Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection

Consumers have changed their purchasing preferences from only requiring a product or service be of quality and affordably priced to demanding the businesses that offer such products or services be socially responsible entities, as well. As corporate social responsibility endures to be regarded as a necessary business practice in the minds of consumers, brands must align their marketing strategies accordingly. Specifically, brands must use philanthropy as a selling point to attract consumers. Philanthropy serves the dual purpose of improving communities and, if done properly, creating a competitive context that businesses can use to their fiscal benefit. Cause marketing, in its simplest form, is the use of philanthropy by for-profit companies as a means of attracting clientele to increase sales. Through charitable involvement, for-profit companies can generate goodwill that in turn creates a positive public perception of their brand. By partnering with carefully selected charities and investing in charity-centric endeavors, companies can engage their customers and drive revenue while bettering their communities. From this standpoint, it behooves any business to engage in cause marketing initiatives as a means of attaining customers. This thesis articulates the value that cause marketing can add to a corporate portfolio, how community involvement can be parlayed into increased revenue, and why brands should invest in cause marketing tactics. A literature review was conducted, empirical information was collected and analyzed, and interview testimonials were used in defense of these claims. In conclusion, this thesis establishes statistical proof that cause marketing promotes sales by positively affecting consumer brand perception, a key factor in purchase consideration and purchasing decisions.

Influencer marketing is when individuals with dedicated social media followings are sought out by brands to utilize their position on certain platforms to endorse a brand’s products and be compensated through payment or merchandise. I will be looking at the concept of trust when it comes to influencer marketing alongside the Fogg Behavior Model. Used to evaluate an individual’s behavior in the decisions making process, The Fogg Behavior Model bases itself in a persuasive environment by focusing on three key elements: motivation, ability, and trigger. When utilized in collaboration with influencer marketing, these elements together could have a strong effect on driving consumer behaviors. I utilized one of the most recent and popular social media platforms, TikTok, known for its short-form mobile videos, to explore these behavioral elements in action. Like any other media platform, TikTok influencer marketing requires a high amount of trust between the consumer and influencer to be successful and efficiently persuade the target market. I collected primary research by surveying opinions on trust and buying behaviors based on three different videos. One video had a hidden partnership disclosure in the caption, the second had a plainly visible partnership disclosure, and the third had a plainly visible partnership disclosure and verbally disclosed the relationship between the brand and the influencer. The analysis showed that participants felt a higher degree of trust towards the video which contained a verbal disclosure of the influencer’s partnership with the brand. The results lacked specificity on whether this perception of trust would successfully lead to a purchase, which could be adjusted for in future research; however, it did show there was motivation through the Fogg Model to look further into the product presented. I recommend influencers be as transparent and genuine as possible to earn the trust or their followers, as well as ensure all three factors of Fogg are present to increase their persuasive abilities over consumers completing a purchase.

Influencer marketing is when individuals with dedicated social media followings are sought out by brands to utilize their position on certain platforms to endorse a brand’s products and be compensated through payment or merchandise. I will be looking at the concept of trust when it comes to influencer marketing alongside the Fogg Behavior Model. Used to evaluate an individual’s behavior in the decisions making process, The Fogg Behavior Model bases itself in a persuasive environment by focusing on three key elements: motivation, ability, and trigger. When utilized in collaboration with influencer marketing, these elements together could have a strong effect on driving consumer behaviors. I utilized one of the most recent and popular social media platforms, TikTok, known for its short-form mobile videos, to explore these behavioral elements in action. Like any other media platform, TikTok influencer marketing requires a high amount of trust between the consumer and influencer to be successful and efficiently persuade the target market. I collected primary research by surveying opinions on trust and buying behaviors based on three different videos. One video had a hidden partnership disclosure in the caption, the second had a plainly visible partnership disclosure, and the third had a plainly visible partnership disclosure and verbally disclosed the relationship between the brand and the influencer. The analysis showed that participants felt a higher degree of trust towards the video which contained a verbal disclosure of the influencer’s partnership with the brand. The results lacked specificity on whether this perception of trust would successfully lead to a purchase, which could be adjusted for in future research; however, it did show there was motivation through the Fogg Model to look further into the product presented. I recommend influencers be as transparent and genuine as possible to earn the trust or their followers, as well as ensure all three factors of Fogg are present to increase their persuasive abilities over consumers completing a purchase.

The current automotive industry is at a watershed moment: consumer preferences are shifting in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, innovative powertrain technologies have become increasingly viable in new vehicles, and increasingly strict government regulations are forcing many brands to reevaluate their current portfolio and shift their brands focus into this new market of electric vehicles. Within the last 10 years, new start-up brands have taken a strong stance in consumers minds as the go-to for a certain class of vehicle when shopping for an EV, as opposed to what they might similarly shop for in a traditional internal combustion engine (I.C.E). Amongst all of these changing factors, BMW has fallen quite short in updating its brand in preparation for the future. BMW has traditionally stood for executive, sporty, German sedans since the brand introduced the “BMW New Class” of automobiles in 1962. For the last 3 generations of cars, about 10 years, BMW has attempted to shift its brand to a techy, luxury, executive, sedan. Unfortunately, as they enter the electric space, Tesla has a stranglehold on this market segment- and frankly produces the better car for those consumers. While they were one of the first companies to identify the need for electric vehicles, in the i3, their implementation of these ideas was so far away from this core identity of BMW that it has actually hurt their branding moving into this electric future. The goal of this thesis is to investigate these factors, the shift towards electric vehicles, and how BMW fits into this new environment. With this information, a business plan will be created that should point BMW into a direction that continues its heritage as a brand, while appealing to modern consumers and lawmakers.