“This post is a paid sponsorship” Do we care?: How consumers perceive brands when social media influencers disclose paid partnerships
2018 (engelsk)Independent thesis Basic level (degree of Bachelor), 10 poäng / 15 hp
Oppgave
Abstract [en]
An over-commercialized society has made consumers prefer the opinions of influential people in online settings. Companies have a harder time reaching consumers and therefore turn to social media influencers (SMIs) for exposure. With the growth of influencer marketing, regulations and guidelines in Sweden have been put in place to ensure consumers integrity. SMIs and companies are required to disclose paid partnerships. However, many companies have the perception that truthful marketing can affect consumers brand perception negatively. Research based on consumer brand perception and disclosed paid partnerships between SMIs and companies have not previously been explored. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to explore how consumers perceive brands when SMIs disclose paid partnerships. In order to gather consumers ́ brand perception when SMIs and companies collaborate, a qualitative study using focus groups was conducted, where the participants thoughts and opinions have been studied. The findings of this thesis indicate that the communication and characteristics of SMIs influences consumers brand perception. The factors analyzed were: influence of SMIs, content, trust and truthfulness. The factors were important for how consumers perceive the SMI and brand of companies. The most important implication of this thesis is that the study can be of use for companies that seek to collaborate with SMIs when the aim is to reach target groups and enhance brand perception.
sted, utgiver, år, opplag, sider
2018.
Emneord [en]
Social media influencer (SMI), consumer brand perception, marketing regulations, influence of SMIs, content, trust, truthfulness
HSV kategori
Identifikatorer
URN: urn:nbn:se:hkr:diva-18256OAI: oai:DiVA.org:hkr-18256DiVA, id: diva2:1221954
Fag / kurs
International business and marketing
Utdanningsprogram
Degree of Bachelor of Science in Business and Economics
Uppsök
Social and Behavioural Science, Law
Veileder
Examiner
2018-06-272018-06-202018-06-27bibliografisk kontrollert