Usage of social media by brands and CEOs to influence brand image and brand awareness
Author
Fetibegovic, Ervin
Term
4. term
Publication year
2021
Submitted on
2021-06-01
Pages
52
Abstract
This thesis examines how companies and their CEOs use social media to influence brand image and brand awareness, using Tesla Motors as the context. Drawing on prior research, a conceptual framework and six hypotheses were developed and tested through a cross-sectional online survey distributed in Facebook groups of Tesla owners, prospective owners, and enthusiasts (346 complete responses). Data reliability and validity were assessed with Cronbach’s alpha and Pearson correlation, and hypotheses were evaluated with ANOVA and linear regression. The findings indicate that Tesla’s social media activity has a significant positive influence on brand image but does not significantly affect brand awareness. CEO personal branding emerges as a significant driver of both brand image and brand awareness, while CEO social media activity shows no significant relationship with either outcome. The study contributes by linking customer-based brand equity (CBBE) and CEO personal branding, and offers managerial implications: invest in brand social media to strengthen image and develop the CEO’s personal brand, but do not expect CEO social posts alone to raise awareness. Limitations include non-probability sampling, potential response bias, and the case-specific nature of Tesla; future research should compare different firms, CEOs, and types of social media activity.
Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan virksomheder og deres CEO’er bruger sociale medier til at påvirke brandimage og brandkendskab, med Tesla Motors som kontekst. Ud fra litteraturen udvikles et konceptuelt rammeværk og seks hypoteser, der testes med en tværsnitsundersøgelse: en online spørgeskemaundersøgelse distribueret i Facebook-grupper for Tesla-ejere, kommende ejere og entusiaster (346 fulde besvarelser). Datakvalitet vurderes med Cronbachs alfa og Pearson-korrelation, og hypoteserne analyseres med ANOVA og lineær regressionsanalyse. Resultaterne viser, at Teslas sociale medieaktivitet har en signifikant positiv indflydelse på brandimage, men ikke på brandkendskab. CEO’ens personlige branding fremstår som en væsentlig faktor for både brandimage og brandkendskab, mens CEO’ens sociale medieaktivitet ikke har en signifikant sammenhæng med nogen af delene. Specialet bidrager til litteraturen ved at koble CBBE-teori og CEO-personlig branding og giver ledelsesmæssige implikationer: prioriter virksomhedens sociale medieindsats for at styrke brandets image og arbejd strategisk med CEO’ens personlige brand, men forvent ikke, at CEO-aktivitet på sociale medier alene øger brandkendskab. Begrænsninger omfatter ikke-sandsynlig udvælgelse, mulig svarbias og at Tesla-casen ikke nødvendigvis kan generaliseres; fremtidige studier bør sammenligne forskellige virksomheder, CEO’er og typer af sociale medieaktiviteter.
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