors of previous studies have suggested that future research should intend to focus on motives that influence intention to write online reviews in other contexts that are not aimed towards the service industry. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explain how personal- and social motives influence consumers intention to write online product reviews. Methodology: For this explanatory study, a quantitative strategy with a cross-sectional research design were used in order to test the model founded on two major hypotheses. The data was gathered through a self-completed questionnaire with a sample of 222 respondents. Findings: In this study, two major hypotheses were conducted in order to explain how personal motives and social motives influence consumers intention to write online product reviews. After analysing the data that emerged from the survey, a conclusion can be drawn that the hypothesis concerning personal motives and its influence on consumers intention to write online product reviews was accepted whereas the hypothesis concerning social motives was rejected. Conclusion: In this study, it has been recommended that future studies should test the suggestions found in this study with a more diverse sample in order to increase the generalizability of the theoretical implications. Furthermore, directions for future research will also recommend testing the modified model that emerged in this paper in order to detect if there are any additions that need to be added to increase the predictability of the findings.

自從「部落格」被韋氏辭典選為2004最具代表性的字，部落格便不斷蓬勃發展，越來越多的部落客，由於在訊息分享及消費者購買決策有強大影響力，被讀者視為意見領袖。本研究特別著眼於美妝部落格讀者，探討其對於時下崛起部落客口碑行銷現象之態度，從部落客單純的分享，到散播電子口碑(線上口碑) ，最後演變成獎勵或有酬的部落格文章。而近年來，這樣的部落格口碑行銷手法，已引起不少關於部落客誠信及可信度的討論。 本研究採取質化及量化研究方法，第一階段與知名美妝部落客的深度訪談，提供了現今部落格口碑運作及口碑行銷的初步了解。第二階段的量化問卷調查，綜合文獻及深訪結果，探討美妝部落格讀者對於部落客可信度及購買行為的態度。本研究同時發現，讀者對於美妝部落格內容的滿意程度，也會影響其對於產品的口碑注意度、後續口碑散播意願、以及實際購買行為。 / Ever since “blog” was selected by Merriam-Webster's dictionary as the word of year 2004, the development of blogs has been prospering. More and more bloggers are viewed by blog readers as new opinion leaders on their impact of information-sharing and purchasing decision-making. This study will pay closer attention to one certain category of blog readers—the beauty blog readers and their attitudes toward the emerging phenomenon among bloggers— from simply sharing information to spreading the buzz (online word-of-mouth, or eWOM), and eventually leading to rewarded blog post with incentives. Such business behavior is conceptualized as buzz marketing, which has been arousing dilemma about blogger honesty and credibility. Both qualitative and quantitative methods will be applied in this study. In first stage, in-depth interviews with well-known beauty bloggers were conducted to first provide with preliminary yet detailed understanding of how word of mouth operates and the existing buzz marketing among beauty blogs. Quantitative surveys will be designed based on the findings from first stage, and then be distributed among beauty blog readers to further examine that consumers’ attitudes toward bloggers’ credibility associate with their purchasing behavior. Likewise, consumers’ satisfaction toward blog content may influence their attention paid to WOM in blogs, willingness to conduct Word-of-mouth referrals, and actual purchasing behavior.