Browsing by Subject "Social Media Strategies"
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Item Restricted Navigating the Storm : Strategies Employed by Small Fashion Businesses in Berlin on Instagram to Mitigate the Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic and Sustain Operations(2023) Kiana Kazemi; Glarou, Despoina; Ülker, Barış; Faculty of Business Administration; Berlin International University of Applied SciencesAI-GENERATED ABSTRACT: Abstract This bachelor thesis looks at small fashion businesses in Berlin and the strategies they used on Instagram to battle the sudden challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic while keeping their operations running smoothly. The pandemic has had an intense impact on the fashion industry globally, and left many businesses struggling to survive and to sustain their operations. Many businesses had to alter either the way they market themselves or run their operations in order to adapt to the changes imposed by the pandemic, such as lockdowns and social distancing. In this bachelor thesis we focus on small fashion businesses operating in the city of Berlin who found a glimmer of hope by harnessing the power of Instagram, using it as a lively platform to promote themselves and generate sales during these tough times. These small fashion businesses employed visual storytelling and community building tactics, and leveraged Instagram's features like stories, username tags, and Instagram's online store to create an engaging brand presence online and to increase their sales. While previous research has been made regarding the effects of COVID-19 pandemic on the fashion industry and the use of social media as a marketing tool, the pandemic's impact on specifically small fashion businesses and their use of Instagram as a social media marketing tool to mitigate these challenges has not been thoroughly explored. Therefore, this bachelor thesis aims to fill that research gap by conducting in-depth semi-structured interviews with five small fashion business owners operating in Berlinches Through thematic analysis of the collected data, this bachelor thesis uncovers six key strategies that these business owners implemented to effectively market themselves on Instagram and sustain their operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The strategies identified were advertising, communication, innovation, competitiveness, brand image, and tools. Throughout the findings of this bachelor thesis it becomes clear that Instagram can help businesses not only to cultivate meaningful and long-lasting connections with their customers, but also to expand their reach and attract new potential customers, which enables businesses to stay competitive during times of uncertainty and rapid change. The findings of this bachelor thesis aim to contribute to the pre-existing knowledge about social media marketing and add insights into the use of Instagram as a marketing tool and a form of e-commerce, in order to help future fashion entrepreneurs who might struggle through challenging times and must find ways to make their business survive. Keywords: COVID-19 impact, small fashion businesses, Instagram marketing, social media strategies, Berlin, visual storytelling, e-commerce, brand engagement, community building, competitive sustainability