Youtube har blivit en stor och populär plattform som används för att se på rörlig bild via internet. Tack vare detta är det idag många företag som väljer att ändra sin marknadsföringsstrategi och marknadsföra sig via influencer marketing, det vill säga när man som företag inleder samarbeten med inflytelserika personer på nätet, influencers. Dessa influencers går att finna på diverse olika sociala medier b.la på Youtube. Youtubers, alltså influencers på Youtube är personer som inspirerar och involverar sina tittarna och följare genom sitt sätt att agera. Denna studie kommer att genom semistrukturerade kvalitativa intervjuer med följare av youtubers i en triangulering med en mindre kvantitativ enkätundersökning, att undersöka på vilket sätt tjejer antar att de påverkas av reklam på Youtube jämfört med traditionell reklam. Dessutom utförs även en kvalitativ intervju med en youtuber. Utifrån en tematisk analys på materialet och en koppling till två-stegs hypotesen, WOM och parasociala relationer diskuteras följande frågeställningar: Vad anser tjejer i åldrarna 18-25 om sponsrade inlägg på Youtube jämfört med traditionell reklam? Hur beskriver tjejer i åldrarna 18-25 relationen mellan influencers på Youtube och sig själva? Hur resonerar en youtuber om sponsrade inlägg? Påverkar marknadsföringssättet köpbeteendet hos tjejer i åldrarna 18-25? Resultatet av denna studie indikerar att de tjejer som deltagit i studien anser att trovärdighet för reklam skapas genom tillit och intimitet, vilket kan finnas starkare hos youtubers än traditionell reklam. Den slutsats som vidare kan dras av detta är att tjejerna menar på att de påverkas mer av youtubers än traditionell reklam. Detta i och med att det finns en större trovärdighet hos youtubers tack vare den relation och intimitet som skapas med följare. Traditionell reklam är något som i deras ögon är så vardagligt att de inte läggs märke till.

Background: Due to the rapid growth of social media usage, marketing has significantly moved from traditional ways towards digital marketing. In today’s society, people are exposed to an overload of information through various media channels. Due to the overexposing of marketing, traditional marketing has become less effective since the majority of the information through traditional media channels pass people by. Considering this, companies are seeking new ways to market their brand and products. A new attractive marketing tool is blogs and with the help of bloggers as influencers, companies see the potential of effectively reaching out to their desired target group.   Purpose: The purpose of the thesis is to examine how advertising of brands, products and services are presented in the blog of Michaela Forni as well as the readers’ interpretation of the sponsored content.   Method: This thesis adopted an abductive philosophy, with an interpretive, qualitative methodological approach. The main techniques include content analysis, narrative analysis and semi-structured interviews.   Conclusion: A major finding and conclusion obtained from this study is the importance of what product or service that is promoted in the sponsored blog posts. This factor plays a crucial role whether the readers are susceptible to the sponsored message or not. Thus, sponsored posts are more appreciated than native advertising and ad-banners appearing on the blog as the latter two forms feature content not written by the blogger herself. Michaela Forni is using several presentations styles of her sponsored posts which leads to a bigger interest of the readers due to the variety. One of the most significant conclusion from this study is that branded storytelling is the most effective presentational style of sponsored content. The loyal relationship between the blogger and reader results in less ad skepticism and the reader having a positive association towards the sponsored content on the blog. The authors also identified correlations between the presentation styles of the sponsored content and readers’ interpretations.

The following study aims to examine how influencer marketing contribute to an increased consumption in today’s society through their communication on social media, as well as how this communication can be seen as an expression of greenwashing. A multimodal critical discourse analysis has been conducted to look into and analyze the relation between how influencers encourage people to buy the products they are advertising and how they use their power to spread awareness about a sustainable lifestyle. The relevance of the study lies in the background of the climate changes and the study will therefore examine how encouragement for consumption becomes contradictory in the context of the study object, Therése Lindgren's, environmentally conscious everyday life and how this becomes an expression of greenwashing.    The result of the study shows that Therése Lindgren’s way of portraying the products she is advertising has a persuasive approach. In the posts that are environmental focused, Lindgren uses statistics and facts to strengthen her opinion to increase credibility and persuade her followers to live a more sustainable life. Furthermore, it can be assumed that Therése Lindgren's communication can give expression to greenwashing and that her posts can be a contributing factor to the increased consumption in today's society.

This diploma thesis focuses on the impact of influencer marketing on the behavi-our of women in the 18-34 age group in the market of decorative cosmetics. Pri-mary research was conducted by using eye-tracking technology, in-depth inter-view and survey method. All of these methods examine the attitude towards in-fluencers with the aim of identifying consumer behaviour in the industry of de-corative cosmetics in relation to social media and influencers. The results of all research methods form the recommendation on the effective campaign making with influencers in the industry of decorative cosmetics.

This thesis deals with the issue of social networks and their use in the promotion of a tourist destination. Using eye tracking method, in-depth interviews and survey research, factors affecting consumers on social networks and consumer preferences in this area were identified. Focus lies on the importance of influencers used in the promotion of a destination and their impact on consumers‘ decision-making process. Therefore, factors influencing the visual perception of posts promoting a tourist destination on the social network Instagram were elaborated. By using research methods and analyzing factors, the goal of the work was achieved, namely to propose appropriate recommendations for promoters of tourist destinations.

Företag behöver hitta kreativa sätt att nå ut till sina konsumenter och influencer marketing harblivit ett alltmer populärt verktyg för detta ändamål. Genom att influencers bygger upprelationer med sina följare, potentiella konsumenter, kan de upplevas som trovärdiga vilketinger förtroende i köpprocessen. För att vara en influencer krävs en viss följarskara där bådeantalet följare och gilla-markeringar används för mätning av företags marknadsföringsinsatser,därmed blir dessa variabler viktiga för influencern att upprätthålla. I och med att konsumenterexponeras för mer och mer reklam blir deras källkritiska förhållningssätt viktigare för att de inteska bli omedvetet vilseledda och manipulerade.Uppsatsens syfte är att bidra med en ökad kunskap för hur konsumenter upplever influencerstrovärdighet vid reklam i form av samarbeten med företag och om antalet följare påverkar derastrovärdighet. Syftet är även att se hur utbildningsnivån hos högskolestudenter påverkar ettkritiskt förhållningssätt, genom deras uppfattning av influencers trovärdighet vid reklam.Studien är genomförd med en kvantitativ metod där undersökningen utgjordes av identiskawebb- och pappersenkäter. Enkäterna har baserats på Ohanians (1990) trovärdighetsmodell därfaktorerna attraktivitet, trovärdighet och expertis används för att fastställa en total trovärdighet.Enkäterna utgjorde ett kvasi-experiment som undersökte hur respondenter upplevde eninfluencers trovärdighet vid exponering av två identiska profiler, men med olika antal följareoch gilla-markeringar.Slutsatsen visade på att en influencer anses som mer trovärdig om denna har fler följare än eninfluencer som har färre följare, där faktorerna trovärdighet och expertis hade starkast samband.Konsumenter med högre utbildningsnivå anser influencers som mindre uppriktiga, skickliga ochtrovärdiga än konsumenter med lägre utbildningsnivå. / Companies need to find creative ways to reach out to their consumers and influencer marketing has become an increasingly popular tool for this purpose. Since influencers are building relationships with their followers, potential consumers, they can be perceived as trustworthy which gives the consumers confidence in the buying process. To be an influencer, a certain number of followers and likes are required. Those variables are used to measure businesses’ marketing efforts and are therefore important for the influencer to maintain. As consumers are exposed to more and more advertising, their source-critical approach becomes more important for them to not be unconsciously misled and manipulated.The purpose of this essay is to provide increased knowledge of how consumers perceiveinfluencers' credibility in the case of advertising with collaborations between influencers andcompanies and if the number of followers affects their credibility. The purpose is also to seehow the level of education of college students affects critical thinking, through their perceptionof influencers' credibility in advertising. This study was conducted with a quantitative methodwhere the survey consisted of identical web and paper surveys. The surveys were based onOhanian’s (1990) source credibility model where the three dimensions attractiveness,trustworthiness and expertise are used to measure an overall credibility. The surveys constituted a quasi-experiment design to examine how respondents evaluated the credibility of an influencer by exposing them to two identical profiles, but with different numbers of followers and likes.The conclusion showed that influencers with a higher number of followers are considered more credible than influencers with a lower number of followers. Furthermore, the study showed that respondents with a higher level of education considered influencers less sincere, skilled and trustworthy.

This report aims to investigate how Public Relation-firms sees the value of influencer marketing and how they measure that value. Influencer marketing is a phenomenon which is on the rise in today's digital marketing society and understanding the value it can add is therefore of great importance. We seek to find those answers in this study by using theories like word of mouth marketing, brand value and viral marketing which can be seen as core aspects of what influencer marketing really is. The study is conducted with a qualitative approach and seven interviews were performed to gather information about the phenomenon. Since there are many definitions and perceptions of value it is difficult to present one clear answer regarding what the value of influencer marketing is and how you should measure it, which applies to everyone within the field of influencer marketing. However, some general trends such as building brand value, reach and liability are some values of influencer marketing which have been identified throughout the conducted study. Depending on what is seen as the value of influencer marketing different measurements are used to try to evaluate the situation.

Given the rise of social media and the growing importance of influencers on consumer behavior, gaining an understanding of how influencers and the practice of influencer marketing impact the brand from the consumer's perspective is crucial. Additionally, a significant amount of companies compete for consumers' attention in today's market. Consequently, it is essential to comprehend how to foster strong brand equity in order for brands to compete. A research gap identified in this study is the lack of research examining the four dimensions of brand equity in relation to influencer marketing considering source credibility and brand-endorser fit. Earlier studies have focused on dimensions of brand equity separately, not taking all of them into account. Additionally, academic research has to be undertaken to enhance our understanding of influencer marketing.  Considering the research gaps, this study aims to develop a deeper understanding and extend the knowledge of how influencer marketing on Instagram affects different aspects of customer-based brand equity considering source credibility and brand-endorser fit on Generation Z consumers through the research question: How does influencer marketing through brand-endorser fit and source credibility on Instagram influence customer-based brand equity among Generation Z consumers?  The study employed a qualitative research methodology, and ethical considerations were given constant thought during the course of the study's execution. The theoretical framework presents theories focusing on influencers and influencer marketing, brand-endorser fit, eWOM, source credibility, and brand equity. Ten semi-structured interviews with people from Generation Z were carried out in order to collect the data. All of the interviews focused on the consumers' experiences of influencer marketing on Instagram and the impact it has had on their perceptions of brands, which were then examined thematically. The qualitative study has provided extensive insights into how Generation Z consumers perceive the impact of influencer marketing on brand equity. The findings indicate that influencer marketing has an impact on each of the dimensions of brand equity, both positive and negative, through the factors of source credibility, brand-endorser fit, exposure, and eWOM. The analysis discloses that a good fit between the brand and the influencer, followed by the perceived credibility of the influencer through either trustworthiness, expertise, or attractiveness, or all of them, can foster positive eWOM and a positive view of the brand. Exposure has shown to have a beneficial effect on awareness of a brand but, incongruously, a negative effect on perceived quality. It also showed how strong the brand is perceived to be will impact influencer marketing has an effect on the dimension of brand equity.  In addition to theoretical contributions, the thesis offers implications for managers and marketers by providing a deeper understanding of how the use of influencer marketing affects the brand. The thesis offers managers insightful information that can be used to create effective marketing strategies in order to compete in today's market by helping them understand how customers perceive the impact of influencer marketing on brands.

Influencers, vanligen associerade med varumärken de gör reklam för, kan publicera innehållsom möts av negativ kritik. Det kan spilla över på företaget de associeras med. Vid företagsökade användning av marknadsföring genom influencers har det blivit naturligt att anlita eninfluencer marketingbyrå (“byrå”) som mellanhand. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hurföretag hanterar outsourcing av marknadsföring till byråer. Uppsatsen undersöker ävenbyråers roll i företags riskhantering vid influencer-marknadsföring. Baserat på teorier ominfluencer-marknadsföring, outsourcing och strategic risk management genomfördessemistrukturerade intervjuer med två företag som använder influencers i sin marknadsföringsamt tre byråer. Resultatet visar att företagen betraktade byråerna som användbara iuppstartsfasen men såg därefter främst nackdelar med användandet. Det framkom även attbyråerna ägnar sig mer åt riskhantering än vad företagen gör, och var därför mer förbereddainför eventuella negativa reaktioner hos följare och kunde

Title: How does trust and credibility affect consumers' willingness to buy for paid collaborations with influencers. Author: Natalie Starcevska & Cornelia Bremer Möller Tutor: Anna Sörensson Examiner: Navid Ghannad Course: Independent thesis in business administration 15hp, international marketing program, Halmstad University, Spring 2022 Keywords: Influences marketing, Influences, Paid collaborations, Credibility and trust. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine how consumers' experience affects their willingness to buy from paid collaborations. By understanding how consumers perceive collaborations between companies and influencers, marketing strategies can be created to improve this form of marketing in the future. Research questions: • What factors affect the consumer's willingness to buy from paid collaborations with influencers? • How should influencers do their marketing with paid collaboration so that they are perceived as credible and gain the trust of consumers? Theory: This chapter consists of relevant theories for previous research that is selected to suit the study's issues. The chapter begins with how the collaboration between an influencer and a company works. In order for the study to have a deeper discussion, the study deepened in various marketing strategies that make up the theory chapter. Method: The method is based on a quantitative research approach with the help of a survey. The survey was then analyzed in the statistical data program spss for a deeper analysis of the data collection. The method chapter is then followed up by a discussion about how the data was chosen, which was used in the approach. The chapter was then followed up with which selection method that was carried out throughout the study. Conclusion: The conclusion of the study is that the main factors that affect consumers' willingness to buy around paid collaborations are trust and word-of-mouth. The study also confirms that influencers who have recurring collaborations, are "experts" in the field they market and manage their relationship with the followers are perceived as more credible and will gain the trust of consumers. By gaining this trust from consumers, the influences will be able to maintain genuine and secure customer relationships longer.