‘Follow’ My Constructed Instagram Lifestyle

In the past five years, influencer marketing has become an increasing phenomenon on Instagram that allows brands to collaborate with influencers by creating sponsored content in the form of an advertorial. On Instagram, influencers engage in the explicit creation of individual images to construct an overarching impression of a desired lifestyle. What motivates influencers to work with brands and how do influencers construct their impressions through personal and sponsored posts? In line with Leary and Kowalski’s (1990) two-component model, the purpose of this study is to uncover what the impression management practices are of lifestyle influencers on Instagram. Specifically, this research aims to understand the impression motivation and construction processes that an influencer goes through on Instagram. Furthermore, this study seeks to answer how influencers utilize authenticity, self-disclosure and intimacy in their impression management practices. A total number of 11 semi-structured interviews were conducted via Skype with Dutch and international influencers in May 2017. Through the qualitative approach of interviews, an in-depth understanding was outlined to how influencers are motivated and how influencers construct their impressions through Instagram. Through the application of thematic analysis, there results indicated main themes from the data to explain from the influencer’s perspective how they construct their impressions on Instagram. Influencers manage their impressions on Instagram based on five themes: genuineness, apt brand-fit, personal vs. online self, varying affinity and storytelling. These five themes illustrate how influencers are motivated to appear authentic, the extent to which they self-disclose, and the degree to which they form intimate impressions. The results conclude with a conceptual model, in which it emerges that the three guiding concepts are to a certain extent relatable to one another. The paper concludes on its main findings, and includes a critical assessment on its limitations, providing suggestions for future research in this scope.