The Digital Elements of Authenticity: a Cross-Platform Analysis of the
Performance of Online Authenticity by Influencers
By: Yamila Bollen Completion Date: 28 June 2018
Programme: MA New Media & Digital Culture Word Count: 22.981
Abstract
In order for influencer marketing to be effective, influencers must be perceived as being human agents, rather than marketing agents. For influencers this is achieved through using authenticity as a marketing tool. Through the performance of authenticity and intimacy influencers aim to appear both accessible and relatable, and form affective bonds with their audience. This performance further aims to attract attention and increase the influencer’s visibility and is ultimately captured into an online reputation, which for the influencer is directly translated into value through social media affordances. Since the current influencer practice is often spread across different platforms this study contributes to existing knowledge on social media influencers by highlighting the benefits of a cross-platform strategy for the contemporary influencer practice. The findings of the analysis suggest that the
influencer practice can only work if the authenticity and intimacy performance is carried out across all platforms. Both YouTube and Instagram are used for both commercial practices and for the creation of affective bonds through strategically appealing to the audience. The closeness and familiarity created by the strategic performance of authenticity and intimacy enables a friend-like narrative to exist, which supports and sustains the influencer’s commercial activities. The use of Twitter, the vlog (on YouTube), and the story format (on Instagram and Snapchat) is aimed at forming and sustaining affective bonds through the perception of uncensored access to the backstage of the influencer’s life. These practices are thus aimed at appearing authentic and accessible through mediated strategic intimacy, which again supports the commercial aspects of the practice. Using multiple platforms thus allows for forming and sustaining affective bonds with the audience in multiple manners and therefore enriches the influencer practice. The present work concludes by arguing that a cross-platform strategy allows for a transmedia narrative to exist, which is beneficial for the influencer as it stimulates more consumption and maintains consumer loyalty.
Keywords
Table of Contents Abstract 1 Keywords 1 Table of Contents 2 List of Figures 4 List of Tables 6
1. The Performance of Online Authenticity by Influencers through Social Media Platforms 7
2. The Influencer Practice and the Performance of Online Authenticity 13
2.1 Influencers and the Practice of Self-branding 13
2.1.1 Influencer Marketing as a New Means to Reach Consumers 13
2.1.2 Self-Branding on Social Media 14
2.2 Influencers as a Specific Subset of Micro-Celebrity 15
2.3 The Relationship between Influencers and Their Followers 17 2.3.1 Understanding the Performance of Authenticity Online 17
2.3.2 The Influencer and Strategic Intimacy 19
2.4 “Please Like, Comment and Subscribe”: the Digital Economic Environment of the Influencer 21
2.4.1 The Attention Economy 21
2.4.2 Reputation as Social Capital 22
3. Studying Influencer Authenticity: a Medium-Specific Cross-Platform Analysis of YouTube,
Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat 25
3.1 Cross-Platform Analysis of the Influencer Performance 25
3.2 Case Studies 26
3.3 Studying Both the Interface and Content 27
3.3.1 Studying the Interface and Its Affordances 28
3.3.2 Retrieving Influencer Content 28
4. The Influencer Practice and Authenticity Performance Across Multiple Platforms 30
4.1 Balancing Commerciality and Authenticity on YouTube 30
4.1.1 Content Videos 30
4.1.2 Vlogs 32
4.1.3 Communicative Elements on YouTube 34
4.1.4 Visibility on YouTube 35
4.2 Instaperfect: Combining Promotions and Visual Narrations of the Influencer’s Life 36
4.2.1 Self-Presentation on Instagram 37
4.2.2 Visibility on Instagram 40
4.3 The Use of Twitter for the Impression of Direct Access 42
4.3.1 Trivial Thoughts and Statements 43
4.3.2 Fan Interaction 44
4.3.3 Peer Interaction 44
4.3.4 Cross-Platform Promotion 45
4.3.5 Brand Promotion 45
4.4 The Story Format for the Creation of Affective Bonds through Imperfect Sharing 46 4.4.1 Strategic Imperfect Sharing and the Intimacy Performance 47
4.4.2 Cross-Platform Promotion and Engagement 50
5. The Benefits of Employing a Cross-Platform Strategy for the Influencer Performance 53
List of Figures
Figure 1: Nooshin’s Instagram post and caption. Source: https://bit.ly/2HYy2P3 and 7 https://twitter.com/JanineAbbring/status/887722518655766529
Figure 2: Screenshot of Instagram post Doutzen Kroes. 8
Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/BWsnxepAauL/?utm_source=ig_embed
Figure 3: Screenshot of Instagram post Scott Disick. Source: https://bit.ly/2LY6cVJ 8
Figure 4: Screenshot of comment made by a follower with regard to Perkins giving
feedback to YSL. 32
Figure 5: Screenshots of comments on Perkins’ vlog. 33
Figure 6: Screenshot of pinned comment containing a question by De Jager on YouTube. 35
Figure 7: Screenshots of the Instagram profiles of Perkins (left) and De Jager (right) 37 Source: https://www.instagram.com/desiperkins/ and
https://www.instagram.com/nikkietutorials/
Figure 8: Screenshots of Instagram post by Perkins containing a list of brands using 38 the @-mention. Source post: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bg4tA5VHG8m/
Figure 9: Screenshot of De Jager using an abundance of hashtags in the comment section on 39 Instagram.
Figure 10: Screenshot of Perkins reacting to a follower. 40
Source post: https://www.instagram.com/p/BgxcU9WHAq4/
Figure 11: Example of trivial statement by De Jager. 44
Source: https://twitter.com/NikkieTutorials/status/985333958534750208
Figure 12: Perkins interacting with her best friend and beauty vlogger Katy de Groot. 45 Source: https://twitter.com/DesiPerkins/status/981593112744046592
Figure 13: Screenshot of pinned tweet by De Jager promoting her own YouTube content. 46
Figure 14: Screenshots of beauty vloggers using face altering filters on Snapchat. 48
Figure 15: Screenshot of De Jager after a ten-minute long Snapchat story on her anxiety. 49
Figure 16: Screenshot of Perkins’ Instagram story showing her husband filming for her vlogs. 49
Figure 17: Screenshots of Perkins showcasing comments made on her YouTube video on 50 her Snapchat story, including comment.
Figure 18: Screenshot of cross-platform promotion by De Jager. 51
Figure 19: Screenshot Snapchat story by De Jager showcasing her followers commenting 51 the lemon emoji on her Instagram post per her request (a different instance than
figure 18).
Figure 20: Perkins stating that those following her on Snapchat already know this detail. 56 Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/BTKPl9elV5-/
List of Tables
Table 1: The amount of followers per platform on 29th of April 2018. 27
Table 2: The amount of data retrieved per platform. 29
1. The Performance of Online Authenticity by Influencers through Social Media Platforms In July 2017 Dutch influencer Anna Nooshin posted a - now deleted - picture on Instagram of her holding a bottle by an organization called The Plastic Bank (see figure 1). Purchasing this particular bottle would mean supporting this organization which aims at cleaning the ocean of plastic and simultaneously creating work for Haitians. The caption attached to the picture included the hashtags #giveback #theplasticbank #shell #partner, implicating that oil company Shell was involved in this particular initiative. Interestingly enough the picture also included the tag @gooseberryintimates, indicating the swimsuit Nooshin wore was made by this brand, whether this was sponsored is unknown. The post caused controversy for two main reasons, on the one hand commenters accused Nooshin for ‘greenwashing’ the reputation of Shell, while at the time the company was portrayed particularly negative in the news as they were once again drilling for oil in the Arctic. On the other hand commenters accused Nooshin of being a sell out: “you must really want money if you promote an ad for Shell”, “everyone is for sale”, “must be a coincidence that suddenly many Dutch celebrities buy this bottle #transparent #money” and “SELL OUT”.1
Figure 1: Nooshin’s Instagram post (left) and caption (right)
This particular post caused more controversy when Loes Reijmer, writing for Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant, found out that employees of Nooshin’s PR agency were posting overly positive and supportive comments in attempt to save the campagne and support Nooshin (n.pag.). Reijmer compared this incident to the American presidential election and the bots that were trying to sway public opinion on social media through massively conveying a particular message (n.pag.). In the case of Nooshin there were no bots or massive numbers, but Reijmers argues that the idea was comparable. In the comment section it became evident some followers were disappointed: “pathetic, how many
https://koneksa-mondo.nl/wp-fake elements can a post contain?”, “I get it you have bills to pay, and you can be hired to polish a company’s image, but you should just be honest about it” and “employing others to leave fake comments is really bizarre”.2
In the same month of 2017 Dutch model Doutzen Kroes was involved in a controversial post. The translated caption read “life is not always picture perfect as we show on social media :) Do you ever post the unfiltered, everyday version of yourself?!? #naturalissogood” (see figure 2). This post caused controversy since the particular hashtag is associated with the slogan of Dutch brand Rivella. Therefore the post was not ‘natural’ at all, but rather staged as it was set up to promote a brand.
Scott Disick, a reality star related to the Kardashians, posted a (since deleted) picture of himself and a protein shake including the instructions of a caption, which he directly copied and pasted from the email he received from the marketing team. The caption included “here you go, at 4pm est, write the below. Caption: Keeping up with the summer workout routine with my morning @booteauk protein shake!” (see figure 3). In this case it was obvious the post contained advertising, as it became evident Disick did not even write the caption himself. The post also seemed to be forced, some would argue inauthentic, since everything (even the caption) was orchestrated by the brand. This particular incident reveals the fact that these influencer posts are often not completely user generated at all, while they might appear as such.
Figure 2 (left): Screenshot of Instagram post Doutzen Kroes Figure 3 (right): Screenshot of Instagram post Scott Disick
https://koneksa-mondo.nl/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Anna-The three aforementioned instances reveal the importance of the notions of credibility and authenticity within the influencer landscape. The Nooshin case reveals there is a fine line between what the
audience perceives as authentic (believing in a certain cause and wanting to help) and selling-out (just doing it for the money). The latter two cases reveal that self-presentation involves the attempt at the construction of an authentic persona, which in these cases is unveiled. All three cases demonstrate, in different ways, that influencer marketing contains inherent tensions between being true to oneself and engaging with commercial arrangements: tensions between acting as a human agent and as a
commercial agent.
Nowadays influencer marketing is becoming increasingly more present within our
contemporary digital media landscape. Advertisers do not longer solely rely on the traditional means of advertising: influencer marketing through the use of social media is a relatively new effort of advertisers to reach consumers. The objective of influencer marketing is the creation of positive word-of-mouth (Ferguson 180). Marketers aim to achieve this by presenting the audience commercially branded content with a certain aura of being user generated, so that it is not immediately recognized as advertising. For the influencer this effort represents a lucrative endeavor, which can be recognized by the great amount of influencer posts that contain some sort of commercial arrangement. Influencers often practice across different platforms, using platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat. They use these different platforms as a means for their self-presentation towards their fans, and ultimately to improve their online status.
While influencers are clearly employed by brands as marketing entities, since they attempt to sell their followers products, they are often not recognized as such by their audience. In the lifestyle genre this audience often follows the influencer out of admiration for their style and expert opinion: “users often “like” what they find “aspirational” (Marwick, Instafame 141). If the audience would perceive the influencer as being just another means to sell products, influencer marketing would not be as effective. Thus for influencers being able to present their followers a vast array of advertising practices and not to be perceived as just another marketing entity, they must first and foremost be perceived as being a human agent. Within the influencer practice this is established through authenticity as a marketing tool (Arthurs et al. 8). According to Alice Marwick authenticity here is what differentiates the influencer from entities just trying to sell their products, such as brands (Conspicuous and Authentic 11). This raises questions about the concept of authenticity: how is this performed online? To what extent do the platform’s affordances play a role in the way this
authenticity is achieved? Are there certain rules the influencer must abide in order to be perceived as authentic?
Authenticity is an interesting notion, since one can argue that nobody really is authentic, especially in the case of the influencer who operates in a highly mediated context. In this online environment being authentic seems somewhat paradoxical: the influencer’s highly mediated practice is most often profoundly edited, rather than a true reflection of the core being of the influencer. And yet, influencer marketing can only work because followers tend to trust the influencer’s expert opinion without considering the fact that this opinion might be motivated by commercial
arrangements. The notion of online authenticity thus intrinsically consists of a certain tension. This tension between being perceived as true to oneself and still being highly selective and edited, or
between being recognized as a human agent or a commercial agent, is one that should be subjected to academic research.
Previous research on influencers has been on influencer selfies as subversive frivolity
(Abidin, Aren’t These), on entrepreneurial selves and feminine corporeality (Abidin and Gwynne), on entrepreneurial femininity and self-branding among fashion bloggers (Duffy and Hund). Research specifically on beauty vlogging, which this thesis focuses on, has been on beauty vlogging on
YouTube as having transformative power with the potential of transforming society norms (Kennedy) and on the relation between beauty vlogging and the recent campaigns regarding the empowerment and confidence of girls (Banet-Weiser, “I’m Beautiful”). Research specifically on influencer
authenticity focused on how authenticity can be understood as an organizing principle within fashion blogging (Marwick, They’re Really) and on authenticity and legitimacy building in the beauty community on YouTube (García-Rapp).
Within academic literature the performance of online authenticity on single platforms has been the subject of study. In You May Know Me From YouTube Marwick uses two examples of social media technologies in order to analyse how specific technical features of social media platforms, in combination with contemporary mass culture that is focused on celebrities, allow individuals to assume a mode, “a popular subjectivity”, that resembling that of the traditional celebrity (335). In this article Marwick discusses the technical features of two platforms, Tumblr and YouTube, and their affordances in relation to the self-presentation technique intrinsic to the micro-celebrity practice. However, the author solely analyses the use of a single platform, and does not analyse the cross-platform practice. In this article Marwick argues that while the particular micro-celebrity she was studying owned a variety of accounts on other platforms, only her YouTube channel was worth studying in this context: “her fame is native to YouTube; it is where she first became popular, and most of her other accounts simply serve as promotion for her YouTube channel” (346). While this might have been the case for the micro-celebrity Marwick was studying, I argue that the function of using multiple platforms for contemporary influencers and their authenticity performance should be the subject of academic study.
Van Vugt examined influencers and how they perform online authenticity through the affordances of Instagram. In this thesis I aim to expand this particular line of inquiry by focussing on how authenticity is performed by beauty influencers through the use of multiple platforms, namely YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter. This thesis thus contributes to the existing knowledge gap by emphasizing the cross-platform nature of the contemporary influencer practice. In doing so this thesis examines how the use of multiple platforms can enrich the influencer practice, focussing on the notion of authenticity.
In 2006 Chris Anderson noted: “we’re entering an era of radical change for marketers. Faith in advertising and institutions that pay for it is waning, while faith in individuals is on the rise” (98). Within the same line of argumentation Newman states that influencers represent marketing’s next goldmine, since people do not trust in advertisements anymore, but do trust in voices of authority (n.pag.). This phenomenon should be the subject of research since influencer marketing has become a new means for advertising, which reaches a vast amount of social media users. This research is specifically positioned within the field of New Media and Digital Culture since the role of the medium and its specificity is central to the phenomenon: without platforms and their affordances,
influencers could not exist. That is to say, the influencer can only exist within digital media and therefore it is relevant to ask what the implications of the medium are. Furthermore, as Marwick argues, the micro-celebrity practice differs depending on the technological affordances of the application (You May Know Me 2). Due to the fact that most influencers use multiple platforms simultaneously for their practice, this phenomenon should be researched while employing a cross-platform approach. In accordance to this, this thesis carries out a cross-cross-platform analysis of the performance of online authenticity through the different platforms and their affordances. This approach allows for the exploration of the function of using different platforms for their practice. Furthermore, it allows for the reflection on the different roles different affordances play within the influencer’s performance of authenticity. This thesis aims to explore how authenticity is performed by the influencer, while being situated in a highly mediated environment. Therefore the main research questions are:
RQ1. How is authenticity performed by influencers and to what extent do the affordances of platforms play are role in this performance?
RQ2. How are the different platforms being used for, or how do they contribute differently to, the performance of authenticity?
In order to answer these questions the second chapter presents an overview of relevant literature: here the notions of influencer marketing, self-branding, micro-celebrity, authenticity, strategic intimacy, affective labour, the attention economy and reputation as social capital are discussed in order to comprehend the contemporary influencer performance. In the third chapter the
methodology is presented, which discusses how the cross-platform analysis is conducted, namely through a combined interface and content analysis. This section also elaborates on the chosen case study: this thesis analyses influencers within the beauty vlogger scene due to the fact that this is highly commodified and thus fruitful to examine how the tension between commerciality and authenticity is managed. Chapter four consists of the most relevant findings per platform and thus presents what the different platforms afford the influencer and how influencers employ certain platform features to benefit their authenticity performance. Chapter five offers a reflection on the platform mix influencers employ in order to provide an overview and discuss the most important insights, this chapter further summarises the most relevant findings of this thesis. Additionally, this chapter considers what the implications of these findings are and how they can be related to larger new media debates. Lastly, in this chapter the limitations of this research are recognized and suggestions for further research are offered.
The findings of this thesis suggest that through employing a cross-platform strategy, and thus using multiple platforms with each their own medium-specific affordances contributing to the
authenticity performance, the influencer is able to establish affective bonds with their audience through multiple manners. I argue that employing a cross-platform strategy allows the influencer to establish a transmedia narrative, as they can employ different platforms for their own specific qualities. This thesis argues this is beneficial to the practice as influencers can use multiple platforms to reach out to their following in different ways and can reveal different personal information on different platforms. Following Henry Jenkins this is beneficial as it encourages more consumption and
it boosts consumer loyalty (96). This thesis thus aims to repudiate the idea that the use of multiple platforms solely serves the purpose of promoting the influencer’s content, while influencers certainly encourage cross-platform engagement, this thesis argues a cross-platform approach should be
understood as a strategy that enriches the influencer performance. Through this strategy the influencer is able to further establish and maintain affective ties with their following, which contributes to the influencer being perceived as a human agent rather than a commercial one.
2. The Influencer Practice and the Performance of Online Authenticity 2.1 Influencers and the Practice of Self-branding
Within this section the concept of the social media influencer is discussed in attempt to provide contextualization on the subject. Furthermore, the concepts of influencer marketing and self-branding on social media are examined. In addition to this, some examples of influencer marketing are
provided and the current significance of it is discussed.
2.1.1 Influencer Marketing as a New Means to Reach Consumers
The term ‘influencer’ is inspired by the concept of ‘personal influence’ (Katz and Lazarsfeld) which was developed before contemporary social media. Gandini argues the term ‘influence’ online is intended to convey an individual’s capacity to affect the behaviour and opinions of other people, and to cause forms of action (38). In traditional mass media theory the notion of influence reflects the notion of opinion leadership (38). Crystal Abidin argues that the “industry vernacular term
‘influencer’ now encompasses multi-platform microcelebrity and is the latest iteration of ‘bloggers’” (Visibility Labour 87). According to Abidin, social media influencers are a specific subset of micro-celebrity, which gathers followers on social media and/or blogs by offering “textual and visual narrations of their personal, everyday lives, upon which advertisements for products and services are premised” (86). Hearn and Schoenhoff state that a certain form of “‘celebrity’ capital” is created by the acquirement of attention and the creation of “an authentic ‘personal brand’” through social networks (194). This personal brand can then be employed by commercial entities such as brands and advertisers in order to reach consumers, which is known as influencer marketing (194). For beauty influencers this means they engage with various commercial arrangements: affiliative programs, sponsored posts or advertorials, partnerships and more. In addition to this brands often send
influencers free products, hoping for a positive review on the influencer’s social media channel(s) and thus word-of-mouth promotion through social media.
The influencer practice entails the documentation of the practitioner's everyday life, which can include ordinary moments and moments that are more exciting, such as events related to their field (Abidin and Ots n.pag.). According to the authors influencers are able to shape public opinion through the act of being relatable: through being relatable and accessible ‘persona intimacy’ can exists, which means followers can get more attached to the influencer, than to the goods they advertise (Abidin and Thompson 468). To put it simply, influencers are able to influence their
following and can therefore be employed by commercial entities for the promotion of commodities. In other words, influencers are able to monetize their own social media presence.
Influencer marketing has become prominent since companies believe that consumers are no longer paying attention to more traditional means of advertising (Carter 2). Influencer marketing is considered an alternative, where these companies now depend upon experts and individuals regarded as having a certain influence; in most cases these influencers are considered as being “trusted voices” and are able to reach a large audience (2). The use of the word trust here is significant, since it implies that the relation between the influencer and their following can only work if there is a form of trust established.
2.1.2 Self-Branding on Social Media
In order for these influencers to differentiate themselves from brands and from other influencers, they need to be their own personal brand and thus need to engage with the concept of self-branding. Marwick argues that self-branding can be seen as applying marketing strategies to an individual person, which includes a set of practices as well as the mindset of thinking of oneself as a marketable product (Status Update 307). Self-branding can be employed as means for attracting attention, and can be seen as a tool for achieving competitive advantage whenever there is a crowded marketplace (Shepard 597). In other words: “just like commercially branded products, individuals benefit from having a unique selling point, or a public identity that is singularly charismatic and responsive to the needs and interests of target audiences” (Khamis et al. 191). Thus,
self-branding is concerned with handling identity construction as if it were a product (Marwick 312). Alison Hearn, writing on self-branding at the time of Facebook and MySpace, argues that these sites encourage its users to treat themselves and others as commodities that can be “collected and consumed in the social marketplace” (Meat, Mask, Burden 211). In this way, these sites even produce “inventories of branded selves” (211). I argue that this is also true for other contemporary social media platforms, such as Instagram, YouTube and Twitter, which also encourage a mindset of consistent promotion of the self. Self-branding, as Hearn argues, involves structuring ones online personal performance and affect with the goal of serving capitalist interests by creating value and potentially profit (198). Moreover, this value is created by garnering attention and reputation, which then can turn into a source of profit (Structuring Feeling 427). Furthermore, Khamis et al. argue that attention and narrative can be considered as being central to self-branding through the use of social media, these attributes namely enhance the possibility for fame and celebrity (196). Building a compelling and differential narrative could result into attracting an audience and thus attention, since it allows for influencers to distinguish themselves within the attention economy (196). The role of attention and reputation is further discussed in section 2.4.
The construction of the online persona is thus done strategically, often with a targeted audience in mind. Moreover, the persona is curated in accordance with this audience, and thus in order to be seen in a particular way and to evoke a specific reaction (Marwick, Status Update 314). Additionally, Khamis et al. argue that this audience is treated as a fan base, which can then be
aggregated and sustained in consideration of achieving economic or social benefits (196). The authors note a brand becomes more prominent whenever followers choose to embed the brand within their own personal and individual media flow, which happens as a consequence of liking posts and commenting on them (196). The result of this is significant to the practice of self-branding: “this collaborative, dialogic space facilitates self-branding as attention-seeking users produce a public persona that is targeted and strategic” (Khamis et al. 196). According to the authors, the social media environment is thus ideal for the self-branding practice, because it is dialogic in nature and it allows for followers to integrate the brand in their own personalised flow of media.
Marwick argues that self-branding produces a set status markers: visibility and attention (Marwick, Status Update 314). Within this same line of argumentation Page states that visibility and attention are the markers for both status and perceived influence (182). The significant role of social media becomes even more apparent as social media metrics are tied to self-branding: “social media configures these values through technical status affordances, bringing the potential audience to the
forefront by turning ephemeral status or reputation information into quantifiable metrics” (315). Since these metrics signify awareness of an audience, they demonstrate a form of value and hence can be seen as an indication of how successful the self-branding is (315). Social media and the Internet are crucial for the existence of influencers, since it allows for the distribution of information by an individual to an audience that has never been bigger (313-314). This is of importance, since self-branding is about treating oneself as a commodity specifically with the intent of being ‘consumed’ by an audience (314). Moreover, today’s social media and its tools are specifically designed to aim attention towards the inside (314). Through social media platforms individuals are networked and as Marwick argues, one’s use of social media is done with the presumption that others are looking on: “within social media, the subject is self-interested, competitive, and mobile, consisting of constant self-referencing (my thoughts, my activities), done in sight of an audience, with the assumption that someone is interested and watching” (314). In other words, the practice of self-branding and social media usage are mutually reinforcing.
2.2 Influencers as a Specific Subset of Micro-Celebrity
This section discusses the concept of the micro-celebrity, including a brief account of how the concept is used over time. The micro-celebrity concept is of importance, as influencers are considered to be a specific subset of celebrity. The aim of the examination is to shed light on what the micro-celebrity practice consists of, which is necessary to fully comprehend the tensions inherent to the practice.
Theresa Senft coined the concept of the micro-celebrity in 2001, with regard to so-called cam-girls. In Camgirls the author examined the ways these girls make use of digital media to present themselves as a consistent brand to their fans. Senft argued that these girls should be understood as a form of micro-celebrity, which involves a specific type of online performance with the aim of
increasing one’s popularity (25). An important aspect of the micro-celebrity is the fact that they do not distance themselves from their followers; instead there is an emphasis on their responsiveness to their community (116).
Marwick further builds on the conception of Senft and argues the micro-celebrity practice is closely connected to social media. The micro-celebrity can then be defined “as a mindset and set of practices in which one‘s online contacts are constructed as an audience or fan base, popularity is maintained through ongoing fan management, and self-presentation is carefully assembled to be consumed by others” (Marwick, Status Update 230). The micro-celebrity practice is thus “a status seeking technique”, which requires a strategic and systematic positioning of the self as a celebrity, while recognizing and catering to an audience (286). The micro-celebrity differs from the traditional celebrity since they interact with their fans through the use of social media, in this way one can argue that the micro-celebrity can thus be seen as being more authentic and interactive (18). Moreover, Marwick argues that the interaction between the micro-celebrity and their fans is a form of self-branding, which is needed for to celebrity to maintain their fame. That is to say, for the micro-celebrity personal fan interaction is a means for achieving a competitive advantage and thus a tool for differentiating them from traditional celebrities and brands (231). The previous section discussed the fact that self-branding involves treating oneself as a product that can be sold to followers, Marwick
argues that the micro-celebrity too employs self-commodification in order to create a consistent online persona for their following (232). Their online persona can be monetized effectively through the use of strategic self-commodification, that is to say micro-celebrity is closely linked to the practice of self-branding.
In her later work, You May Know Me From YouTube, Marwick argues that social media even allow for the micro-celebrity to exist (334). Micro-celebrity practitioners carefully curate their online persona and strategically share information about themselves with their following in order to increase attention within their network (338). In other words, micro-celebrities employ a strategic intimacy by revealing personal information in a calculated manner in order to create personal connections with their audience, which are known as affective bonds (345).
The author further argues the practice differs contingent on the affordances of the platforms and the practitioner’s social context (334). The micro-celebrity practice thus depends on technological affordances of the used platforms; an example of this is the interaction between micro-celebrity and their following, which is dependent on the affordances of the platform (343). Marwick provides the example of Tumblr, where interaction is different since Tumblr users do not have the ability to comment on posts directly (343). Audience interaction is thus measured differently on Tumblr, namely through the number of reblogs and likes, Marwick argues that these visual metrics then become signifiers of social status on the platform (343). This example illustrates the role the technological affordances play within the micro-celebrity practice, it thus becomes important to analyse what the various platforms allow and what they limit. It is for this reason, I conduct a cross-platform analysis, focussing on the different cross-platform affordances and how they shape the micro-celebrity practice and contribute to its authenticity performance. Furthermore, this particular type of analysis is insightful with regard to exploring whether using multiple platforms can enrich the practice.
Marwick further conceptualizes another form of micro-celebrity, namely ‘Instafame’. Instafame is based on the conventional micro-celebrity, but includes “glamorous visuals and
conspicuous consumption that have been associated with stardom since at least the Hollywood studio era” (Instafame 138). In the article it is argued that the micro-celebrity practice has changed since the Internet is becoming “increasingly a visual medium” (138), and the social media platforms influencers use are often visual in nature. This emphasis on the visual has lead to the fact that social media users now often use images as self-expression, instead of writing (138). By researching micro-celebrities on Instagram, Marwick argues their micro-celebrity practice differs because of the visual nature of the platform (138). Since there is an emphasis on the visual on Instagram, and interaction with fans and written descriptions are de-emphasized, Marwick offers a new view on micro-celebrity (139). The concept of the micro-celebrity was initially developed when the practice primarily revolved around the direct relationships between the micro-celebrity and their followers, now with the visual nature of platforms in mind, micro-celebrity includes “a specific type of visual self-presentation strategy” (139). Marwick argues that those with a large following on Instagram, or the ‘Instafamous’, use digital images, often selfies, in order to create affective bonds between the micro-celebrity practitioner and their followers (148). In the section regarding the performance of online authenticity these
To conclude, the micro-celebrity practice now involves a visual self-presentation technique with the aim of creating affective bonds with followers through the use of self-branding and strategic intimacy. The practice is intrinsically status-seeking, which in the contemporary digital media landscape
requires the gathering of attention, this is discussed in a subsequent section. Furthermore, as Marwick has argued, the technological affordances of platforms play a large role within the micro-celebrity practice, as they determine what a user is allowed to do on a particular platform.
Khamis et al. state that the promise of authenticity is “one of the most important facets of micro-celebrity (202). However, according to Marwick and boyd, the micro-celebrity practice involves an intrinsic conflict between self-promotion and connecting with individuals in an intimate manner (I Tweet 128). That is to say that strategic audience management is viewed by some as being “dishonest ‘corporate-speak’ or even ‘phoney, shameless promotion’” (128). Thus seeking profit or status can be perceived as being inauthentic (127-128). The following section explores this
conception of authenticity with regard to the relationship between influencers and their followers.
2.3 The Relationship between Influencers and Their Followers
In this section the relationship between influencers and their followers is explored, focussing on the role of two conceptions, authenticity and intimacy, which are fundamental to this particular dynamic. The following sections establish the concepts are interlinked: for the relationship between the
influencer and their following authenticity requires intimacy and intimacy requires authenticity. Furthermore, this section establishes that audience interaction, strategic intimacy and the creation of affective bonds with this audience are fundamental to the influencer’s commercial effectiveness. I argue that the influencer performance results into a digital reputation. This digital reputation can then in turn function as a source of trust, which is further elaborated on in subsection 2.4.2.
2.3.1 Understanding the Performance of Authenticity Online
The previous sections regarding the influencer and the micro-celebrity practice revealed the
importance of the notion of authenticity. For the influencer, there is a need for authenticity in order for them to be effective as marketing entities; if the audience does not believe the influencer is being genuine, they would not trust their expert opinion. For the influencer, authenticity is therefore closely linked to the notion of credibility (García-Rapp 127). The combination of authenticity and credibility can lead to the influencer garnering a good reputation, and subsequently a certain trustworthiness, which is necessary for the audience to conceive the influencer as a human agent and not just a commercial agent.
In light of the influencer, who employs self-branding strategies, authenticity becomes somewhat paradoxical. If being authentic means being genuine or ‘faithfully resembling the original’ (Authenticity n.pag.), then editing oneself into a consumable and likable product seems contradictory. Yet, the ‘authentic’ online self is both edited and real. Khamis et al. argue that because of this
apparent contradiction, there is a space created the influencer is able to exploit: that is to say, the relationship of trust between influencer and audience that comes into being is the reason the influencer is able to engage with various types of commercial opportunities (203).
One can argue that influencers are able to commodify their ‘authentic’ online persona through self-branding (203). Khamis et al. note we can speak of an inversion that can be considered as fairly ironic, since authenticity now manifests through the practice of self-branding (203). In other words, for the influencer authenticity is based on “external gratification”, as other people’s opinions regarding your brand matter (Banet-Weiser 80). Self-presentation here is thus intrinsically directed outward, and uses actual life experiences in order to promote the self and to capitalize on it (80). This is in contrast to ‘traditional authenticity’ that is “based on intrinsic motivation, which values
uniqueness, original expression, and independence from the market” (80). This new notion of authenticity is central to the existence of the influencer and fundamental to its commercial effectiveness.
Marwick argues that “the normative impetus to be honest and truthful” results into a
performance of authenticity in such a way it satisfies the demands of the audience (Status Update 18). In other words, authenticity is still regarded as a virtue, and yet the influencer needs to constructively engage with the self-presentation practice in order to receive attention and thus status (19). It is necessary for the influencer to appear as authentic and still maintain an edited and consistent online persona that is acceptable to the audience and can be regarded as marketable (18). The
aforementioned balancing act requires prioritizing performativity over being faithful to one's true self (You May Know Me 352).
The need for the careful maintaining and monitoring of the online self reveals that the performance of authenticity demands a certain type of consistent labour, which Marwick identifies as emotional immaterial labour. This concept describes a specific type of labour that is employed to promote the online self and thus boost online popularity (Status Update 58). Marwick’s conception of emotional immaterial labour is in line with the definition Hearn provides for the same type of labour. Hearn refers to this type as affective immaterial labour, which involves labour with the aim of garnering attention, reputation and eventually monetary value (Structuring Feeling 427).
Both conceptions are based on Maurizio Lazzarato’s 1996 concept of immaterial labour, which the author defined as “the labour that produces the informational and cultural content of the commodity” (133). This conception involves two aspects of labour. Firstly, the type regarding “the informational content of the commodity”, which involves the informational changes that took place within companies. Secondly, producing the “cultural content of the commodity” refers to activities that are not immediately recognized as work. Activities regarding shaping of tastes, fashion and public opinion are relevant examples to the present work (133). Terranova builds on the conception of immaterial labour and conceptualizes the type of labour that is performed within the digital economy, which she entitles free labour. Terranova notes that within the digital economy there is room for “experimentation with value and free cultural/affective labor” (38). The author argues this free labour can be related to “the creation of monetary value out of knowledge/culture/ affect” (38). Free labour here encapsulates both particular forms of production online and labour forms not instantly
recognized as being labour, which is in line with the concept of Lazzarato (38).
The ‘emotional’ in emotional immaterial labour signifies that the self-presentation strategy and fan interaction have emotional affects, which are in fact real (Marwick 351). Emotional
immaterial labour involves three tasks in particular (58). The first task is creating relationships with others and performing social interactions. The second task concerns sharing personal (sometimes even
vulnerable) information, with the goal of performing authentically. The last task involves the creation of a very specific sense of self, which should be both authentic and constructed. To put it briefly, influencers engage with a specific type of immaterial labour, which is essential for their authenticity performance, in order to create affective bonds with their audience. These affective bonds are of importance, since it is because of these bonds influencers are able to engage with commercial
arrangements. In this thesis this specific type of labour is addressed as affective immaterial labour, in order to signify the connection between this type of labour and the creation of affective bonds.
For the micro-celebrity authenticity can also be seen as a differentiating agent, not only from other micro-celebrities and traditional celebrities but also from traditional media (Marwick, They’re Really 2). As established, the micro-celebrity is namely framed as being more interactive and
authentic then traditional celebrity because of the direct fan interaction (Status Update 18). It is telling that influencers often refer to their following as ‘followers’ instead of ‘fans’, using this term is
beneficial to the influencer since it conceals the difference in status and is an attempt at reducing the social distance between the influencer and their fans (Abidin, Communicative Intimacies n.pag.). Moreover, micro-celebrity appear to be “less controlled” than traditional celebrity, which is also the result of revealing intimate personal details with the aim of performing in an authentic way (Marwick, You May Know Me 351). In the case of fashion bloggers, Marwick argues that authenticity
differentiates them from fashion magazines, which can appear to be less relatable since they make use of unaffordable commodities and models who do not resemble the average woman (349). Thus, authenticity can represent a means for differentiation between content created by traditional media and user generated content (They’re Really 3).
In They’re Really Profound Women, They’re Entrepreneurs Marwick researches what authenticity means in a more concrete way by interviewing thirty fashion bloggers. The findings are relevant to this thesis as fashion bloggers are influencers, the author finds authenticity to mean three things (4). Firstly, authenticity relates to revealing information about the true self. Secondly,
authenticity refers to fostering a responsive relationship with followers and extending honesty and transparency to this relationship, through this there are intimacies created between influencer and following. Thirdly, authenticity involves “an honest engagement with commodity goods and brands” (4), thus the influencer should express their honest personal opinion and style, without this being motivated by commercial opportunities. In sum, according to Marwick, authenticity is best described as “a fluctuating set of affective relations between individuals, audiences, and commodities” (7). Especially within the fashion blogger sphere, honesty and sincerity are of main importance, since this field is centred around commodities, the influencer can thus employ the concept of authenticity as “a boundary strategy between selfhood and neoliberal capitalism” (2). This is also true for influencers in general, whose practice is inherently connected to the promotion of commodities.
2.3.2 The Influencer and Strategic Intimacy
As the preceding paragraphs established the authenticity performance entails the strategic
performance of intimacy employed to appeal to the audience (Marwick, You May Know Me 333). According to Abidin, the appeal of influencers lies in the sense of intimacy, which is understood as a sense of familiarity and closeness followers feel towards the influencer (Communicative Intimacies n.pag.). This impression of intimacy is central to the influencer practice, since it allows the influencer
“to convey the closeness and relatability upon which the success of their advertorials lie” (n.pag.). This is in accordance with the previous mentioned concept of ‘persona intimacy’: Abidin and Thompson, writing on blogshop models, argue that a strategy of persona intimacy is employed to allow these blogshop models to remain accessible to their audience (467). Therefore, the interactions between the audience and the models are framed to be of an egalitarian kind, rather than the
hierarchical and socially distant relationships between traditional celebrities and fans (468). It should be noted this persona intimacy is generally driven by latent commercial interests (472). Here in the case of these blogshop models they induce “emotional attachments to their commercially motivated persona”, in this way they create an attachment to the model’s persona instead of to the products they are selling (472). A similar point can be made for influencers, Abidin argues that their specific appeal lies in this impression of intimacy and the way this manifests, namely through engaging with
followers in an intimate and exclusive manner, so that followers feel that the influencer remains accessible (n.pag.).
For the micro-celebrity the notions of audiences and communities are essentially blended (Senft, Micro-Celebrity 350). While these two different groups used to require distinct modes of addressing, now these modes converge. That is to say, the following of micro-celebrity require both to be spoken at as well as be spoken with (350). The micro-celebrity practice involves a certain
responsiveness to the audience, the micro-celebrity interacts with their audience in order to create emotional ties with them. Increasing and maintaining the audience here involves sharing personal information with the audience in a strategic manner and performing intimate connections in order to create a certain sense of closeness or even friendship (Marwick, Status Update 250). According to Berryman and Kavka in the case of influencers mediatized intimacy is also a means to support product-oriented engagements; here influence and intimacy is fused into a source of both money and fame (307-308).
In his article on transgender vlogging and its capitalization of intimacy Tobias Raun argues that intimacy figures as a currency within social media platforms, since it can be capitalized with the aim of commercially benefiting herefrom (99). The micro-celebrity practice includes utilizing real emotional affect, following Raun I argue that “the micro-celebrity’s enactment of affective labour is an essential part of their trustworthiness and authenticity” (108). That is to say, intimacy is a
fundamental component of the attraction of micro-celebrities, therefore it assumes the form of a currency (109). This is in line with Jerslev’s account of the notion, who argues that in the case of the micro-celebrity the performance of the intimate and authentic self can be categorized as attention generating; this type of performance is considered to be “one of the most valuable commodities in social media celebrification” (5240).
In this section it is established that the micro-celebrity practice and the performance of both intimacy and authenticity are essentially interlinked. The performance of intimacy and authenticity, through strategically sharing personal and intimate information and interacting with the audience, are integral to the self-presentation technique and thus a requirement to the practice. Furthermore, sharing personal information is also considered to be a marker for the performance of authenticity (Marwick 418-419). Performing intimacy is therefore also a part of the authenticity performance as the display of intimacy can transform into the perception of authenticity (Arthurs et al. 8). The same argument
can be made for the other way around: the performance of intimacy requires a performance of authenticity.
To conclude, for beauty vloggers authenticity has come to mean a variety of different things. Authenticity here is a style and a narrative, a consistency in actions. Authenticity is an attribute, which is granted to you by other people. Authenticity entails reaching a certain intimacy level with
followers, appearing accessible to these followers and becoming familiar with these followers through the formation of affective bonds. The influencer practice and its authenticity here involve an intrinsic contradiction, namely between the interests of the community and the interests of businesses. The intimacy and authenticity performance, which are also attention generating devices, can thus be considered to be a valuable commodity for the micro-celebrity, this performance requires affective immaterial labour. The influencer can then capitalize on this performance, because of the generated trustworthiness. This trustworthiness is relevant to the influencer, since they can only be effective as marketing entities if their followers value and trust their opinion, which is further elaborated on in subsection 2.4.2. Ultimately, the influencer’s performance of authenticity and intimacy is of value because it is deemed to be the key to require both attention and reputation. These notions are
significant to the influencer practice, since they can be translated into value, which is discussed in the following section.
2.4 “Please Like, Comment and Subscribe”: the Digital Economic Environment of the Influencer Within the following section the digital economic environment the influencer is situated in is explored. This digital environment is relevant to address since it allows for the comprehension of certain notions that determine how the influencer creates value. Furthermore, this environment includes a specific socio-economic dynamic that needs to be explored with regard to the influencer practice. For the influencer this dynamic encompasses the notions of attention and reputation, which are therefore discussed in the subsequent subsections.
2.4.1 The Attention Economy
The attention economy represents a change in the way consumers are reached, the competition for attention now equals the competition for consumer activity. This is especially relevant to the influencer, since attention can thus result into them being more effective as a commercial entity. Herbert Simon, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, was the first to discuss the concept of an economy centred around attention in 1971. The following quote elucidates how Simon saw the role of attention within a world with an abundance of information:
In an information-rich world, the wealth of information means a dearth of something else: a scarcity of whatever it is that information consumes. What information consumes is rather obvious: it consumes the attention of its recipients. Hence a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention and a need to allocate that attention efficiently among the overabundance of information sources that might consume it. (40-41)
Thus, according to the author a world with an abundance of information would produce a deficiency of attention. In 1997 Michael Goldhaber further builded on of this particular line of thinking by arguing there should be native economic laws to the internet, especially since we live parts of our life within this space (n.pag.). The biggest difference between the economic laws natural to this specific space and the economics of “the information age” is the fact that attention is is now the most scarce (n.pag.). Interestingly enough, Goldhaber specifically points out the new class divisions the attention economy produces, namely “stars vs. fans” (n.pag.). According to the author, the objective in of a “full-fledged attention economy” is to gather attention, either just sufficient attention or an abundance of it. This is relevant since attention can result into the performance of physical acts; paying attention can turn into the desire or even the sense of an obligation to follow the wishes of the one paid
attention to (n.pag.). For fans this often manifests in the willingness to do anything for the star, which includes spending money. Thus, the competition for attention results into a competition for consumer action. That is to say, attention can directly result into monetary value: “money now flows along with attention” (n.pag.).
As noted by Fairchild, for advertisers the attention economy is now a well-established reality, since they cannot longer blindly rely on garnering and keeping attention in the information-saturated world we live in (359). Hence, advertisers engaged with new modes of thinking in order to come up with new marketing strategies that would allow for the creation of relationships with consumers that are simultaneously durable and flexible (359). According to Marwick the contemporary attention economy evaluates visibility as as being equal to status (Status Update 260). Therefore, the attraction of “eyeballs” becomes of main importance, which is the case for both brands and individuals (You May Know Me 348). Both brands and individuals are thus in the competition for the same scarce resource, namely attention. As discussed in a previous subsection, both attention and visibility are considered to be status markers for the micro-celebrity and the practice is even described by Marwick as being status-seeking in nature (Status Update 286). Accordingly, micro-celebrity actively pursue the gathering of attention and increasing their visibility. The existence of the micro-celebrity practice is thus intrinsically connected to the contemporary media-saturated landscape and the attention economy that has come into being because of it.
For social media influencers the fact that attention and visibility lead to status is exemplified by the way YouTubers often end their videos: “as always if you enjoyed watching this video then please do not forget to give it a thumbs up, subscribe to my channel and do not forget to hit the notification bell to get a notification everytime I upload” (NikkieTutorials, I Tried Following n.pag.). These actions presumably allow for the influencer to become more visible within the YouTube algorithm ranking. Therefore, asking followers to perform these actions is quite literally asking for attention, within the attention economy this is thus a manifestation of how influencers attempt to gain status.
2.4.2 Reputation as Social Capital
Another notion of importance within the digital socio-economic environment in which the influencer practices is that of reputation. The construction of an authentic online persona and the activities that encompasses this construction are not aimed at conveying social status, rather it is aimed at the creation and management of reputation (Caliandro and Gandini 95). In the current subsection I argue
that the influencer performance is captured in the online reputation, which figures as a source for trust.
This subsection follows Hearn by exploring reputation as “the aggregation of attention” (Structuring Feeling 434). Reputation is generated by the attention and understanding of other individuals, as such it is obtained from “the performance of effective attention-getting itself” (423). Hearn argues that this includes sharing one’s beliefs and feelings online, nowadays digital reputation is thus derived from one’s online performance. Following Hearn, reputation should be treated as a cultural product, which is ultimately conditioned by the manner in which it is produced. Therefore, reputation is something one is subjected to, meaning that the production of reputation is out of the control of the individual who bears the reputation and out of the control of the individuals generating the reputation (424).
The relation between the concept of reputation and self-branding is extensively examined by the author, who argues that one’s social relationships online should be seen as one’s social capital, which can be collected and conveyed as one’s digital reputation (422). Contemporary social media platforms and their metrics allow for the creation of public and available information on an
individual’s affective bonds (429), therefore social media metrics allow for a visible, tangible and to some extent measurable representation of this digital reputation (422; Gandini 38). Digital reputation is defined by Hearn as “the general public feeling or sentiment about a product, person or service” (422). The author further argues that in the current digital environment, one’s digital reputation can be seen as functioning as a form of currency, and more broadly as value (422). Especially in the context of self-branding this is true (426), one could argue that the dynamics of reputation and self-branding are associated to the creation of value.
For Hearn practices related to the creation of online reputation, such as ranking, rating and providing feedback, are in a way similar to the practice of self-branding. Both these practices engage with a mode that Hearn calls ‘structuring feeling’, where one’s feelings and experiences are
represented online in a structured way (422). Within this mode individual visibility and control is deemed as important, fame is equal to money, and one must know how to manipulate affect (423). Hearn further argues that within the contemporary online culture public intimacy is becoming
increasingly emergent; this is relevant since public intimacy, here expressing individual emotions and affect online, is directly related to financial worth. Hearn cites Arvidsson and Peitersen here, and follows them by arguing that there is a new standard of value emerging, namely one related to public affect, such as reputation (Arvidsson and Peitersen 8-9). In other words, value now revolves around the capacity to create some form of public affect, which can then be measured through social media metrics (8-9). This is closely related to the influencer practice and its objective of the creation of affective bonds with the audience in order to capitalize on them. Thus, to tie the notions of attention and reputation together, in the case of the influencer the goal of self-branding is effectively
accumulating attention and reputation in order to commercially benefit herefrom (Hearn 427). To achieve this the practice requires are form of affective immaterial labour.
Hearn notes that online self-expressions of the affective kind are not strictly considered to be free labour. However, the practice does contain some characteristics of free labour, as it forms a free source of financial benefits (436). The same argument can be made for the the practice of ranking, rating and providing feedback; the practice contributes to the creation of value, albeit this does not
necessarily benefit the person engaging in this practice in a direct way (434-435). Hearn concludes by arguing that the process of providing feedback or rating a product can directly result into the gathering of monetary value. As an example she provides the case of YouTubers encouraging viewers to like, comment and subscribe to their content, since on YouTube these metrics “equal more remuneration from YouTube” (435). Thus the process of providing feedback, ranking and rating here is explicitly beneficial to the influencer, by adding value to their content, while this might not be the intention of the one providing feedback (435).
As per Hearn’s account reputation can thus be understood as a resource to be employed by influencers, which is similar to Gandini’s line of argumentation. In his book The Reputation Economy Alessandro Gandini presents an exploration of the notion of trust within the reputation economy relevant for understanding the contemporary influencer practice. The author argues that having a good reputation “is the element that enables the achievement of professional outcomes and income” (36). Following this reasoning the author argues that reputation can be seen as a resource to be employed by an individual: “as a capital that is invested, traded or managed in a plurality of contexts” (36). In this manner, reputation can be conceived as the digital society’s social capital and the management of one’s reputation can be conceived as a particular investment in social relations (36). Moreover, the aim of this investment is expected economic return (36). According to Gandini trust is a different notion than reputation: if reputation can be seen as the social capital of our digital society, then it functions as the source of trust within this society (37). In other words, through a good reputation one can expect a certain trustworthiness, as such reputation functions as an immaterial form of currency (38). The author states this can be established because online reputation now figures as a shared cultural understanding of reputation as value (38). In this way, reputation can function as a translating device, as it translates both online and offline interaction into value (39). Accordingly, social media platforms and their affordances and metrics translate this reputation is into value, which is of importance to influencers and advertisers that want to employ them (Arthurs et al. 8)
3. Studying Influencer Authenticity: a Medium-Specific Cross-Platform Analysis of YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat
3.1 Cross-Platform Analysis of the Influencer Performance
This section discusses the cross-platform performance of contemporary influencers, within this thesis an analysis of this use of multiple platforms is conducted in order to make claims on whether their roles are different with regard to the authenticity performance. This thesis aims to contribute to the existing knowledge gap by carrying out a cross-platform analysis of the self-presentation technique of contemporary influencers. The analysis of the influencer practice across multiple platforms is inspired by the cross-platform analysis that Richard Rogers describes: “the cross-platform approach is a deliberate strategy, and each platform is approached and utilised separately for its own qualities and opportunities” (Rogers, Digital Methods for Cross-Platform Analysis 96). This cross-platform approach is chosen since influencers make use of different platforms in different ways; the different platforms and their affordances are relevant to take into account, since the contemporary influencer practice is only able to exist within these platforms and the influencer is only able to self-represent themselves through the technological affordances.
The following paragraphs aim to further clarify what is implied by the term cross-platform analysis in the present work. The following analysis examines the self-presentation strategy of influencers across multiple platforms, in order to do this both the interface of the platforms and the content of influencers is analysed. This specific approach allows for determining to what extent influencers adapt their content according to the platforms they are using. This is relevant since this allows for making claims on the different roles the different platforms play within the performance of both authenticity and intimacy. Thus, the aim is not to compare the platforms per se, rather the aim is to examine what each platform affords the influencer performance. Furthermore, the analysis explores whether influencer appropriate the technological affordances for their practice.
Following Rogers it is interesting to think of the distinction between cross-media and transmedia, made by Jenkins. The term cross-media refers to “the use of these other media platforms as simple delivery mechanisms for the same old content” (Jenkins, T is for Transmedia n.pag.). This is different from the term transmedia, which refers to storytelling across multiple platforms, where each different text contributes to the whole story in a distinctive and thus valuable manner
(Convergence Culture 95-96). The author argues that ideally each medium is deployed for their own specific qualities, or for “what it does best” (96). In the case of transmedia storytelling the viewer acquires new information as they follow the story across different media, therefore transmedia storytelling “encourages additive comprehension” (T is for Transmedia n.pag.). This is the added value of transmedia storytelling, allowing viewers to read the text across media adds a certain depth to the experience, which in turn stimulates more consumption (Convergence Culture 96). Moreover, this form offers new insights and experiences, and as a result bolsters and maintains consumer loyalty (96). In the context of conducting Digital Methods research on social and cultural questions Rogers noted that “if we are to follow Jenkins a discussion of cross-platform analysis would be more aptly described as trans-platform analysis” (8). In this thesis I aim to examine whether the same can be said on influencer self-presentation by asking whether they employ a deliberate transmedia narrative across different platforms.
