As self-service technologies become more common in service provisions, a deeper understanding is needed of how customer satisfaction is affected by automated service encounters. Drawing from theories of customer satisfaction, human interaction, and the dynamics of complex service provisions, the differences between automated and interpersonal service encounters in the initial part of a service provision are examined in terms of customers? evaluation of the service encounter itself, overall satisfaction, as well as the service encounter?s impact on global evaluations and evaluations of other non-dependant service encounters. The study was performed on people travelling by air on Swedish domestic routes. Passengers were asked to evaluate the airline?s performance on different attributes of the air travel they had undertaken, as well as to form an overall evaluation of the service.

The purpose of this study has been to examine how customers, by interacting with each other, can communicate and create the image of a brand. We find this topic to be relevant since there are no previous studies conducted concerning the customers influence on the brand image. Our ambition has been to describe in what ways and to what extent the customer can affect and influence the brand image by communicating with other customers. To fulfill our purposed we have targeted three important questions which are:? In which ways can the customer affect the communicated image of a brand?? To what extent can the customer influence the brand image and the perceived value?? Who has control over the brand, the customer or the company?For this study we have used a qualitative approach in which we have conducted eight personal interviews with brand consultants and the editor of the magazine Dagens Media which has given us the foundation for our analysis.

De stora läkemedelsbolagen har sedan mitten på 1990-talet fått en ökad press på att optimera sina försörjningskedjor på grund av att patent på olika mediciner gått ut. När patentet gått ut kan generiska konkurrenter börja sälja liknande mediciner, de kan sälja dem till lägre pris eftersom de inte har forsknings och utvecklingskostnader att täcka. AstraZeneca tog i slutet av 1990-talet beslutet att implementera en ny strategi för deras försörjningskedja i deras produktion. Detta gjordes för att sänka deras produktionskostnader för att kunna konkurrera mot generiska konkurrenter. En konsultfirma togs in och Demand Driven Supply (DDS) implementerades.

A conference is not only a meeting but an experience as well. The purpose of this study was to analyze and evaluate four conference organizers within the area of Stockholm Sweden, and to identify their range of activities. Studies were made regarding these conference organizers and how they cooperate with other companies to offer a wider aspect of range. The purpose was also to find out how the demand side of the market appears. The demand side of the market could give an implication of how the conference organizers appear from their perspective and how the conference organizers adjust to their demand.

Som en effekt av att Video On Demand (VOD) är på stark tillväxt vill June, som en leverantör av mjukvara för TV-branschen, förvärva kunskaper och utvärdera Windows 8 applikationer som plattform för en VOD-tjänst. June har sedan tidigare en webblösning för VOD och vill nu även jämföra och utvärdera bland annat kunskapskrav, tidsåtgång samt fördelar och nackdelar med en Windows 8 applikation ställt mot denna webblösning.Målen med examensarbetet kan delas in i tre delar; en där komplexitet och arbetsinsats vid Windows 8 applikationsutveckling utvärderas, en där verktygen som krävs för att utveckla en VOD-applikation utvärderas och sist att implementera en Windows 8 applikation för VOD.En Windows 8 applikation utvecklades och valda lösningsmetoder dokumenterades. Dokumentation och kunskap som förvärvats under utvecklingsfasen stod sedan som grund för de analyserande och utvärderande målen. Resultatet är en Windows 8 applikation som uppfyller de mål som satts upp för programmeringsdelen samt en analys och utvärdering som svarar mot målen för analysdelen. Ämnen som är centrala genom rapporten är Microsoft, WinRT, VOD, Smooth Streaming, PlayReady, Windows 8 applikationsutveckling samt data caching och utveckling av användargränsnitt i Windows 8..

Aitikgruvan är Sveriges största dagbrottsgruva som bryter kopparkis. Kopparkisen bryts i dagbrottet och transporteras under jord i ett underjordsortssystem till ett anrikningsverk. I ortssystemet finns ett ventilationssystem som i dagsläget styrs utan hänsyn till ventilationsbehovet i orterna. Boliden har för avsikt att göra energibesparingar inom dess verksamhet och ett sätt att göra det är att styra ventilationssystemet i ortssystemet efter behov. För att styra ventilationen skall applikationen ?Ventilation on demand?, en produkt utvecklad av ABB, implementeras i det nuvarande styrsystemet 800xA.

This paper works as an assignment from the Video On Demand Company Headweb, who wanted aninterface analysis of their own and their competitors VOD services. The purpose is to help Headwebwith their own interface by studying theirs and others interfaces and make an analysis on how theyfunction, how they look and how good the usability is with every service, with hope to findsomething that could make the VOD service of Headweb better.I have also studied how the interfaces of the VOD services look on different platforms, to see howthey are designed as a whole. This has been an expert analysis where I have studied the differentVOD-services by myself, without any external users.To find advantages and disadvantages with the services and their platforms, I have used differenttheories, models and design patterns to frame areas such as filmsearch, categorization, registrationand navigation. I have compared the VOD services with each other and drew conclusions for eacharea to see how the interfaces differ between the services, but also between platforms.My analysis has shown that all VOD services in this project have a very unique interface, eventhough they all have the same goal, to allow the user to control their viewing of film. They usevarious functions and structure and use their own page names and categorizations.

AbstractAttitudes towards the reference situation and the meetings between library users and librarians have become the subject of much debate in the library setting today. The aim of this two years master´s thesis has been to examine six librarian?s attitudes and apprehensions concerning the interactions between the librarian and the users in the library setting. We were also interested in knowing how a library can work to become more service oriented and customer centred. We conducted six interviews with librarians located at three different libraries in Sweden.

The objective of this study has been to examine which significant values are of importance in the telecom sector today, and in a continuing perspective yet to be. To ensure the factors of relevance in the study, we have identified three purposes: - Our first purpose is to clarify the eminent values in the competitive market of the mobile phone operators today, and the reason for its importance.- The second purpose is to understand the function of the brand regarding to value creation and loyalty in the sector of mobile phone operators.- The third purpose is to explore the potential approaches for mobile phone operators to increase value.In this study, our approach has been a qualitative methodology by conducting seven interviews with respondents related to the telecommunication sector.As a result of the process, we find the need to divide the concept of value into two dimensions, which we entitle organizational related values and customer related values. We have found the values related to the characteristics of the market in aspects of its infrastructural features but also in regards to the homogenous core service.Our findings in the empirical data with support to our theoretical frame of reference, is the current highly important organizational related value of constant high result quality (well-functional technological aspect), and the value enhancer by a low price; the strategy of bundling also results in higher value. This result in customer related values that perceives as safeness, availableness and convenience. The brands are a significant source of customer related values with identity value, image value and assuredness. A continued advancement in process quality and individualization will imply greater customer related values of closeness, freedom and flexibility. .

AbstractTitle: Interactive marketing and Internet - A study of Radi Medical Systems? educational site (Interaktiv marknadsföring och Internet - En studie utifrån Radi Medical Systems webbplats för kundutbildning)Number of pages: 43 (including enclosures 47)Author: Daniel PalmgrenTutor: Mats LindCourse: Media and Communication Studies CPeriod: Spring 2008University: Division of Media and Communication, Department of Information Science, Uppsala UniversityPurpose/Aim: The aim of this thesis is to examine if Radi Medical Systems? educational site has the potential to create value for the company?s customers, and by that promote improved customer relations. Questions asked are: What kinds of visions does the company have for the site? Which services are offered to the customers through the site? How do the customers experience these sInervices?Material/Method: Information from interviews with representatives from Radi Medical Systems and their customers, observations of the webpage and information from an internal Radi document concerning the educational site has been collected and analyzed through the use of a theoretical framework, in order to provide an understanding for the questions asked. The visions were discussed and analyzed by general concepts of interactive marketing and Internet.

Package design constitutes an important marketing and differentiation tool in an increasingly competitive food market, particularly in the category of daily consumer goods where the turnover rate is high and the purchases are based on self-service (Hine, 1997; Spethmann, 1994; Underwood, 1999). Media fragmentation undermines the traditional marketing tools and the demands for packaging are bigger than ever. A package must not only sell a product, but also tell, through design, how the product is used and express the values that the trademark owner wishes to convey to the end customer (Underwood, 1998). The understanding of the role of packaging as a marketing tool has increased, but the initiators inside the packaging industry in Sweden still think that the Swedish packaging industry is developing slowly. They often describe Swedish packages as homogeneous and unimaginative.

Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att illustrera vilka faktorer som påverkar kundrelationer och hur ett företag bör gå tillväga för att förbättra dessa samt för att bevara sina kunder. Vi vill ge en illustration på hur en välorganiserad kundrelation kan framkallas. Uppsatsen är även en undersökning som kommer att framhäva Länsförsäkringarnas varianter av strategier och metoder inom kundrelation, detta kommer även att baseras ur kundens perspektiv. Det vitalaste kommer att handla om hur Länsförsäkringarna kan förbättra och utveckla detta. Metod: Vi valde att använda oss av primärdata för att öka trovärdigheten genom enkätundersökning och intervjuer, våra sekundärdata användes för att ge stöd till den primäradatan med författares och forskares teorier. Sedan jämförde vi resultatet från intervjuerna och enkätundersökningen med vad teoretikerna anser för att se om det överensstämmer med resultatet. Resultat & slutsats: Vi tycker att det har varit ett intresseväckande arbete att följa Länsförsäkringarnas tillvägagånssätt om hur de bemöter kunderna och relationen till dem.

Many organizational changes have been accomplished in elder care since the 1980's and many of those have been influenced by market mechanisms. The purpose of this study is to examine how the implementation of these market mechanisms has affected three important aspects in the work situation for personnel. These aspects are, demand, control and support. To attain the purpose of this study, five qualitative interviews with home care personnel have been carried out. The interview material has been analyzed and structured with the help of Karasek and Theorells demand-control-support model.

The purpose of this thesis was to find out how travel agencies work with relationships to their customers on the Internet. A case study with two companies was conducted, Ticket and Resia. In all four interviews were done, two in every company that served as basis for our conclusions. The study showed that it is important for travel agencies and other types of companies to create awareness of their web site in as many ways as possible and make it easy for the customer to find the web site. The contents on the web site have to be of current interest, it should be well structured and the usage of the web site should be easy.

AbstractThe real estate sector is today responsible for 40 per cent of the total amount of energy consumption within the members of the EU. All over the world there are collaborations within research and projects to find ways of reducing the amount of energy consumed by the real estate sector. In Sweden, a directive from the European Union has posed demands on authorities as well as on the private sector to reduce the amount of energy consumed by new building constructions. Together with the directive from the EU there are also new requirements and demands from Boverket for the real estate sector.  These requirements mostly concern the energy consumption of kilowatt-hour per square metre and that the consumed energy also should be renewable.  The aim of this study is to explain what kind of value municipalities experience in using certifications and environmental investments for new and existing buildings. Within the chapter theory, essential areas are described such as; environmental certification systems, economical viability, proceeds connected to building green, difficulties with building green, the performance of green buildings when affected by the behaviour of tenants and customer value.  The following chapter describes the methodology with which we have conducted this study.