| 1. |
- Björner, Emma, 1981-
(author)
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Imagineering Place : The Branding of Five Chinese Mega-Cities
- 2017
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Cities, regions, nations and other places have in recent decades become active participants in the global competitive economy, and now operate in a global marketplace, competing with other places all over the world for investors, tourists, residents and workforce. As a result, places use marketing and branding strategies and practices to gain reputation and competitive advantage. Chinese cities have, over the past decades, increasingly engaged in branding activities, and even taken the role of spearheads for China in its positioning in the global economy, seen for example in the organization of mega-events. The branding of Chinese cities nevertheless exhibits some differences compared with city branding in the West. The aim of this dissertation is to contribute to our knowledge of the internal-political aspects of place branding, using field studies of the imagery used in city branding practices in five Chinese mega-cities, namely Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Chengdu and Chongqing. The focus is on the images and language used in the cities’ branding, and on key political aspects involved in the branding of Chinese mega-cities. The theoretical lens incorporates concepts tied to images, language, imaginaries, ideology and power, and the study relies on an ethnographic, multiple case study approach, including longitudinal fieldwork in China. The findings consist of rich illustrations of the branding of the five Chinese mega-cities, and include an analysis of similar imagery found in all five cities, grouped into economic, international, cultural, social and environmental imaginaries. This shows that city branding in Chinese mega-cities is focused on creating international and competitive cities, while also paying attention to the environment, culture and internal target groups such as residents. A central contribution of this dissertation is the development of the concept ‘imagineering’, used in this study to conceptualize key political aspects of city branding in Chinese mega-cities. Imagineering contains three main elements, namely local adaptations of national directives, policies, plans and concepts; a strong future orientation while also accentuating selected elements from the past; and a focus on local populations with the creation of stability and harmony as a central goal. Imagineering is also conceptualized as a policy instrument exercised by a powerful élite, closely intertwined with urban governance, and used to influence people, values, places and, ultimately, city futures.
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| 2. |
- Brozovic, Danilo, 1979-
(author)
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Service Provider Flexibility : A Strategic Perspective
- 2015
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This thesis is about service provider flexibility and how provider flexibility facilitates customer value creation in contexts where customer processes and activities change. Provider flexibility is delineated as a mechanism of value creation and defined as the ability of the service provider to respond to changes or to bring about changes that support its customers’ value creation. Although provider flexibility has been implied as a relevant factor in value creation, previous studies focusing on some kind of provider flexibility would benefit from a deeper understanding of the strategic role that service provider flexibility plays in value creation.The purpose of this study is to provide a framework that explicates the strategic role of provider flexibility in value creation. The role of provider flexibility in the adjustment of the provider’s processes and activities and the development of opportunities based on insights from customer interactions are thus emphasized. Moreover, while these insights from customer interactions can offer valuable development opportunities for the service provider, these opportunities yield returns only with the transfer of the insights back to the service provider’s organization.The research process evolves along five research articles that develop the understanding of the strategic role of provider flexibility in value creation. The study builds on the empirical data from five service organizations of large industrial firms. The empirical insights from the articles are expanded and their conclusions further developed by iteratively and abductively substantiating the research model. The discussion explicates how exercising provider flexibility—in the form of organizational flexibility in the provider sphere, interaction flexibility in the joint sphere, and flexibility in use in the customer sphere—contributes to value creation. Moreover, findings show that the provider and the customer are entwined in a service system surrounding their service relationship. Provider flexibility in this aspect functions not merely as a mechanism of value creation, but also as a carrier of knowledge and information about the customer. Having this dynamics in mind, the provider continues to use provider flexibility to reinvent itself and constantly evolve the organization.This thesis contributes to the literature by providing a framework that explicates the strategic role of provider flexibility in value creation. More specifically, the contributions are: 1) an increased understanding of how provider flexibility in value creation is exercised, placing provider flexibility at the core of the encompassing process of value creation, and thus explicating the manner in which the encompassing process of value creation can unfold; and 2) an increased understanding of the strategic role of the work of part-time marketers by delineating the process of provider flexibility in value creation where different aspects of provider flexibility in value creation are linked.
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| 3. |
- Lucarelli, Andrea, 1982-
(author)
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The Political Dimension of Place Branding
- 2015
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Place branding is commonly understood as the application of marketing and commercial ideas, strategies, measurements and logic to the realm of places such as cities, regions and nations. Nevertheless, place branding is also understood as the locus where political activities – imbued with political impact and political effects – appear and affect the soft and hard infrastructures of urban agglomeration and other spatial environments. In this regard, by performing an analysis that helps unpack the multiple characters and impacts of political structures and processes in relation to place branding activities, the present dissertation aims to offer a conceptualization of the political dimension of place branding. By drawing on the critical assessment of the academic literature on place branding and on a series of studies about the branding processes in the region of Romagna and in the Greater Stockholm, the present dissertation further specifies an alternative conceptual framework (i.e. ecological politics) that suggests how place branding should be seen an empirical and theoretical political apparatus that acts, in praxis, based on an emerging, multifaceted and spatio-temporal enfolding of politics. More specifically, the ecological politics of place branding is characterized by four main aspects: the unfolding of a biopolitical ecology around place-branding practices; the ideological appropriation of place-branding processes; the positioning through politicized actions between the interest groups; and finally place-branding as a process of policy-intervention. Finally, on more general level, the present dissertation, by recognizing the political activities and efforts of place branding as crucial elements to be analyzed, makes the case for a more explicit, complex and manifold political analysis of the political dimension of place branding, which allows attention to be given to the impact that branding processes, practices and activities have on cities, regions and nations
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| 4. |
- Minina, Alisa, 1987-
(author)
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Consumption of financial services in global mobility : A Cephalopodic consumption mode?
- 2017
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- In the interconnected world of today more and more people get on the move. We go abroad for vacations, visits or business trips and we change countries of residence as we pursue new opportunities. Cross-border mobility is becoming part of our life. In recent years consumer researchers have been showing an increasing interest in particularities of consumption in condition of global mobility. Although previous studies have acknowledged the importance of economic capital in enabling global consumer mobility, existing research could be enriched by a deeper understanding of how globally mobile consumers manage their financial consumption across borders.The aim of this dissertation is to is to contribute to the uncovering of the particularities of consumption of financial services in global mobility by documenting globally mobile consumers’ financial consumption patterns, the ways they build and maintain relationships with their financial service providers and the ways in which they navigate cultural norms of service consumption and financial consumption across borders.The study is based on four research articles that develop an understanding of the dimensions of financial consumption and uncover purchasing, relational and acculturative aspects of consumption of financial services in mobility. The overarching chapter further develops the insights from the articles, bringing forward the concept of the cephalopodic consumption mode – a particular way in which globally mobile consumers organize their financial consumption.This work contributes to the domain of research on serially relocating consumers by showing how globally mobile professionals engage in cephalopodic consumption mode (CCM), using their economic capital in order to navigate their international movement. The multipresence, multi-acculturation, instrumentality and camouflage of CCM emerge as an answer to challenges of mobility – the need to reacquaint with new countries every time upon relocation, the future need to leave again and the necessity to organize consumption across borders.
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| 5. |
- Andéhn, Mikael, 1982-
(author)
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Place-of-Origin Effects on Brand Equity : Explicating the evaluative pertinence of product categories and association strength
- 2013
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The country-of-origin effect - the alteration of judgment derived from an association to a place, is a much studied phenomenon with great potential implications for brand management and international marketing. However, in light of criticism towards the lack of conceptual development the extant literature, the relevance of the effect has been brought into question.Through an exploration of the psychology of the association between brands and places, the country-of-origin effect is reimagined focusing on the role of association strength as well as how the interplay between place and product categories can shape consumer attitudes.The results of a series of psychometric tests suggest that association strength and the interplay between place and product category constitute antecedent conditions that are crucial for determining if a country-of-origin effect will occur. These findings, and their implications for future research as well as for practice, suggest that a reevaluation of the country-of-origin effect with a widening of the scope to encompass the commercial relevance of place writ large is warranted.
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| 6. |
- Laurell, Christofer, 1987-
(author)
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Commercialising social media : a study of fashion (blogo)spheres
- 2014
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- A common characteristic of the theoretical developments within the field of social media marketing is that activities to which consumers devote themselves in social media settings shift power from firms to consumers. Extant literature has therefore analysed the practices of consumers within social media and their potential implications for marketing. The current state of social media, however, suggests that these settings are undergoing a process of transformation. Although social media were initially characterised as non-commercial in nature, firms have started to manage interactions within these digital landscapes. From initially being characterised by its social base, this development implies that social media have become increasingly commercialised.The aim of this dissertation is to expand the literature on social media by describing the process through which they evolve from their initially social character to a commercial utility. More specifically, it seeks to develop a conceptual framework that captures the role of marketing processes that lead to the commercialisation of these spheres. This is done mainly through a netnographic study of the Swedish fashion blogosphere in order to explain how and why consumers and professionals interact, organise, create and appropriate commercial values in the fashion blogosphere.Drawing on theory of spheres, this dissertation proposes a sphereological understanding of social media that expands the role of marketing. It is suggested that social media may be understood as a collection of micro-spheres that, together, comprise a densely connected foam of spatiality and place. In these spheres, consumers, together with commercial actors, take part in practices that become increasingly commercial. In that sense, marketing takes the roles of navigating social media in search of symbolic meanings of value, and of affecting, negotiating and redefining atmospheres of places in the social media landscape.
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| 7. |
- Radón, Anita, 1980-
(author)
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The Rise of Luxury Brands Online : A study of how a sense of luxury brand is created in an online environment
- 2010
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Luxury brands have only recently tapped into the online market in an attempt to increase revenues and expand their businesses. This leap onto the online world has resulted in several new challenges, including the luxury brand paradox. The luxury brand paradox concerns the inherent difficulty for luxury brands to increase sales and expand their customer base while simultaneously maintaining an aura of mystery and exclusivity. The openness and accessibility of the Internet are believed to pose an extra challenging environment for luxury brands. This research explores how a sense of luxury brand is created in an online environment. Using methodology comprised of different online methods to comprehend what is taking place online, this study primarily concentrates on visual imagery and online communication. The online world of luxury brands is conceptualized into three distinct categories: brand websites, counterfeit websites and community websites. Using these three categories, the thesis demonstrates what role they each play in the creation of a sense of luxury brand. From this analysis, four themes emerge on the sense of a luxury brand (luxury history, authenticity, community and paradox). The concept of an online fair is used to illustrate the environment of luxury brands on the Internet. The online fair consists of a confluence of people involved in it as well as the various activities they perform. In addition, the fairground where the people participate and the activities that take place are described. In conclusion, this thesis proposes a move from the identity-image construct toward a view of handling and co-creation of sense of brand.
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| 8. |
- Fernholm, Johanna, 1973-
(author)
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Uppförandekoder som etisk varumärkning? : Ansvar i företag med globala värdekedjor
- 2013
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Since the late 1990s, the presence of ethical codes of conduct in companies has increased dramatically, especially in companies with strong brands, as well as in industries where companies outsource business to suppliers in low-income countries. The demands on, and renewed interest in, companies taking social responsibility, as often summarized in the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR), for problems in their value chains, seems thus intertwined with the processes of globalization.The communication of social responsibility in companies is discussed in CSR communication and ethical branding , two emerging streams of research that are related to the overall classification of social responsibility, communication and branding in globalization. However, in spite of the extensive literature on social responsibility and communication in companies the last decades, there is a need for more research uncovering the contextualization of ethical codes of conduct in global brands.The aim of the thesis is to interpret the process by which ethical codes of conduct as communication of responsibility are developed in companies with global value chains, by examining the factors underlying this communication. An ethnographically inspired approach is used to facilitate a holistic understanding and included in the study are interviews with companies and NGOs, as well as field studies from value chains in Thailand and Vietnam.The study shows that the basic way in which responsibility are communicated in companies’ global value chains is in the shape of long interlinked “chains of responsibility”, which takes the form of staging. Staging captures how responsibility comes into play. It happens gradually through dramatized events, based on ethical codes of conduct that are themselves standardized scripts. They take place in border movements between the front stage and backstage, where the actors play the roles that are increasingly expected to identify with them.
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| 9. |
- Gustafsson, Clara, 1979-
(author)
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Brand Trust : Corporate communications and consumer-brand relationships
- 2008
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- In the wake of well-known instances of corporate misconduct – for example Enron in the U.S., and Skandia in Sweden – consumers ask for more transparent corporate brand practices to make corporate brands trustworthy. However, potentially, consumers who put their trust in brands may be sacrificing some of their own control, thus weakening themselves in the trusting relationship. The aim of this book is to shed new light on consumer-brand trust relationships, and the way such relationships relate to the corporate communication of brand trust. Further, the present book moves away from the traditional approach to trust as something (more or less) taken for granted that the corporation seeks to build into its brand, towards a perspective that includes consumers’ creation of brand meaning.Traditionally, business research on trust has focused on corporations, and the way trust reduces transaction costs. However, the present book looks at the other side of the coin by focusing on relationships between consumers and brands from the perspective of trust. Trust is conceptualized as an instance of “asymmetrical reciprocity” (cf. Young 1997) to emphasize the potential vulnerability of the trusting consumer.The methods in the present book include empirical research consisting of interviews with the CEOs and top managers of well-known corporate brands in Sweden, interviews with consumers, a follow-up ethnography-guided study of the consumers, and a philosophical and conceptual analysis. Combining the corporate and the consumer side of the relationship enables a discussion of key aspects in the brand trust relationships between consumers and brands. In conclusion, the concept of Faithful Shielding is presented, describing how the same practices that give the consumers benefits in relations with their favoured brands also increase their vulnerability.
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| 10. |
- Hansson, Jörgen, 1943-
(author)
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Köp av tjänster för ledningskompetens - en polyfonisk process
- 2010
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The thesis´ aim is to deepen the understanding about what shapes and characterises the purchase process for management advice services. Such externally, acquired services have increased substantially, and in relation to the services´ impact on management decisions the theoretical and practical understanding of the purchase process is lagging behind. The thesis´ analyses, interpretations and conclusions are founded on empirical data collected by use of focus groups, and based on activity theory. The findings show that the purchase process is influenced by many actors who see themselves as subject in the process. They have similar but also conflicting objects that they want to fulfil. The outcome of the purchase process is influenced by contradictory opinions among the actors about how to organize and supervise the process. The main contradictions are influenced by the actors´ different objects and how they interpret the context of the purchase process. The context is shaped by such as leadership style, social rules regarding management of change and opinions about division of labour in the purchase process. The impression of the purchase process´s character is that commonly used supply chain models do not work as a characterization. The purchase process´s phases do not follow on each other and the glue that links the phases is not a rational procedure following one, firm route. The findings show that procurement, integration and follow-up phases overlap, are concurrent and integrated in each other. The purchase process reproduces the execution of polyphonic music in which different voices, each with its own melody, create a rich texture of sounds. In a similar way the purchase process is coined by actors who bring their own objects and competence into the process. It produces dissonance, as in polyphonic music. It mirrors the services character of competence development and shapes the purchase process as polyphonic rather than a rational, step by step process.
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