How do fashion brands advertise sustainability? And does it really affect brand equity? : An empirical study on Adidas advertising on Instagram  

Abstract: This paper examines how social- and environmental sustainability is advertised on Instagram and how it in turn affects consumer-based brand equity. Firstly, a latent content analysis was conducted on Adidas Instagram account, @adidas, to gain insights on how they use sustainability in their advertising through their Instagram posts. The findings revealed how Adidas explicitly advertise sustainability, both social- and environmental sustainability on their Instagram account. However, the analysis displayed a higher focus on social issues compared to initiatives to facilitate environmental sustainability. Secondly, Adidas Instagram was analyzed with the use of insights from interviews, to capture how its sustainability efforts affect consumers and thereby brand equity. The findings demonstrate the importance of taking the consumer perspective into account to positively affect the dimensions included within brand equity through social media, and to not miss out on the favorable outcomes of sustainability advertising. Accordingly, the research offers concrete knowledge on how sustainability can be advertised on social media by fashion brands, and its effect on brand equity. An area that has highly been neglected among previous researchers. The study contributes to valuable knowledge on how brands, in a generally unsustainable industry, could demonstrate their sustainability efforts in advertising to foster sustainable consumption among consumers into a more sustainable future.