#Incollaborationwith : The importance of using influencer marketing in order to create brand awareness in international markets for e- commerce companies

Sammanfattning: The purpose of this thesis is to provide a deeper understanding of the reasons why ecommerce companies work with influencer marketing in order to create brand awareness in international markets. In order to conduct this research, relevant aspects of the phenomenon have been identified and consequently analysed in relation to traditional marketing strategies and international markets. By following a qualitative research method, a deeper understanding of the phenomenon and how companies use influencer marketing vs traditional marketing strategies can thereby be acquired. This was done by acquiring primary data from four different e-commerce companies that works with influencer marketing. The companies are all located in Sweden and active in international markets. The thesis has followed a deductive research approach, due to that the research area was considered to be rather unexplored, and thus a better pre understanding of the research area seemed warranted. Furthermore, the literature review that has been done includes theories related to international marketing, social media, word of mouth, brand awareness and influencer marketing. The literature review has resulted in a conceptual framework, which demonstrates the relations between the different theories. The conceptual framework has thereafter been used in order to analyse the empirical data, which has been derived from the interviews with representatives from four companies. The empirical findings are then presented together with analysis and discussion in the following chapter. Moreover, the empirical findings/analysis chapter visualizes the similarities and the dissimilarities between the theory and the findings. The analysis chapter additionally involves a discussion and is structured in accordance with the conceptual framework and the questions asked. The following and final chapter of the thesis presents the conclusions that have been derived from the analysis. The main theoretical implications that this thesis has resulted in, involves filling the research gap as well as providing a definition of the phenomenon of influencer marketing in a context of international business. The main practical implication is that an understanding of influencer marketing creates word of mouth and brand awareness. This in a combination with being active on social media can consequently help e-commerce companies to internationalize into new markets. As this thesis introduces the phenomenon of influencer marketing in a new context, it provides new information about the topic. Furthermore, the research can be valuable for e-commerce companies that have entered, or plan to enter an international market. The authors furthermore present the theoretical and practical implications and provide recommendations and suggestions for future research.