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The increasing relevance of the internet has brought about significant change in me dia consumption, communication and social behaviour and thus evoked a debate in both business studies and practice. Brands, in particular, are affected by the devel opments in and around the internet since they stimulate and shape such behavioural patterns. Therefore, how to manage a brand in the era of the internet has been a topic of discussion for quite some time. First, success factors of so called "virtual e brands" were searched for, then "internet-based brand management" was explored and finally one was acknowledged as an "expert" by only using the buzzword "brand management in Web2. 0. " Many of the papers and books published at that time, how ever, dealt only superficially with the subject, distinguishing themselves through se quences of empty words rather than in-depth knowledge of the matter. Unfortunately, this even led to the case that the editor of a topic related Special Issue of the "Mar keting Science" joumal preselected all submitted manuscripts according to the fact whether he personally liked or disliked the used terminology. Against the background of this situation of as much shallowness as sUbjectivity, Dr. Ulrike Arnhold analyses the state of the art of research within her dissertation with great care and intellectual finesse.
List of contents
User generated branding (UGB) as a field of study.- Theoretical basis for the development of a UGB reference framework.- Specification of UGB.- Development of the explanatory UGB model.- Empiric model validation and hypothesis testing.- Summary, critical consideration and outlook.
About the author
Dr. Ulrike Arnhold holds a PhD in business administration from Prof. Dr. Christoph Burmann’s Chair of Innovative Brand Management at the University of Bremen. She works as a brand strategist in luxury goods.
Summary
What is the value of user generated content in branding? Do social media activities such as brand communities and blogs rather harm or strengthen the brand? Ulrike Arnhold investigates these burning questions, introducing the concept of user generated branding. From a brand management perspective she analyses the impact of interactive marketing programmes in Web 2.0, evaluating user generated content as a tool of the brand communication mix. Her book provides not only a comprehensive empiric analysis but also managerial implications. Thus, this pioneer study will help both scholars and practitioners to gain a thorough understanding of the roots, strategies and applications of user generated content in branding.
