AVL is the world's largest independent company for the development of powertrain systems with internal combustion engines as well as instrumentation and test systems. It is a notable supplier in the automotive industry and an important research partner, nationally as well as internationally. The success of the company is driven by numerous innovations and product developments of the AVL workforce. This pioneering spirit already goes back to the founder Prof. Dr. Hans List and is today conveyed by the CEO Prof. Dr. h.c. Helmut List too. The company states corporate values - pioneering spirit, customer orientation, problem solving competence, responsibility and independence- to master daily challenges and to provide optimum solutions for customers. The AVL brand grew with the success and global expansion of the company, which entailed deficits in consistent global branding. Branding gains more and more importance among B2B companies in order to remain or become market leader, which is challenging under the current dynamic market conditions. An important key to success is the commitment to the brand by employees. Therefore, this master thesis deals with the development of a clearly stated brand identity for AVL and further the internal anchoring of brand identity values. The theoretical part, firstly, outlines definitions and fundamentals of identity based brand management in B2B and related challenges for globally operating companies. Further, a brand identity development chapter provides an overview of applicable brand identity approaches and the deduction process that is based on the brand steering wheel by Esch. Lastly, internal implementation of a target identity is covered with regard to ways of internal communication, implementation process steps, measures and the importance of the commitment by the board and executive managers of all levels. The practical part of the thesis, containing secondary and primary research, provides an overview of current market situation and actual perceptions of the AVL brand from internal and external perspective. Based on the research results and on the basis of the deduction process by Esch a target AVL brand identity is deduced. An internal implementation guideline for AVL, including recommended measures, a budget proposal and controlling measures complete the master thesis.

NXP is a globally operating semiconductor company. MIFARE is NXP‘s leading brand for contactless solutions, augmented by a service offering with MIFARE 2GO, and AppXplorer. In the transit sector, MIFARE is used in over 750 cities worldwide, serving the majority of the market. The market for fare ticketing sees disruptions and changes in customer behavior. While NXP has acted on these trends by bringing MIFARE 2GO, it has not (re)positioned it’s brand accordingly yet – at least, not purposefully. This thesis develops a variety of positioning concepts for MIFARE and presents one that will allow MIFARE to remain the leading brand for fare ticketing solutions.The first part of the master thesis focusses on the theory of international B2B marketing in high-tech markets, and that of brand repositioning and communication (of brand repositioning) in international B2B markets. In these chapters, the first followed definitions are provided, followed by the imperatives, aims, models, and strategies. The findings of this theoretical section provide the basis for the empirical implications.The secondary and primary market research follows. An in-depth market analysis is conducted and sixteen, of which eight internally at NXP, one-hour interviews are conducted and analyzed. Based on the findings from the literature in combination with the market analysis and expert interviews, five repositioning alternatives are developed, of which, via a scoring model, one is selected. The recommended repositioning alternative and concept is that of leading the market with the complete portfolio.The implementation of this repositioning alternative is done via integrated marketing communication. In the last part of this work, all the considerations, challenges, and other factors required for success – including an in-depth analysis of the communication tools – are provided. The entire communication plan is supported by event-specific activities, a proposed budget, and control measures.The entire work is further summarized in a ‘one-pager’ displaying the repositioning concept in a visually appealing way. Lastly, some further conclusions and recommendations are provided based on the completion of this work.

This master thesis deals with the highlighting of companies as employers through targeted Employer Branding measures. The recruitment of suitable employees has changed significantly in recent years.Whereas in the past the employees were the ones who applied to an employer, nowadays entrepreneurs have to actively look for qualified employees. This requires well thought-out strategies to be perceived as an Employer of Choice in times of shortage of skilled workers and to attract the best talents.Far too often, companies view Employer Branding only from a Personnel Marketing perspective and want to sell themselves well to the external market. The real essence, however, is to live the true values within the company and to build on this foundation of values. The activities have to fit the corporate culture and the employees should feel connected to the values so that they are loyal and motivated to work in a long-term manner. The Employer Branding strategy is needed to increase the awareness and attractiveness of the employer, to convey the values of the company both internally and externally and to attract the right applicants.The theoretical part of this work forms the basis for the successful practical development of an Employer Branding concept. The core of this work is the development of the Employer Value Proposition (EVP) - the unique selling point of an employer brand. The theoretical steps for the development of the employer brand are defined in such a way that they can be applied to any company.The practical part of this thesis deals primarily with the development of an Employer Branding concept for ALDI in Italy. The elaboration of the EVP is especially directed at potential candidates for the position of Area Manager. In the context of this concept development, the image of ALDI as an employer in Italy is discussed and analyzed by means of primary research, taking into account the target group. The results of this primary research together with a preceding secondary research serve as a foundation for the defined measures which support the perception of ALDI as an Employer of Choice.

The achievement and sustainable maintenance of a competitive advantage is one ofthe most important strategic objectives of companies. Especially, in the Software-as-a-Service industry where global becomes local, the internationalization of companies is indispensible in order to obtain a competitive advantage. The Intact GmbH is an Austrian based software company founded in 2001 by four friends with a shared vision to increase quality in the food safety industry. The offered software solution is a modular based Enterprise Resource Planning system with a full solution approach. Since the acquisition of its first customer outside of Europe in 2005,the Intact GmbH operates internationally.Today the company has built up a large international customer base with customers allaround the globe. Furthermore, the company focused in the recent years predominantly on a growth strategy and in 2018 sold 51% of their shares to the investment group named IMCAP GmbH. Therefore, the Intact GmbH strives to enter new markets and continue to grow its international customer base.In this respect, the master thesis aims to develop a market entry concept for Croatia and Slovenia to enter the new markets between July 2022 and May 2023. The concept serves to support the Intact GmbH in the market entry process.The main aspects of the theoretical section focus on the market entry in the Softwareas-a-Service industry for companies operating in a niche market. First, the terminology of is clarified in detail for the reader to understand the environment. Furthermore,marketing strategies for internationalization are provided with a strong focus on the digital toolset available for marketers such as lead management and Search EngineOptimization. Based on this the different modes of entry for SaaS companies are discussed and aligned with the prior theoretical input. The conclusion of the theoretical section is an overview of the market entry concept with the recommended market entrymode suitable for an Austrian software vendor entering new international markets with a strong focus on digital marketing activities.For further insights and information retrieval, secondary and primary market research is conducted in the practical section of this master thesis. Within the primary market research, fifteen experts have been interviewed with expertise in the Testing,Inspection and Certification market of Croatia, Slovenia and Austria. To gain further insights into the differences and similarities of the markets and the market view, additionally three experts from Austria have been interviewed. Lastly the conclusion, findings and results of the primary market research are combined for the development of the market entry concept for the Intact GmbH consisting the market entry mode, action plan and recommendations for digital marketing activities. The last part of this master thesis provides further recommendations of action for the Intact GmbH on the adaption of the SaaS marketing mix.

The competition in the food market is becoming increasingly intense, not only interms of market distribution and customers, but also in terms of labor. Workforce ismore demanding than in the past, as there is a broad offer at the labor market forthem. In addition, people nowadays are well informed about their opportunities,which leads to the fact that the choice for an employer is made consciously andincreasingly critical. Due to these reasons, organizations are forced to rethink theirpositions as employers and adapt all activities of human resource management tobe perceived as an attractive employer, who provides a desirable working place.When looking at this challenge from a marketing perspective, the appropriateapproach to deal with this topic is employer branding. This discipline connectshuman resource management and marketing, focusing on the positioning of theemployer. Concerned activities therefore are the positioning itself and afterwardsthe right communication of all defined aspects of the employer brand.The country organization of grocery retailer SPAR in Slovenia is increasinglyaddressing this topic and perceiving it more and more as a challenge that they musttake on. Due to this reason, they plan to implement an employer branding concept,that especially focuses on the initial steps of employer branding activities, followedby concrete first measures as an attractive employer.The theoretical part of this thesis builds the basis and highlights employer brandingitself, characteristics of the market and finally describes how a concept can bedeveloped, in a company that has no experience in this topic.Whereas in the practical part, the concept development for SPAR Slovenia is carriedout very detailed, after a comprehensive situation analysis. This situation analysisis fundamental for the conception and includes an empirical study as well as amarket analysis of Slovenia, concerning different aspects. The concept development itself has a step-by-step structure, starting with the analysis, followed with the positioning and ending with the operational planning for the measures at the Slovenian market.Finally, the thesis is concluded with personal recommendations for the company,based on the knowledge gained from the theoretical part associated with the findings from the analysis. These recommendations include the main aspects that employees wish from an employer, for example activities to support relationships between people at the working space or the introduction of a discount system for employees in the organization.

Nowadays, companies are facing an increasingly competitive landscape forrecruiting and retaining talented employees. Workforce demographics paired withage- and value-diverse workplaces make effective talent management a competitive necessity. Consequently, the establishment of an employer brand positioning has become a critical success factor for the continued existence of a company and to increase the attractiveness as an employer to achieve the ultimate aim of becoming an employer of choice.The present master thesis deals with the development of an employer branding positioning concept to attract blue-collar workers and apprentices in the packaging industry. The outcomes of the thesis are supposed to provide Mondi’s two production plants, located in Zeltweg, Styria, with a positioning concept as well as corresponding measures to increase the number of applicants and to properly fill vacancies. Furthermore, the objective to increase the brand awareness among the targeted groups is followed and it is aimed at achieving a clearly defined positioning of the company within the regional employment market.The thesis is divided into three major sections, namely introduction, theoretical part and practical part. Within the introduction section the initial situation is investigated,followed by an examination of the company objectives and the definition of the master thesis objective. Thereafter, a framework defining relevant theories and the structure of the work is provided. The theoretical part provides an introduction to the topic employer choice followed by exploring the challenges of addressing the two targeted groups before examining the principles of employer branding. The final partof the theory covers the process of developing an employer branding positioning concept, which is used as a base for Mondi’ positioning strategy. The practical part of the present thesis is devoted to a detailed internal and external analyses. The former investigates the strengths and weaknesses of the firm as an employer andexamines current employer branding measures, whereas the later not only investigates the company’s environment but also ascertains the needs and demands of the target groups towards an employer as well as their behavior during the employer choice process. The research results are then consolidated in the developed positioning concept and the corresponding measures which serve as an orientation guide for Mondi in order to become an employer choice in the long run.

This master thesis deals with the development of an international employerbranding concept for Generation Z as well as external communication measures inorder to increase the attractiveness of ARIAN among Austrians and Slovenes andto fulfil their personnel requirement regarding apprentices in the printing area.Furthermore, this thesis aims to make sure that ARIAN is known by relevant educational institutions in order to already reach Generation Z during their compulsory education.The first chapter concentrates on the topic international employer branding and starts with common definitions of employer branding, the interrelation of the corporate brand and employer brand as well as objectives of employer branding. Topics such as the different levels of attractiveness, challenges in international employer branding and generational differences provide a framework for the subsequent employer brand positioning concept. The basis for the employer branding positioning concept forms the analysis of the internal and external influencing factors, the employer brand identity, the objectives of the employer brand positioning and the requirement profile for the EVP. After the definition and selection of an EVP alternative, a suitable slogan can be defined, and the EVP can be implemented with external communication measures. The communication measures depend on the communication objectives and the respective targetgroup. Within the communication channels, different ways to reach Generation Zare presented. Furthermore, a distinction between the recurring measures of abasic programme and campaigns with a special focus is made. Moreover, the most important aspects of a communication plan as well as different methods for choosing a communication budget are described. Finally, the importance of EB controlling as well as suitable strategic and operative KPIs are shown.At the beginning of the practical part, an analysis of the initial situation as well as aquantitative market research with pupils in Austria and Slovenia was conducted in order to get representative knowledge about the expectations of Generation Z regarding their first employer. In consideration of the consequential implications,an employer brand positioning concept for ARIAN was developed and recommendations for the external communication as well as the EB controlling are given.

Saturated markets, especially in the food industry with a large number of competitorsand big players make it a highly competitive environment, particularly for start-ups. In order to be able to settle within the market and gain strength, it is necessary to have a unique selling proposition and competitive advantages to differentiate. Ingredient Branding offers this kind of advantage and is defined as the targeted marketing of aparticular component/ingredient of an end product. The aim of this thesis is to provide a guideline for the food start-up Spirulix to use ingredient branding to their advantage together with the already existing branding strategy. It should therefore identify success factors, possible risks, and general effects of the concept on the brand image. To answer the research questions qualitative research was carried out, interviewing food start-ups already using ingredient branding as a strategy. In total eleven interviews have been conducted with persons in charge of ingredient branding resulting in the position of either head of marketing, CEO, or founder. The research results revealed the following success factors: choice of partners, quality, competitive advantages, communication, and brand orientation. Furthermore, the risks for the ingredient brand described in the literature have been confirmed throughout the interviews, namely loss of control and negative spillover effects. Anyways, theinterviews could not prove the effects on the brand, as nearly no start-up made a market research or panel survey due to low budgets and a lack in personnel resources. In summary the literature research and the interviews point out the potential of ingredient branding for food start-ups and highlighted the positive impact it offers for start-ups in a highly competitive market.

The Austrian company B&R Industrial Automation GmbH, which is internationally doing business in the industrial goods sector, faces the problem that lead generation and qualification do not follow a strategically predefined process. In order to solve this challenge, an internationally integrated mar-keting communications concept for improving qualified lead generation was created within the framework of this master thesis. Firstly, an extensive literature review was conducted, focussing on gathering state-of-the-art information about the theme areas connected to that overall topic. Complementing the findings and insights from the current literature status quo, the implementation by comparable companies in reality was reviewed by conducting expert interviews in terms of the field research. With experienced employees from the marketing department in international industrial goods companies being the target group, insights indicated that integrated omnichannel communications and optimized lead management are considered to very different degrees in the sector. Ranging from best case companies to late developer firms, the sector is still rather conservative, which underlines the relevance of this topic for generating competitive advantages on the market. Based on the findings, the concept was then developed. Starting off with a secondary analysis of the marketing communications channels of B&R and three main competitors, improving the qualification of generated leads was defined as the main goal. With the target groups being clustered by subsector and position in the buying centre, campaigning as the central strategy for the channel deployment was selected. As research indicated the importance of trade fairs, the approach is putting these events in the centre of the campaign arrangement. By intensifying the usage of already existing channels as well as introducing new instruments and measures, all being aligned and coordinated through the integrated omnichannel approach, existing potential may be exploited profoundly. Against this backdrop, marketing automation builds the connection between communications and lead management. Additionally, a mixture of lead grading and scoring was planned in order to track the position of the generated leads in the funnel and highlight the perfect handover point. With KPIs being defined for each channel and measure specifically, comprehensive success monitoring was established. In the first phase, the concept focusses on the main fairs for B&R throughout the year due to the time horizon for adop-tion and set up of alterations, but after an amortisation phase, the concept may be implemented full-scale and for each international fair.

This master’s thesis deals with the development of a social media marketing concept for Vossen in order to increase Vossen’s brand awareness and online-turnover in the United Kingdom. The first chapter describes the characteristics of the home-textile industry by giving insights into the market size and trends.Afterwards, the customer journey is at the centre of the focus. Within this chapter,the term is defined, several customer journey models are presented, and theprocess of customer journey mapping is described. Subsequently, social media marketing is explained in detail. The chapter starts with the definition of social media and social media marketing, provides an overview of the most important objectives that can be achieved with social media marketing and clarifies the importance of content marketing within social media. Afterwards, the different kinds of social media channels such as social networks, media sharing platforms and blogs are explained, and channel selection criteria are presented. The chapter also provides a few insights into social media marketing in the UK and highlights the role of social media within the customer journey. Finally, the challenges and limitations and the controlling of social media activities conclude this chapter.The final chapter within the theoretical part of this thesis is the basis for the socialmedia marketing concept. It explains the most important elements of the analysisof the initial situation, deepens the understanding of social media objectives andexplains the analysis of the target group. Based on this knowledge, strategicdecisions are made, and the action plan is created. The required budget iscalculated based on the measures defined in the action plan and finally, controllingmeasures are implemented to control the success of the company’s social mediaactivities. The practical part starts with the analysis of the initial situation and a qualitative research where the author conducted interviews with 15 experts. Based on these insights and the author’s theoretical knowledge, the social media marketingconcept for Vossen was created.

In times of shortages of qualified and skilled employees, companies are required to position themselves attractively on the labour market in order to address relevant talents. Especially, when it comes to technical key positions, companies are experiencing a major challenge. The eagerness of today’s employees to build resumes and their confidence in their abilities lead to the situation of having applicants choosing their employer instead of vice versa. The increasing level of competition among companies results in the necessity of branding not only the company and its products and services but also the firm as an employer. Energie Steiermark AG is among Austria’s biggest energy and service suppliers and finds itself right in the middle of the war for talents. Hence, the business decided to set a focus on the elaboration of an employer brand and the attractive positioning of the company on the labour market. In order to do so, Energie Steiermark AG needs an employer branding concept with a clearly defined employer value proposition. Hence, the objectives of this thesis are to develop an employer branding concept for Energie Steiermark AG and to recommend target-group oriented measures. The first part of this thesis provides the theoretical base for the development of an employer branding concept and discusses relevant terms, different models and strategies. In order to develop an employer branding concept addressing the company’s proposed target group, a quantitative online questionnaire was conducted. It was aimed to investigate in the target groups expectations regarding employer attributes as well as their preferred channels for information-seeking activities. Within the practical section, the focus was set on the development of the employer branding concept for Energie Steiermark AG. Relevant recommendations for action and measures to strengthen their position as a preferred employer are proposed. Hence, strategic, internal and external measures are provided in order to increase the number of qualitative and initiative applications. The results lead to the assumption that Energie Steiermark AG satisfies all relevant desires of its target group concerning employer attributes and is therefore, situated well for the elaboration of an attractive employer brand.

The present Master Thesis deals with the development of a brand identity concept and a guideline for the external brand identity implementation for the market-leading telecommunication company Commend International GmbH, based in Salzburg, Austria. The aim of the company is to get a clearly stated brand identity based on the perception of the strongest corporate markets Austria, Germany and United Kingdom. A sub goal is to anchor this brand identity in the minds of existing and new customers. The aim of the Master Thesis is to develop this brand identity as well as an external implementation guideline. The present work is divided into three segments. The first segment presents the initial situation, the problems and challenges, the goals and the literary frame of reference of the work. The second segment is the theoretical background of the work. It provides the basis for the third, practical part and focuses on brand management, brand identity and external communication. Here, the terminology is defined, the high-tech sector is presented, and the effects and challenges of international identity-based brand management are presented. The third chapter deals with the presentation of relevant brand identity approaches, the critical comparison of these and the decision for the most suitable concept for the further course of the present work. External communications and brand controlling are presented and discussed in the last chapters of the theoretical part. After a detailed analysis of the global intercom market and the initial situation, the conducted market research is presented in the practical section. Taking the re-search results into account, an identity-based brand steering wheel was developed in a joint workshop with the company management and the author of the present work. The way in which this developed brand identity can be implemented and controlled across selected communication channels, is finally presented in the external communication guideline as practical recommendations for Commend International’s management.

ANDRITZ AG is an international technology group providing plants, systems, equipment, and services for various industries. The company is one of the globalmarket leaders in the hydropower business, the pulp and paper industry, the metalworking and steel industries, and in solid/liquid separation in the municipal and industrial segments. The market ANDRITZ AG is operating in is a highly competitive, fragmented and mature market. As business-to-business customers start demanding a better experience, leading companies increasingly put customer experience at the heart of their strategies. In order to make buying for customers easier and create unique customer experiences, marketers need to understand the customers’ purchase journey and identify the most significant customer challenges at each touchpoint throughout their path-topurchase. Touchpoints are the moments of truth: whether customers buy as well as whether they will be loyal is decided at the touchpoints of a company. For this reason, the Pumps division of ANDRITZ AG aims to identify and evaluate the for customers relevant touchpoints, to be able to optimize marketing resource allocation per touchpoint and improve touchpoint effectiveness, to ultimately increase the number of new customers. For this purpose, within the framework of this thesis a touchpoint evaluation tool is developed to provide the ANDRITZ AG Pumps division with a touchpoint evaluation from the customer perspective, allowing to derive action recommendations for the future management of the touchpoints identified. For the evaluation of touchpoints, at least four dimensions need to be examined from the customer point of view: touchpoint awareness, touchpoint importance, touchpoint quality and the touchpoint impact on decision-making. As a basis for the touchpoint evaluation, a primary research was conducted directly involving customers, to find out how they perceive selected touchpoints which were identified in an internal analysis before. As a result, it turned out that the contact to sales representatives is the most important touchpoint and critical moment of truthregarding its influence on purchase decisions throughout all phases of the examinedindustrial customer journey. As personal contact is key, the development of the sales and service team is therefore a critical success factor for the creation of a unique customer experience along industrial customers’ path-to-purchase. As other important touchpoints were mainly online touchpoints, investments in the optimization of the company’s online presence are furthermore suggested.

Social media has become a major part of everyday life over the past decade.Social media connects people worldwide and serves as both a means ofcommunication and a source of information. The constant increase in users andcommunication options opens up completely new opportunities for companies to obtain information about target groups and to communicate with them.Of particular interest to companies is the Millennial generation. This generation is one of the top users of Social Media and will develop into a generation with enormous purchasing power in the next few years. In order to successfully connect to this generation on Social Media, it is indispensable for companies to understand this generation and their behaviour on Social Media. Despite many existing research on Millennials and Social Media, there are hardly any scientific findings about the gender-specific differences in the usage behaviour of Millennials with content on Social Media. Based on this background, this master thesis aims to identify where these genderspecific differences can be found and how companies can use these insights for their marketing purposes. Based on the findings of theoretical section of this thesis, certain hypotheses were formulated, which were checked for their empirical durability. In addition, further assumptions regarding the gender-specific differences of the Millennials on Social Media were empirically examined in order to maximize the findings for companies. The results of the survey show that in some areas there are slightly significant gender-specific differences, but in most cases less significant differences are found.Based on the results of this thesis, a list of recommended actions for companies to optimize their Social Media marketing activities for the generation of Millennials were given.

The war for talent increasingly affects high-tech companies. Businesses need to stand out as attractive employers to win the war for technical personnel in particular. This trend also influences high-tech company Anton Paar. Given its continuous growth, Anton Paar needs to recruit a large number of technical sales experts in the USA in the coming years. The goal of this thesis is to support Anton Paar in building an employer brand to position the company as an attractive employer globally and as an employer of choice for technical sales experts in the USA. The theoretical section of this thesis focuses on topics that influence employer branding, such as international human resource management and employer choice. Moreover, it includes the key aspects of employer branding and relevant definitions. The theoretical part is concluded by the development of an employer brand positioning concept. Theory shows that employer branding is targeted not only to existing employees but also to the external target group of potential applicants. Employer branding needs to address both target groups. The practical section is based on the analysis of the external and internal factors that influence the development of the positioning concept for the employer brand Anton Paar. Moreover, the preferences of technical sales experts in the USA and existing Anton Paar employees are investigated in two quantitative surveys. The findings from the analyses and surveys are then used to define the employer value proposition (EVP) for the entire Anton Paar Group and a sub-EVP for technical sales experts in the USA. Anton Paar symbolises “stability” and “long-term orientation”, two attributes that distinguish the company from the competition. This characterisation is highlighted in the global employer brand positioning. The sub-positioning for technical sales experts focuses on the fields of “innovative spirit” and “development prospects”. Based on the theoretical and practical sections, recommendations for the implementation of the concept are provided at the end of the thesis. These recommendations would help Anton Paar to implement the positioning concept and anchor the employer brand internally and externally.

Family businesses (FBs) are fascinating creations of the business world. And not only that - with a turnover of around 616 billion euros and more than 2.92 million employees, FBs are by close definition (without sole proprietors) extremely important for the Austrian economy. Also the developments on social and technological levels are fascinating. Flexible working arrangements, digitalization, demographic change and much more bring fundamental changes to framework conditions, and especially in the field of leadership. In FBs, also endogenous factors have a major effect, which could constitute a challenge for the leaders.The present work focuses on the cooperative leadership style and the exogenous and endogenous factors that influence this leadership style, as it has been shown that cooperative leadership is best equipped to overcome the challenges of a changing market. Nevertheless, only 24.3% of leaders in Styrian FBs apply the cooperative leadership style. Consequently, a model that visualizes this leadership style and its influencing factors is developed. In the created model, these factors are illustrated with the aim to achieve awareness of their importance for cooperative leadership exclusively. In addition, a tool that supports leaders by raising awareness of their applied leadership style and by giving recommendations for cooperative leadership is created. The theoretical part of this thesis includes the characteristics of FBs, the leadership styles, especially the advantages and disadvantages of the cooperative leadership style and the exogenous and endogenous influencing factors. It eventually results in the creation of the model of cooperative leadership and the development of the concept for a tool for leaders in FBs. The practical part is based on a qualitative and quantitative survey to verify the influencing factors, determine the leadership styles in Styrian FBs and to evaluate the created model and the concept of the tool on their potential support for leaders in FBs. Based on the findings, the model and the concept of the tool are refined. The results of this thesis are a model of cooperative leadership that creates awareness of this leadership style and its influencing factors and a tool that supports leaders by raising awareness of their actual leadership style and by giving recommendations on how to come to a cooperative leadership style. This can be immediately applied to capture the leadership style with one click.

This master thesis has developed a market selection model for the comprehensive assessment and analysis of markets for sustainable packaging solutions. The goal was to create a model characterized by simple handling, attractive design and flexible adjustment possibilities. The theoretical part of the thesis deals with different influencing factors from the areas of internationalization, model conception and selection of criteria. The focus lies on the characteristics of B2B markets as well as market requirements for sustainable product solutions. The model construction as well as the instrument selection are supposed to ensure the greatest flexibility possible in order to analyse a high number of alternatives efficiently as well as to analyse a small number of alternatives precisely. To ensure the operational viability of the model, a large number of potential assessment criteria were identified and summarized in a list thus completing the theoretical part of the thesis. After compiling the model, experts from both the fruit and vegetable sector were consulted in empirical interviews. These interviews and their findings were used in order to evaluate the selected criteria according to their importance. Additionally, they proved to be very helpful for the final optimization of the model. After development had been completed, the model was first applied on a real market selection. The goal was to define three target markets for the forthcoming expansion of the Verpackungszentrum GmbH, a packaging manufacturer from Austria. A total of 21 European countries were analysed on the basis of 16 criteria in order to determine the best alternatives possible. Eventually, three countries, which were comprehensively analysed and found compatible to the company's requirements, were selected. Through the results of the analysis as well as further recommendations, the functionality and the practical applicability of the model was proven perfectly.

Due to the progressive digitalization of the media market, the commitment to expand the classical media portfolio by creating digital positions is essential. STYRIA Media Group AG as traditional media house is extending its market to exploit new digital business opportunities. The company has already managed the successful digitalization of parts of the core business of media houses, namely classifieds and brochure supplements. By establishing digital marketplaces, they have secured a dominant position in their core markets. Now they see a great opportunity in the internationalization of their successful business models. As STYRIA does not have a standardized tool which can be applied in a systematic country selection process to evaluate potential new international markets, the aim of this master thesis is to develop a branch specific country selection model. As STYRIA distinguishes between classifieds and best buy portals, for each, one model was developed tailored to the particularities of digital marketplaces. Within the theoretical part of this thesis, an initial analysis concerning the internationalization of media companies, the characteristics of media industry and digital marketplaces was made. The focus was placed on influencing factors regarding model conception and country selection criteria. As a result, a theoretical model was created. The considerations concerning model conception in the sense of method approach and criteria selection needed to be reviewed within an empirical research. A special focus was placed on the generation of branch specific country selection criteria for classifieds and best buy portals, as to date, they can not be found in literature. Explorative interviews helped gaining comprehensive and individual factual information concerning this relatively unknown research issue. The subsequent tailored country selection models were then applied in practice. They were designed as multi-stage models which enable a systematic tracking down, identifying the most promising foreign countries. The models are set up as Excel tools and can be used for filtering a large amount of potential countries or for evaluating single countries as well. As the models must be applicable to open problem structures and evaluate fast-changing market circumstances, flexible adjustment possibilities are given. Within a usability cross-check, the functionality and handling was reviewed. Therefore, four countries were analysed. By putting the models into practice, it was found that the models show validity and an efficient handling and go-through of a complex process. Finally, the developed models were reflected critically and recommendations for the next steps regarding the implementation as a systematic process respectively the application at STYRIA Media Group are given.

Die A1 Telekom Austria AG ist in Österreich tätig und mit ca. 8.500 Mitarbeiterinnen und Mitarbeitern sowie 2,5 Milliarden Euro an Umsatzerlösen (2015) marktführend im Festnetz-, Mobilfunk- und Internet- bzw. Data-Markt. Aufgrund der starken Sättigung des Telekommunikationsmarktes wurde der Fokus des Unternehmens auf den Vertrieb von ICT-Services im Bereich IT-Security gerichtet, da sich hier Aussichten auf ein profitables Wachstum bieten. Bei der Bearbeitung dieses Marktes bestehen zum einen Wettbewerbsnachteile im Vergleich zum relevanten Wettbewerb. Zum anderen muss jede Vertriebsmitarbeiterin bzw. jeder Vertriebsmitarbeiter alle Produkte und Dienstleistungen aus dem breiten A1-Portfolio verkaufen, was dazu führt, dass nur flaches Produkt-Know-how aufgebaut werden kann. Diese Situation in Kombination mit ambitionierten Wachstumszielen stellt das Unternehmen vor eine Herausforderung. Um dieser Herausforderung zu begegnen, benötigt die A1 Telekom Austria AG ein Vertriebskonzept mit Fokus auf Cross-Selling, welches sämtliche vertriebsrelevanten Spezifika und Maßnahmen für Verkaufsaktivitäten innerhalb des Bestandskundenstammes im Zielmarkt enthält. Dafür wurden im theoretischen Teil der Arbeit die wesentlichen Besonderheiten des Vertriebs von Dienstleistungen an Großunternehmen ausgearbeitet. Des Weiteren wurde tiefgehend auf das Thema Cross-Selling eingegangen, um die daraus gewonnenen Erkenntnisse für das anschließend konstruierte Vertriebskonzept für Cross-Selling berücksichtigen zu können und sämtliche Bereiche, die für den Praxisteil der Arbeit relevant sind, aufzubereiten. Im Praxisteil wurden 15 Bestandskunden der Zielgruppe aus der Region Südösterreich zu EntscheiderInnenstrukturen und Bewertungskriterien von IT-Security-Dienstleistern befragt. Auf Basis der Auswertung dieser Interviews wurde eine Situationsanalyse durchgeführt. Darauf gründend wurden die wesentlichen Ergebnisse dargestellt und in einer integrierten SWOT-Matrix zusammengefasst. Abschließend wurden die Kernaussagen und Erkenntnisse aus dem Theorie- und Praxisteil zusammengeführt und auf ein auf die A1 Telekom Austria AG abgestimmtes Vertriebskonzept mit Fokus auf Cross-Selling aus dem Kerngeschäft in den ITSecurity-Bereich, inklusive Handlungsempfehlungen zur Erreichung der Ziele im ITSecurity Markt, angewandt.

Due to the company's limited resources, the Franz Janschitz Ltd pursues an indirect distribution strategy on an international level. Despite some contract partners, there is neither a concept nor a marketing or sales system that support the company to retain its sales partners. The objective of this thesis is to support the Franz Janschitz Ltd to establish a positive long-term oriented business relationship with its sales partners. In order to achieve this objective, a partner retention concept is developed. As the present master thesis shows, there are many possibilities for a company to retain a sales partner. As it can already be seen at the beginning, the content of this thesis deals exclusively with the aspects of the B2B market, focusing on the traffic safety industry. To start a business relationship, an appropriate business partner has to be selected. Supporting this selection process, relevant key criteria for the decision on a B2B partner are defined in the first chapters of this thesis. Following the brief introduction in the B2B market, all stages influencing the development of partner retention are identified. It aims to determine all trigger points and obstacles which have to be considered when developing a long-lasting business relationship. Following the functional chain, the thesis illustrates instruments, measures and strategies for the establishment of long-term partner relationships. Although there are positive and negative approaches for a company to retain the sales partner, the thesis outlines that a long-term business relationship can only be developed through positive attitudes. As the results of this thesis show, the idea of retaining sales partners only with marketing instruments can be rejected relatively quickly. The empirical results show that the basis of all B2B relationships is the product of a company, its services as well as a competitive market price. In addition to that, the so-called "social skills" are determined as essential success factors when it comes to the sustainability of a B2B relationship. Finally, the most important measures for the company are summarized in the author's recommendations.

The importance of internal communication increased within the last years, especially between sales employees. Lack of internal communication leads to loss of sales potential, decreased productivity, and unused synergy possibilities. By improving this situation a higher employee satisfaction as well as higher revenues can be achieved. The Styria Media Group AG is one of the leading media groups in Austria, Croatia, and Slovenia. Due to a decentralised organisation of the different international firms of the group, internal communication among sales employees is lacking. This leads to the fact that salespeople are not aware of products offered by other firms of the group. The group demands measures for increasing the number of international internal projects and to enhance the employee satisfaction among international sales employees. Furthermore, sales employees’ knowledge about the corporate values defined within the “Styria First Strategy” should be increased. The main target of this master thesis is the development of an international internal communication concept for the Styria Media Group AG with a special focus on international sales employees. For this purpose, a profound analysis of existing literature identified steps that have to be considered within a communication concept. Moreover, a primary market research including a qualitative and a quantitative survey were executed in order to gain insights into the current internal communication situation among sales employees. Within the practical part of the master thesis, a concept for the international internal communication is prepared based on the results of the primary research. This concept comprises recommendations for the organisational integration, the definition of communication targets, important internal target groups, the strategy definition, and the preparation of core messages. In addition, within the operational planning phase, suggestions for an international internal communication mix, an action plan, considerations for the timing of each measure, budgeting and recommendations for controlling are given.

Since 1994 Peeroton has been providing sports nutrition products and expert advice to professional athletes and lifestyle users alike. In Austria they enjoy a differentiated position by offering nutritional supplements in addition to acting as a health manager giving support to their customers. After having crossed the border into the German market, Peeroton has now set its sights on the Australian sports nutrition market to enable further international growth. This master thesis deals with the development of the positioning for Peeroton in the Australian sports food market while focusing on the communication. The first part of the thesis provides the theoretical base for the positioning. It starts off with a look at launching a brand while discussing the particularities of foreign markets as well as the sports industry. It then outlines the aspects of positioning including the selection of a suitable strategy – taking into account models by Esch as well as Ries and Trout – and the development of ideas. Next it focuses on the communication as part of launching a brand and examines, among other aspects, the different instruments and the integration of the communication as well as the communication budget before discussing the positioning controlling. The practical part begins with an analysis of the Australian market which then provides a base for the primary research conducted by the author of the thesis through a quantitative online survey. The results of the primary research are then evaluated and illustrated. Based on the theoretical information as well as the market analysis and the primary research, the positioning concept for Peeroton was developed. It contains the objectives and a positioning strategy which then lead to six different positioning alternatives and a recommendation for one alternative that is most suitable for Peeroton in the Australian market. This is then followed up by a communication strategy to best implement the positioning as well as a way to oversee the controlling of the measures in the new market.

The theoretical and practical aspects of the internationalisation of small companies and the market entrance into the American Beauty and Personal Care industry are presented in this thesis. This thesis aims to create a market entry concept for Luxury Cosmetics Ltd, a Croatian beauty company based in the coastal city of Rijeka. The company hopes to grow its operations outside of Europe using the sugar paste brand called Cleopatra Professional. As a result, the concept focuses on the beauty and personal care industry in the United States and the internationalisation of small and medium-sized enterprises. Additionally, the aim of the thesis is to select the most appropriate market entry mode and communication activities that accompany the entry mode. To acquire further information, a secondary and primary research were conducted based on the literature. In the primary research, eight experts in the field of internationalisation and seven experts in the field of communication participated in the study. The market entry concept is based on the literature and findings of the primary and secondary market research. It follows the phases that are established in strategic marketing and provides recommendations on the chosen market entry mode and the communication activities. The findings in this thesis show that the most appropriate market entry mode would be direct export in form of distributors.

Due to increasing globalisation and the growing trade volume associated with it, many companies are forced to develop internationally and enter new markets. An international market entry can lead to the desired success of many companies. However, this is associated with risks and costs. Especially for small companies, this step is very daring and presents them with great challenges due to their lack of international experience. Therefore, it is crucial to plan an international market entry well and to develop a systematic market entry concept, which includes a detailed analysis and planning phase, as well as a subsequent implementation and control phase. In the context of this master thesis, a market entry of small and medium-sized enterprises into the clothing market, both in theory and practice, is examined. The aim is to develop a market entry concept for the FoF OG, which wants to enter the Israeli market with the clothing brand Bolao. After the most important findings for developing a market entry concept have been presented by means of extensive literature research, the practical part is based on a qualitative market analysis. For this purpose, 15 expert interviews were conducted with experienced people in the Israeli clothing industry, by companies that have already entered the Israeli market, and with representatives of Footvolley Israel. The experts confirmed the theoretical findings that for a small company like the FoF OG, with few financial and human resources, as well as a lack of access to the Israeli market, direct exporting via a local distributer is the most advisable market entry mode. In this context, it is relevant to find a trustworthy partner in the Israeli market on a long-term basis. In addition, due to increasing competition, it is important to enter the Israeli market as soon as possible in order to position Bolao right in the market and to increase the brand awareness in Israel. For this purpose, a partnership with a footvolley school should be established and a cooperation with local footvolley teams should be started. To achieve the company’s objectives, the branding of a footvolley arena, the translation of Bolao’s website into Hebrew and the targeting of potential customers via social media should be realised. Furthermore, it is a major goal to establish the Bolao Bonus programme on the Israeli market.

As the elderly population is constantly growing, the functional decline of elderly people constitutes a major concern within the global health care industry. Especially the Republic of North Macedonia is struggling with one of the highest growth rates in Europe but lacks in the provision of appropriate public care services for older adults. Therefore, the Red Cross of the Republic of North Macedonia aims to close this gap by offering a novel Personal Emergency Response Service (PERS), providing rapid medical help in emergency situations. In relation to this, a new brand should be established, positioning the new service as market leader and, concomitantly, fostering an increased brand awareness within the local population. As a result, this thesis presents a brand building concept for the new PERS service brand, containing six main steps as follows: 1. Preliminary market research including the situation analysis and primary research illustrating the basis for further strategic considerations 2. Definition of brand identity and strategic brand values 3. Definition of strategic brand positioning including the development of a new positioning category as basis for the market leadership position 4. Implementation of brand positioning through the creation of brand name, brand logo, slogan as well as evaluation of relevant brand touchpoints 5. Derivation of integrated communication measures including the selection of instruments as well as recommendations for actions summarized within an integrated communication plan 6. Establishment of controlling instruments to measure the concept’s success. The concept has been established by theoretical brand management principles and has afterwards been complemented by results from qualitative primary research containing relevant expert inputs on the given topic. In summary, the brand building concept follows a low-cost and step-by-step approach, focusing on building the brand with trusted PR and word-of-mouth measures, implementing advertising only at a later stage. Furthermore, it puts an emphasis on the visual connection to the Red Cross brand to leverage from its positive image and trust towards the organization, which comes right after the most central customer need of feeling safe at all times – the most central criteria for the establishment of the PERS service brand.

Today, companies steadily try to consider latest trends affecting the business and industry in order to grow and make profits. Unfortunately, they often forget to keep an eye on trends regarding internal communication. Often it is also the main area for which companies want to save expenses, albeit internal communication is very important to make employees communicate and collaborate. Furthermore, it is a central business function that is needed to get things done by indirectly influencing the company’s external image and reputation. Accordingly, it is essential to carry out research and develop an international internal communication concept for a company’s positive change. Having said that, the present master thesis deals with the elaboration of internal communication by outlining its significance and possibilities. As a wide range of instruments is already offered, it is vital for companies to know which communication instruments and tools can be applied for which purpose, and, additionally, to provide what internal stakeholders require. Even for an international active company the right choice of its communication activities can determine its long-term success, because this affects the way employees from different locations work together. In this context, new media and new technologies become more and more important to ensure a state-of-the-art working environment that turns into a more digital and social place. As a result, the thesis focuses on social intranets as collaborative internal communication tools. These platforms allow businesses to increase interaction and productivity by promoting efficient two-way communication. They support to redesign communication structure, reduce unnecessary correspondence and provide everything from one-source in real-time. However, various differences in terms of culture, language, etc. influence and determine a company’s internal communication. Although the requirements from company and user end may vary a lot, the main research results show that the commissioning company’s internal stakeholders are open for change and willing to use a social intranet to improve its situation. Thus, the primary dots are connected by developing an international internal communication concept with a focus on social intranets for RECOM. It provides an explanation as to how the company can achieve its communication goals making corporate life easier.

Companies have to continuously focus on innovation in order to survive. Especially in the software industry it is important to do so due to rapid technological change and shorter product life cycles. To guarantee the success of an innovation, a structured innovation process is needed. In addition, it is recommended to integrate marketing from the beginning in order to ensure that customer and market orientation are being considered and incorporated throughout the entire innovation process. The aim of this master thesis is to elaborate a marketing-oriented software innovation process. Therefore, the theoretical part deals with the structure of an innovation process and how marketing can contribute to the different phases of an innovation process. The structure of an innovation process needs to be able to respond to company-specific factors. This is the reason why four process approaches are valid for the software industry. These are the spiral model, the Stage-Gate process, the V-Model, and the waterfall model. Currently, the marketing department of AVL´s business unit Advanced Simulation Technologies (AST) is solely involved at the end of the innovation process by creating marketing material for the promotion of the software release. To discover how the AST marketing department can support the different phases of an innovation process from the idea generation to the software release, 15 individual explorations with employees from international software companies are carried out. These interviewees also provide insights into their organization’s innovation process. The outcome of these explorations serves as a basis for an internal focus group in which selected AST employees are asked to share their opinion about how the AST marketing department could be integrated in the different phases of the innovation process. As a next step, a marketing-oriented innovation process must be defined for AST. Therefore, it is discovered which of the four mentioned innovation processes is most likely to integrate marketing from the beginning and to fulfill further process criteria. As a result, a recommended innovation process as well as marketing tasks for the different phases of the selected process are introduced.

Countries in the Asian Pacific region are increasingly attractive for companies to do business with, especially China. However, just because companies enter specific markets does not necessarily mean that these countries are also potential markets for other companies. The Asian Pacific market consists of various countries that could be potential markets. In order to select the market with the highest potential among these countries, a structured market selection process is essential. LOGICDATA finds itself at this point. It has already preselected three potential markets, Japan, China, and Australia. However, the organization can only enter one of these markets due to the availability of resources. Additionally, LOGICDATA does not have enough market intelligence in these countries to choose the most promising market independently. Therefore, the objective of this Master’s Thesis is the elaboration of a B2B market selection concept for the company LOGICDATA, in relation to its aims of entering the APAC region. The market selection concept is based on a one-stage market selection method. This means that all three countries are screened based on the same criteria and to the same extent. This method is especially appropriate when the number of potential countries is small. In contrast, if a company considers more than five countries, a multistage method is better-suited to market selection. In order to compare the different markets, it is necessary to define relevant market selection criteria related to market attractiveness, market barriers to entry, and market risk. Throughout this thesis, secondary market research is performed for collecting the required market data, which serves as a basis for the evaluation of each country. Furthermore, expert interviews are conducted to gain additional information and verify the findings of the secondary research. The comparison of the three preselected countries resulted an outcome that was not beyond doubt. Japan and Australia achieved a similar score, which meant that a clear recommendation on which market to enter was not possible. Nevertheless, the thesis includes derived recommendations for LOGICDATA, including which further actions are necessary in order to select the market with the highest potential.

The fast-moving era of digitalisation has changed people’s behaviour but also economy and many businesses in the whole world. In fact entering a new market or establishing a new business online is nowadays much easier and more efficiently than in the past but of course also more competitive. A-WARE is a start-up based in Austria offering natural protein made of hemp. Currently the company is only operating in Austria. Their products are available in the own online shop and in selected premium stores but the company wants to digitally exploit new markets across the borders of Austria and as a consequence increase revenue. Due to the fact that the United Kingdom is an attractive market for sports nutrition and superfood, the company has determined the UK as a new target market for 2019. Therefore the aim of this thesis is to develop a B2C digital communication concept to boost international direct online sales with a special focus on the UK. For this purpose, a profound analysis of literature has been carried out and the newest insights regarding digital communication as well as contents of a digital communication concept have been elaborated. The author also found out important success factors in digital communication and the most efficient marketing tools to acquire new visitors from abroad. Furthermore secondary and primary market research has been conducted in order to validate the findings in theory but also to gain more insights from experts to be able to elaborate a digital communication concept. Within the practical part of this master thesis, a digital communication concept on the example of A-WARE has been developed. It comprises a situation analysis, communication objectives, the personas, strategy and of course the most efficient online activities to attract new visitors from the UK. Furthermore it consists of valuable recommendations, a budgeting plan and appropriate key performance indicators in order to be able to control the digital communication activities.

The Baumschule Steiner GmbH is a family owned nursery situated in Hochburg-Ach in Upper Austria. The nursery was founded in 1989. From the beginning they focused on a production of high quality plants. The company has been exporting for over 25 years and has now an export quote of 18%. Today the family cultivates hedge and heath plants on six hectares. For a successful future they know that it is important to stay innovative and curious. Hermann Steiner, the chief executive officer, is constantly looking for new opportunities to generate sustainable growth. The latest product extension, the ilex crenata Robustico, has been successfully launched to the Austrian market. Based on this, the company wants to introduce this box substitute to the United Kingdom. The aim of this master thesis is to support the Austrian nursery in its internationalisation process. This thesis provides a concept to enter the horticultural market of the United Kingdom successfully. The main aspects of the theoretical section are the market entry as a small and medium sized enterprise, the selection of the entry mode, and the communication during the market entry. First, the characteristics of a small and medium sized enterprise during their internationalisation are determined. Based on this, different market entry concepts are described and the most suitable market entry concept is selected. Ultimately, a closer look is taken at the entry mode decision as well as the designing of the global marketing programme with the focus on communication. To gain further information, a secondary and a primary research were conducted in the practical part. During the primary research eight experts in the field of internationalisation, as well as seven experts in the field of the horticultural industry in the United Kingdom were interviewed. The findings of the secondary research and the opinion of the experts were combined for the market entry concept of Baumschule Steiner GmbH. It consists of recommendations on the selected entry mode, recommendations on the communication, and an action plan. The last part of this master thesis contains further recommendations on the marketing mix, as well as on the implementation.

Nowadays, more and more companies are forced to internationalise due to the increasing globalisation and the need to remain competitive. Especially for small firms, an international expansion could lead to cost savings and the establishment of greater know-how and competencies. However, many firms fail in going international due to a poor entry planning. Thus, companies have to consider the importance of a well-developed market entry concept, which requires a thorough analysis, planning, implementation and control phase. In this master thesis, the market entry of small-scale enterprises in the British software market will, on both a theoretical and practical level, be investigated. The thesis aims to develop a market entry concept for Koerbler GmbH, a small Austrian web agency situated in the south of Styria. Based on one already existing customer in the UK, the company wants to expand its business there by entering the British software market with its CRM software brand KundenMeister. Therefore, this concept focuses on SMEs, the B2B sector as well as on the UK software market. In order to gain greater insights into the UK business environment, 15 qualitative expert interviews with internationalisation institutions, B2B/service companies already entered the UK market, and with companies selling their software in the UK are carried out. A comparison of theory and practice suggests that due to great cultural differences in the business etiquette of Austria and the UK as well as the limited financial and personnel resources of Koerbler, the company should enter the UK market via direct export by using a distributor. Furthermore, the highly competitive market area requires a so-called ‘verticalisation’ of the firm’s CRM software by focusing on specific industry sectors, which are in the case of Koerbler the consultancy and health sector. Thus, target groups of the firm are primarily distribution partners, but also SMEs operating in those industries. In order to differentiate from other CRM software firms, Koerbler GmbH should position itself as solution-oriented and dynamic company in the UK market. This positioning should be emphasised by defining a stellar USP that is communicated uniformly across all means. In this context, communication instruments suitable for the UK are personnel selling, a website with .co.uk domain, trade fairs and social media, in particular LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Finally, as a certain level of trust is needed in UK business deals, branding, references and building up a wide network of partners are necessary entry measures.

Every customer contact at each customer touchpoint impacts the customer’s experience in a positive or a negative way. Due to the internet and social media the number of these touchpoints reached a new peak. Simultaneously, there is a shift in consumer behaviour. Consumers are more connected than ever and actively build communities which are strongly influenced by opinion leaders who play an especially crucial role in the fashion industry. Consequently, the provision of a seamless and consistent customer journey is essential in order to devote financial as well as personal resources to touchpoints preferably used by a company’s target audience. This is especially crucial for companies like New One who want to intensify their business within the UK market, the most developed online retail market within Europe. Based on these facts, this master thesis deals with the elaboration of an online customer experience concept for New One with focus on the UK market. The initial chapters of the following thesis illustrate characteristics of both ecommerce as well as the fashion industry. Thereby, current e-commerce trends, characteristics of an online fashion shopper as well as fashion shopping motives are highlighted before explaining the fundamentals of online customer experience management. Subsequently, all covered topics are theoretically combined in an online customer experience concept. As a next step, a detailed situation analysis including an empirical study is executed to gain culture specific knowledge as well as information about the target group’s online shopping habits and preferences. Results show that the target group has high expectations regarding usability standards and tends to impulsive shopping behaviour as well as variety seeking. Additionally, it shares rather masculine and individualistic values and is open to new technology. These findings lead to the elaboration of multiple key online customer journey constellations used within fashion industry. Taking this information into account an online customer experience concept for New One with focus on the UK market is developed which defines the company’s online customer experience strategy and recommended online customer experience actions.