Writing your thesis.

Prepare this meeting thoroughly. You will be asked to explain why your research question matters (and to whom) and why it deserves several months of investigation. If it can be answered intuitively, dig deeper. Instead of asking whether X increases Y, it is usually more interesting to ask under which circumstances X increases Y the most. For example, instead of “Can social media influencers increase brand sales?”, ask “How can firms use social media influencers effectively to improve brand performance?” and identify the factors that drive influencer marketing effectiveness (influencer-brand fit, number of followers, etc.).

Before this meeting, draw up a complete list of the references you consider relevant; you can reuse it in your thesis. I will assess the quantity and quality of the literature and suggest removing or adding articles, and I will explain how to summarize it efficiently. The main objective is to identify groups of articles: understand each one and classify it by its similarities and differences with the others. These groups can structure your written review. For example, the literature on marketing standardization covers the cross-national standardization of (a) products, (b) advertising, (c) pricing, (d) distribution channels, (e) marketing processes and (f) the overall marketing program, each of which can become a sub-chapter.

Your study must be guided by hypotheses, that is, statements about expected relationships between constructs. They can concern direct relationships (X increases/decreases Y), indirect relationships (X affects Y through Z) or moderated relationships (Z strengthens/weakens the effect of X on Y). You should already be familiar with hypotheses from your preparatory course (review it if needed). Based on your hypotheses, we will choose the most suitable research design, taking into account your personal situation, which may facilitate or prevent certain methods (for example, in-depth interviews require access to qualified interviewees).

We look at your results and discuss whether they support or refute your hypotheses. There are no “right” or “wrong” results as long as the research was designed and executed sensibly. What matters is describing your findings clearly and relating them to your research question. A thorough discussion of findings in light of existing research (evidence consistent or conflicting with prior findings) sets strong theses apart. We also address any remaining questions about the write-up, such as its structure.