The female consumers’ perceptions and expectations of clothing companies’ social media presence : A qualitative study on what perceptions and expectations female students have on clothing companies, on the social media channels Instagram and Facebook

Abstract: Abstract In today’s society, clothing companies and their consumers have an increased presence on social media where they interact with each other in different ways. This relatively new kind of interaction can have many advantages for both clothing companies and consumers. It makes it possible for the clothing companies to meet their consumers on the consumers’ home ground, and for the consumers to interact with the clothing companies. How the presence of clothing companies on social media is perceived among the consumers and whether or not this is in line with what the consumers’ expect from companies’ presence on social media, is still not completely developed. To help the clothing companies to increase their knowledge about their consumers’ needs and what they expect of the clothing companies while being present on social media, the intention is to answer the following research question: “What are the female consumers’ perceptions and expectations of the Facebook & Instagram usage by clothing companies?” The purpose with this degree project is to increase the understanding of how consumers perceive and expect clothing companies to act toward them on the social media channels Facebook and Instagram, in order to satisfy their needs. We aim to specifically explain how clothing companies’ are perceived on the social media channels Facebook and Instagram, based on consumers’ experiences of clothing companies’ activities. Furthermore, we aim to provide insight into what consumers expect from a presence of clothing companies on Facebook and Instagram. With this, we want to help the clothing companies to create a better relationship between them and their consumers on Facebook and Instagram. In this explorative study, a qualitative sampling method has been used. The data collection consists of 8 semi structured in-depth interviews of female students at Umeå university. The biggest reasons for why the female consumers perceive that clothing companies have an online presence is to: Act as a source of information, communicate and socialize with their consumers and to create value by being more available. They furthermore expect clothing companies on Facebook to provide their consumers with: To make it more comfortable/easy to shop online, act as a source of information and to communicate and socialize with consumers. On Instagram the female consumers perceived that clothing companies’ want to have a presence to: Be a part of the consumer’s everyday life, reach the consumer in a relaxed way, communicate and socialize with consumers. On Instagram, the consumers expect clothing companies’ presence for: To reach the consumer in a relaxed way, make it more comfortable/easy to shop online, create value by being more available. These activities taken into consideration will increase the understanding for clothing companies’ online presence and lead to a better relationship between the clothing companies and their female consumers. The study contributes with new theoretical knowledge about the consumer’s perspective on clothing companies on social media. Our findings show that previous recommendations regarding how companies should try to act on social media is too general, and needs to be applied based on consumer preferences, needs and the specific social media channel. The empirical contribution are the reasons that the consumers expect clothing companies to have for being present on Facebook and Instagram.