Brand Communication Strategy of E-commerce SMEs in Chinese Cosmetics Market

This study concentrates on how to develop a brand communication strategy for ecommerce SMEs in Chinese cosmetic market with new media channels. This study is a qualitative research. Data collection consists of primary data and secondary data. Primary data is from the case company’s websites, observation of benchmarked companies and observation of the case company. Secondary data will be collected from relevant websites and reliable databases. In order to explore the research questions, comparative benchmarking was conducted to develop brand communication strategy for case company April. The results of the study illustrate that e-commerce SMEs have to consider brand positioning strategy, brand awareness strategy, brand attitude strategy, brand media strategy and the brand benefits as well to develop brand communication strategy.

USING ATHLETE ENDORSEMENT IN BRAND POSITIONING – An insight from multinational sports goods companies

It has become a popular method in marketing campaigns to use well-known and admired personalities to promote products. A famous person can draw attention to the brand and change consumers’ perceptions of the brand. The research problem of this study was to offer guidelines on how to use athlete endorsement effectively in brand positioning. This research tried to illustrate how athlete endorsement is a vital brand building factor. Athletes have been found to have special credibility, so this research concentrated on the sports goods industry. Furthermore, athlete endorsement has become a natural part of communicating a sports brand. Athletes highlight the performance of the brand to the consumers. The study was conducted as a qualitative research applying case study method. The two case companies selected for this study were Adidas and Puma. The main findings of the empirical research corresponded to the theoretical framework of the study. Brand positioning strategies in the sports goods industry often include athlete endorsement to some extent. Large multinational companies try to attract the best athletes to promote their brand. The key to successful brand positioning is to have a good product with the right personalities to promote it. However, large multinational companies may face difficulties in localizing their marketing efforts. As a result, global campaigns may not be lucrative everywhere. The role of an expert in an athlete’s sport has resulted in increasing credibility in promoting brands. Creating a superior product in consumers’ minds creates competitive advantage. A top athlete may be linked with superior equipment. After considering the goals of the positioning strategy, companies need to plan their brand awareness process, brand image and brand values. Then, athletes need to be selected based on their characteristics to meet the criteria. Sport sponsorship is a way to support the message delivered through athlete endorsement. Athlete endorsement and sport sponsorship complement the marketing communications mix of a brand. Additionally, companies raise brand awareness and communicate brand image through the athlete. Thus, athletes may earn more money through the sponsorship deals and even feature the advertisements after their professional career. Key words

Content marketing and the significance of corporate branding

Tämän tutkielman tavoite on tutkia vahvan brandin merkitystä ja syitä, miksi yritykset käyttävät sisältömarkkinointia brandin rakentamisessa, sekä selvittää mitkä ovat yritysten sisältömarkkinointi-investointien tavoitteet, odotetut seuraukset ja koetut hyödyt ja tulokset. Teoriaosassa esitetään empiriaosaa varten tarvittava akateeminen taustatutkimustieto. Empiria on toteutettu puoli-struktroiduilla kahdenkeskisillä puhelinhaastatteuilla. Haastateltavina ovat työn toimeksiantajan Calcus Kustannus Oy:n viisi asiakasta. Näiden yritysten liikevaihto vaihtelee 23-75M€ välillä, ja yritykset toimivat pääosin suomen B2B yritysmarkkinoilla. Haastateltavat henkilöt ovat yrityksissä vastuussa markkinointipäätöksistä. Tulokset osoittavat, että vahvalla brandilla on erittäin suuri merkitys yrityksen kasvun ja menestyksen kannalta, ja että yritykset käyttävät sisältömarkkinointia brandin rakentamisessa, koska se kasvattaa brandipääomaa tehokkaasti. Sisältömarkkinoinnilla yritykset pyrkivät kasvttamaan heidän asiakkaidensa branditietoisuutta ja brandiuskollisuutta, sekä brandinsa uskottavuutta jakamalla aidosti kiinnostavaa ja lisäarvoa tuottavaa sisältöä. Lisäksi yrityksen asiantuntija-, sekä mielipidejohtajaroolin vahvistaminen koettiin erittäin tärkeäksi. Sisältömarkkinoinnin koetaan olevan brandin rakentamisessa tehokkaampaa kuin traditionaalinen markkinointi, minkä vuoksi yritykset tulevat kasvattamaan sen osuutta markkinointisuunnitelmissaan tulevaisuudessa.

Understanding, Managing And Developing A Well-Being Service Brand

The aim of this study is to analyze and understand a well-being service brand. Brands most definitely are a hot topic of today’s business world. Companies have started to realize the importance of branding, especially when talking about product related industries. Branding of services is a relatively new concept, which has gained less attention within academic literature. Though there is no legal distinction between product and service brands, they both have their own characteristics and qualities. The focus of the study is especially on the current brand images of both internal and external stakeholder groups. Understanding these brand perceptions will help in managing and developing the brand, so that it becomes even stronger, more recognized, and unified. This study is a quantitative, semi hypothetic-deductive single case study. The data for this study was collected throughout an online survey. The respondents represent both internal stakeholders, in direct contact with the service, as well as external stakeholders, who have no previous history with the service brand. The respondents represent a wide age spread, and are also geographically diverse. The study relies on a Finnish context. The study provides numerous managerial takeaways, especially because of its wide scope, on a topic that has never before been studied. All findings strongly reflected existing service brand theory, in addition with making the findings implementable for the case company.

Creative brand launch in phamaceutical over-the-counter markets – case Burana

The purpose of this study is to examine how a launch of a pharmaceutical over-the-counter sold (OTC) brand can be done by using creative solutions and thus affecting the product life cycle. The study is inspired by a phenomenon called Burana. The Burana brand has been a market leader of OTC painkillers in Finland for the past 27 years. The aim of this study is to “solve the mystery” behind Burana brand’s success by focusing on the launch phase of Burana as an OTC medicine. Farmos Group Ltd (the owner of the brand in 1980´s) had not originally invented the product in question – ibuprofen – and the product had already reached it´s maturity phase, if not even decline from the product life cycle aspect when this phenomenon takes place. This has made the marketing choices, the product launch phase as well as the product management even more interesting from the company point of view as well as from a learning point of view. The methodology in this study is qualitative with a descriptive research strategy, while the study is conducted as a longitudinal single-case study. The methods used in this study have been collecting, analyzing and interpreting the data, which is based on the interviewees’ comments and observed behavior. According to the study, the successful launch phase helped in setting the product one step ahead of the competitors and thus aided the brand leadership and prolonged the product life cycle. Another notable aspect that became clear from the interviews and the documentary of Burana´s launch phase was the innovative idea of involving the people of the distribution chain into the product launch through education. As this study has pointed out, it is not enough to for a company to build an innovative team of employees, but also to offer them an involved and encouraging management. According to the interviews, the support from the company management gave the marketing team the encouragement to be innovative. It can be thus stated that the management of a company has an essential role in fostering the creativity within the company.

Brand attitudes influence on city brand image, and their impact on behavioral intention

The main objective of this Master’s Thesis was to examine the perceived city brand image of tourists and residents. It was aimed to accomplish by examining first the contribution of city attributes and marketing communications on forming brand attitudes, and then discover how the brand attitudes influence on city brand image. The impact of brand attitudes and city brand image on behavioral intention was also reviewed. The empirical part of the thesis was conducted with a quantitative method through online-based survey. The sample (n = 492) consisted of tourists and residents of the case city. The data was analyzed with statistical analyses by SPSS program. Brand attitudes, based on the main attributes, were calculated through multi-attribute attitude model. The results confirmed exposure to marketing communications has direct and positive influence on brand attitudes, especially the offline marketing communications. The findings revealed brand attitudes impact directly on city brand image perception. Brand attitudes and brand image dimensions had direct impact on tourists and residents’ behavioral intention. The findings provide important information for the city marketers. They increase marketers understanding on how target population perceives the city brand image and how it impacts on their future behavior. This thesis reveals the perception of current city brand image and gives guidance on what to emphasize in city branding to increase city’s attractiveness in conjunction with its economic development. Furthermore, the created framework can be utilized also in the future researches.

Brand Identity and Image in B2B Factory Automation Context

The goal of this thesis is to study how a solution-oriented business-to-business company can utilize its brand as a strategic asset by using the concepts of brand identity and brand image. The study analyses the intended brand message (identity) contrasting it with the customer perceptions (image) to reveal points of parity and congruence. The study uses a case company as an example and discusses the benefits of brand management as well. Internally, brands can be studied by performing a set of interviews amongst top and middle management. The interviews need to consider the various elements of branding from associations to differentiation and value creation. Customers’ perceptions can be reliably studied via online survey designed to compare the intended brand message with customers’ experiences. From the perspective of industrial management the incentive for brand development lies in both monetary and managerial benefits. In literature the four essential benefits of B2B branding are risk dilution, efficiency of communications, strategic direction and price premiums. As a result, suggestive models for brand identity and image were devised and compared. The Case Company perceives itself as a technically oriented open-integrator, with a strong focus on reliability and customer service. Customers agree with the picture in general, but there are some points of parity as well: they are quite satisfied with the company and perceive it as reliable and providing the promised value. The problematic areas revolve around customer interaction and maintaining the leadership position. The results confirm previous findings in B2B branding theory, where the reliability and credibility of the supplier are in major role. The results also suggest a holistic, corporate approach on branding.

European luxury brands made in China: the effect of low-cost country manufacturing on brand image and purchase decisions

European luxury brands have an image of manufacturing their products in the same country where the brands originate. However, in the past years many luxury brands have shifted their manufacturing to countries outside Europe. China is now a common manufacturing country for European luxury brands despite the country’s poor image as a manufacturer. Chinese manufacturing is often associated with bad quality, bad labour conditions, mass production, and counterfeits. The image of China does not quite match the image luxury brands enjoy including characteristics such as high end quality, craftsmanship, details, design, or premium price. A negatively perceived country-of-manufacture may have an effect on a brand’s image and consumers’ purchase decisions. This thesis is focused on European luxury brands manufacturing in China, and how this effects the brand image and purchase decisions among luxury consumers. The empirical part of this thesis is based on focus group research, which is a popular method in the field of qualitative research. The main focus group is female luxury consumers in Finland. This main group has been divided into three categories: 1) the university students, 2) the young career women, 3) the experienced luxury consumers. This categorization has been done based on their different stages in luxury consumption. All in all, the empirical research consisted of 11 interviews and 29 participants. The main contribution of this thesis was that there is a difference between the opinions of the younger groups (university students and young career women) and the experienced luxury consumers when discussing the effect of country-of-manufacture on brand image and purchase decisions of luxury brands. The younger participants thought that manufacturing luxury products in China might affect the brand image, but their purchase decisions would not be that much affected by the country-of-origin. The experienced luxury consumers had quite a different view on the country-of-origin of luxury brands – they found it an important decisive factor prior making purchases. The majority of experienced luxury consumers would not buy luxury products made in China, and they would always check where these products are made in.

The impact of long-term brand development strategies on brand value of companies operating in high-technology markets

The objective of the current research is to investigate brand value generation. The study is conducted in the context of high-technology companies. The research aims at finding the impact of long-term brand development strategies, including advertising investments, R&D investments, R&D intensity, new products developed and design. The empirical part of the study incorporated collection of primary and secondary data on 36 companies operating in high-technology sector and being rated as top companies with the most valuable brands by Interbrand consultancy. The data contained information for six consequent years from 2008 to 2013. Obtained data was analyzed using the methods of fixed effect and random effect model (panel data analysis). The analysis showed positive effect of advertising and R&D investments on brand value of high-technology companies in the long run. The impact of remaining three strategies was not approved and further investigation is required.

The role of emotional branding in building brand personality from a consumer perspective

The purpose of this exploratory research is to study the role of emotional branding in building brand personality. The research is conducted from the perspective of the consumer, more specifically the Finnish Generation Y females. The aim of the thesis is to gain insights and understanding on the key concepts and contribute to the Generation Y literature. In addition, the research examines the effect of certain cultural implications on the process of building brand personality. The research was conducted as an embedded single-case study, in which qualitative data was collected through semi-structured interviews with a sample of six consumers and personal observation within one of the concept stores of the case company. In order to triangulate the data, secondary sources were utilized to gain more information about the case company. The results indicated a connection between emotional branding and the formulation of brand personality, which can be manipulated according to the brand personality drivers. Congruence with consumer self-conceptualization and set of values were discovered to strengthen the emotional bonding. As the end result, the research was able to clarify the process-thinking behind emotional branding.

Store experiences and their influence on store performance and brand strength: Case Samsung Experience Store

Experiential marketing is increasingly seen as a new magical key to consumers’ hearts. Brands are turning brick-and-mortar stores into state of the art retail spaces where memorable experiences and strong brand relationships are hoped to be born. Around the globe, several brands have opened up a special format of stores – the experience store. Although many speculations on the positive effects of experiences have been presented, few studies have provided empirical, quantified evidence for the link between store experiences and brand success. In consequence, research was needed to find out whether experience stores truly are so special. The purpose of this thesis was to investigate whether store experiences are capable of building brands and influencing store performance. For this purpose, empirical research was conducted in the Samsung Experience Store Helsinki. As main constructs of the study, store experience, brand equity, store performance, and product class involvement were measured, along with relevant background variables. Data was collected with an electronic survey from actual customers of the store, resulting in a sample of 131 respondents. Partial least squares structural equations modeling (PLS) was used for the analysis of the research model. Also, regression analysis was conducted to account for mediation and moderation effects. The results showed that store experiences do positively influence first, store performance, and second, separate dimensions of brand equity (that is, brand awareness, brand personality, and brand loyalty). Also, the effect of store experiences on store performance was found to be mediated by brand equity. Interestingly, customers’ product class involvement was detected to moderate the effect of store experience on store performance. That is, those who were highly involved with electronics had greater store experiences, and also displayed a stronger linkage between store experience and store performance. The results encourage marketers to continue with efforts to create great experiences for their customers. Experience stores can – and should be seen – as both powerful brand building tools and profitable sales channels. The creation of exceptional experiences can act as an important function of physical stores in the face of severe online competition.

How to increase brand quality perception with audiovisual content? : Exploring the role of emotions in B2C and B2B contexts

This study discusses how audiovisual content can influence brand quality perceptions. The purpose of this study is to explore how audiovisual content creation can increase brand quality perceptions. This research problem is addressed with three sub questions, which aim at clarifying the role of emotions between content marketing and brand quality perception, explaining how different functions of audiovisual content can increase brand quality perception, and by identifying and comparing the key differences in content creation in business-to-consumer and business-to-businesscontexts. The theoretical background of the study is in brand personality, consumer emotions, consumerbrand relationships, content marketing and B2B branding literature. The empirical research part includes a single-case study. The case company was a Swiss startup that wished to build a highquality brand for both B2C and B2B segments. The empirical data was collected in September 2014. Eight interviews were conducted; seven with target segment representatives and one with an existing customer of the case company. The empirical findings were analyzed with thematic analysis and finally a 5-stage framework was created based on the findings of the research, offering a guideline for high-quality content creation. This study finds that emotions play an important role in brand quality perceptions. Psychological processes, emotion, cognition and conation, influence the engagement process of the target segment which ultimately can lead to activation and electronic word-of-mouth. Brand quality perception is the result of the overall emotion of the brand. The overall emotion derives from brand personality, brand concept, product attributes and utilitarian benefits of the brand. The entertaining and educational functions of the audiovisual content can target and evoke these emotional processes, and result in increased quality perceptions. In the B2B context, emotions are found to play a relatively smaller role in the quality perception processes. However, the significance of emotions cannot be ignored, since they can emphasize the value for the buying organization, and build on the trust and loyalty among the potential customers. The final framework presents five stages of content creation that ultimately improve brand quality perceptions. These stages help marketers to design and implement their content and evoke positive emotions in their target segment as part of a quality-based marketing strategy. Further research is warranted to quantitatively test the generalizability of the framework. Further research is also suggested to make the framework adaptable to different stages of the brand life cycle.

Brand Identity of an Ecological Oriented SME

Tämän eksploratiivisen tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on tutkia yrittäjän persoonallisuuden roolia ekologisesti suuntautuneen brändin identiteetin ja assosiaatioiden rakentamisessa. Tutkimus on tehty yrittäjän näkökulmasta, jonka kontekstina ovat pienet ja keskisuuret yritykset. Tämä tutkimus pyrkii laajentamaan ja saamaan ymmärrystä keskeisistä käsitteistä, ja samalla edistämään PK-yrityksiin liittyvää kirjallisuutta. Tämän lisäksi tutkimus tarkastelee mitä assosiaatioita ekologisesti suuntautunut brändi korostaa identiteetissään. Tutkimus suoritettiin tapaustutkimuksena. Laadullista primääridataa kerättiin teemahaastattelemalla yrittäjää, havainnoimalla yhtä case-yrityksen messuosastoa, sekä keräämällä yrittäjän persoonallisuusattribuutteja. Jotta tutkimus saavuttaisi myös datan triangulaation, sekundääristä dataa kerättiin vahvistamaan aiempaa tutkimusta. Yhtenä sekundäärilähteenä toimivat kaksi artikkelia, jotka auttoivat vahvistamaan aiemmin esiin nostetut yrittäjän persoonallisuusattribuutit. Persoonallisuusattribuutteja verrattiin case-yrityksen brändin identiteettiin, jotta yrittäjän persoonallisuuden rooli brändin identiteetin rakentamisessa saataisiin selville. Tulokset osoittivat yhteyden brändin identiteetin ja yrittäjän persoonallisuuden välillä ekologisesti suuntautuneessa case-yrityksessä. Tulokset paljastivat myös joitakin yleisiä assosiaatioita joita luodaan ja vahvistetaan brändin identiteetin eri osa-alueiden avulla.