Personal Brands

Abstract: Title: Personal Brands: The Interplay of Offline and Online Scenes Date of the Seminar: June 5th, 2019 Course: BUSN39: Degree project in global marketing Authors: Melissa Cetino & Johanna Karlsson Supervisor: Veronika Tarnovskaya Keywords: Personal Branding, Brand Essence, Online & Offline Channels, Interplay, Layers of Personal Brands Thesis Purpose: The purpose of this Master Thesis was to dive deep into the phenomenon of personal branding by answering the research question of how individuals interrelate online and offline scenes when expressing their personal brand. Theoretical Perspective: A conceptual framework was developed based on previous research, which displays the connection between the different personal branding environments. Methodology: To follow the philosophical view of the study, a qualitative study was conducted. The researchers relied upon interviews and snowball sampling strategies in order to collect the empirical material. Empirical Data: Seven individuals knowledgeable in personal branding and with personal brands of their own were interviewed. Criteria were developed in order for individuals to participate in this research, which included aspects such as residence location and age. Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that the interplay of online and offline channels in personal branding expression is of vital importance. This as it is impossible to communicate the personal brand in only one of the contexts in today’s society. Several activities were identified and explored in relation to the personal brand interplay of online and offline channels. It was found that both spheres are needed to reach the aims and goals of personal brands.