Master thesis
Does your culture gene affect your fashion soul?
A research into how cultural factors influent the success of fashion bloggers from
the Netherlands, the United Sates and Taiwan.
Author: Tammy (Ya-ting) Lee Student Number: 10602690
MSc. in Business Administration- Marketing Track Faculty of Economics and Business
University of Amsterdam
Supervisor: Dr. Lee, Hsin-Hsuan (Meg) Second reader:
Abstract
There are various research studies that define the factors of successful fashion blogs. This study
is founded on the theory of cultural capital based on cultural differences, and analyzes the visual and
written content of blogs from Taiwan, the United States, and the Netherlands. The cultural factors
individualism, collectivism, narcissism, and materialism are proven to have decisive influences on the
presentation of fashion blogs when they try to build a mass audience. This paper offers a first
hand-collected dataset, involving the different ways bloggers obtain cultural capital by displaying taste
judgment. The analysis extensively codes the presentation of blogs, including photos, feedbacks,
content length, writing styles, and the attainment of economic and social capital. According to the
results, collectivism encourages the bloggers to share more photos, expansive writing, and personal
information, while individualism triggers the opposite effect. Narcissism and materialism, on the other
hand, affect the frequency of incidences of bloggers self-modeling, boasting, and use of luxury items.
Therefore, it is practical for both consumer fashion bloggers and international marketers to take
Preface / Acknowledgements
Dear reader, before you start reading my thesis to find out what the relationship between the
culture gene and fashion soul is, there are some things I would like to share with you first. In this
research study, you will find a survey of how the cultural factors collectivism, individualism,
narcissism, and materialism prove that successful fashion bloggers are driven by their cultural
background when they blog.
Twelve months ago, I started this research based on my work experience with bloggers, the
interest in cultural differences, and my passion for fashion. The massive and confidential data retrieved
have turned this study into a long process. This paper fully records this lengthy procedure and I am
very happy with what has been accomplished. This thesis is a fully original and independent work.
However, it would not have been successful without the faith of others. First of all, I want to thank my
partner, Hein Harlaar, for all his support and inspiration. He not only believed in me finishing this
thesis, but also made many suggestions to improve the structure. I also want to thank my parents, who
are far away in Taiwan, and my good friends Hsunyi Huang, Kanykei Dordoeva, Yvette Bongers,
Bettina Uri, and Lanyue Liu for all the feedback they provided. Most importantly, I want to thank my
supervisor Meg, for many long meetings, all the useful suggestions, clear guidelines, and her patience.
the best supervisor I could have wished for. Last, I would like to thank you, the reader. It has been a
great journey and thus, I wish you an enjoyable reading time.
Table of Contents
Abstract ... 2
Preface / Acknowledgements ... 3
1. Introduction ... 7
2. Literature review ... 13
2.1. Consumer fashion blogs ... 13
2.2. Cultural capital ... 17
2.2.1. Individualist and Collectivist cultures ... 21
2.2.2. Narcissism ... 23 2.2.3. Materialism ... 26 2.3 Conclusion ... 29 3. Methodology ... 30 3.1. Research Design ... 30 3.1.1. Country selection ... 30 3.1.2. Netnography ... 31 3.1.3. Time span ... 31 3.2. Field research ... 32 3.2.1. Blog Sampling ... 32 3.2.2. Blog Analysis ... 37 3.2.3. Coding Method ... 39 4. Results ... 46 4.1. Overview ... 46 4.2. Key Results ... 51 4.3. Picture Style ... 53
4.3.2. The content of pictures ... 55
4.4. Bloggers’ writing style ... 61
4.4.1. Topics ... 61 4.4.2. Writing Content ... 63 4.4.3. Sponsorship ... 68 4.4.4. Readers’ comments ... 72 5. Discussion ... 76 5.1. Cultural factors ... 76
5.1.1. Individualism and Collectivism ... 77
5.1.2. Narcissism ... 78
5.1.3. Materialism ... 80
5.2. Strengths and limitations of this research ... 81
5.3. Future research ... 83
6. Conclusion ... 88
7. References ... 90
1.
Introduction
The formation of blogs, which allows people to post pictures, content, and videos easily, and the
availability of blog sites, such as Blogspot.com, Wordpress and Pixnet, have given individuals a
platform to share their experiences, opinions, and creativity with a mass online audience. Blogging is
important in today’s social media arena, as more and more individuals now look to blog sites for
sources of information, as opposed to traditional media. In 2003, it was reported that there were less
than one million identified blogs worldwide, but the number speedily increased to 173 million in 2011,
with more than one million new posts produced per day across various platforms (Blogpulse, 2011;
Statista, 2012). By the end of 2014, this number reached over 200 million new posts per day.
Fashion, travel, food, and technology are just some of the popular topics covered by blogs. This
research study focuses on fashion blogs for two reasons. First, the fashion industry has achieved far
beyond its immediate borders, both in terms of sales and influence on ordinary people, compared to
other industries (Mcquarrie et al. 2013). Second, the close relationship between fashion bloggers and
companies is another incentive for this study, as it could influence and contribute direct practical
outcomes for the companies involved. While fashion bloggers have the same goal in mind – to reach a
wide audience and give advice on current trends based on their taste judgments– the factors
very subjective opinion, since it is a way to be identified as an individual within a group (Arsel &
Thompson, 2011), affiliate with society (Holt, 1998), and readjust one’s taste to that of others. Taste
varies according to personal background, such as country of origin and cultural differences. Thus, this
research emphasizes the influence of cultural factors, and examines how these factors change the ways
in which fashion bloggers present their blogs.
The effects of blogs in different cultures are typically relevant for international companies for their
marketing strategies. Blogs not only give an opportunity to companies to learn about their consumers’
needs and to communicate and share information with consumers more directly, but also enables the
brands to cooperate with blogs to affect customers’ buying decisions. According to a marketing study
by Word Press Virtuoso (2013), blogs hold a decisive sway over customers’ purchasing decisions and
behaviors. The data indicates that the information on blogs helps 40% of customers to decide or be
satisfied with what to buy, assists 17% to discover a new product or service, and inspires 13% of the
survey responders to make a purchase.
Previous studies have used different factors such as blog features and the personality of bloggers to
explain the effect of blogs (Matsumura, Yamamoto, & Tomozawa, 2008). Some studies examine the
the style and extent of engagement. For instance, Tan & Nah (2013) have conducted research on the
frequency and consistency of blog posts, the scope and originality of contents, and the persuasion
styles of individual bloggers. However, no research so far has taken cultural factors into consideration
despite the fact that taste is closely connected to cultural aesthetics and judgment of taste is the
foundation of all blogs (Mcquarrie et al. 2013).
How to manage the power of fashion bloggers effectively by being aware of cultural differences, to
establish positive brand image, and persuade consumers to purchase products in various markets are
important marketing topics. While fashion blogging is an international phenomenon, there is a lack of
research comparing blogs across countries. Previous research focused mainly on American blogs or
solely on blogs from a specific region, such as Scandinavian blogs in Sweden, Finland (Sepp et al.,
2011), and Norway (Hauge, 2010), and blogs in Asia, such as Singapore and Hong Kong (Lee et al.,
2011). In order to exert their power of taste leadership, bloggers need to have a sense of the aesthetic
preferences of the community first (Thompson, 2011). Taste preferences, such as choosing clothes, can
be used to identify the community or (sub) cultures to which the bloggers belong (Mcquarrie et al.
2013). Hence, bloggers are likely to differ in their ways of exerting influence due to the variety of
influence when comparing blogs across cultures, this study establishes a detailed comparison of
blogging behavior in different societies.
In this paper, a comparison of fashion blogs originating from different cultures is made to identify
the key differences between the blogs and to explain why these variations exist. Fashion blogs become
influential and achieve publicity by means of collecting, evaluating, and posting anything related to
clothes, styles, and trends. I probe into the success of fashion blogs by the achievement of cultural
capital, which is defined by Mcquarrie et al. (2013), with respect to the fashion industry, as “The
capacity to exercise taste in the sense of discrimination of aesthetic quality”. The more cultural capital
a blogger gains, the more likely they are to be successful and welcomed by the general public. In order
to divide the blogs by cultural influence, I examine both visual and written content to compare the
diversities of display.
Several cultural factors may be used to explain the differences in blogging behaviors when it
comes to gathering cultural capital. For instance, Sia et al. (2009) have found that people in
individualist cultures, such as the majority in Australia, tend to deal with both in-group (e.g. local
peers, family members, friends, etc.), and out-group (e.g. foreigners, foreign organizations, etc.)
or goals of in-groups, form their behaviors according to in-group norms, and behave in a communal
way. On the other hand, people prefer to stand out more and act differently from others in individualist
cultures. Following the theories of Sia et al. (2009), Lim et al. (2006), and Mills & Clark (1982), this
paper addresses whether differences in the ways fashion bloggers achieve cultural capital can be
explained and supported by theories of cultural difference. Moreover, bloggers are seemingly naturally
narcissistic, as they use blogs as a platform for self-promoting, boasting (Jean & W. Keith, 2010), and
obtaining satisfaction through the feedback of their followers (Morf & Rhodewalt, 2001). The
over-claiming and control-oriented leadership character of narcissists (Jean & W. Keith, 2010) could imply
why these amateur individuals, who are considered non-professional in fashion and media industries,
are confident enough to boast and become aesthetic taste leaders by blogging. On the other hand,
materialism reveals the importance of the possession of goods, which define the characters of
individuals (Richins & Dawson, 1992). Therefore, it can be assumed that blogs that emphasize
shopping, expensive luxury brands, free gifts, or sponsorships apply materialism in order to gain
cultural capital.
Cultural circumstances certainly have an impact on how bloggers present themselves. However,
there are hardly any studies about the application of marketing strategies with respect to bloggers in
different cultures, even though these are essential to gaining a better understanding of the efficacy of
What is the influence of cultural factors on the presentation of successful fashion blogs from
different cultures (such as the Netherlands, the United States, and Taiwan) and how do they
differ from each other when they try to gain cultural capital?
In this study, blogs from Taiwan, the United States (U.S.), and the Netherlands are employed as
case studies, due to the phenomenal blogging scene that has developed there. The key purpose of this
qualitative research is to gain insight into the effects of cultural factors on the content, style, and
influence of online fashion blogs. Besides answering the research question, this paper strives to explain
the observed differences in blogging behavior between the various cultures. In the end, companies
using blogging as a marketing strategy are offered an insight into how to adapt their approaches to
2.
Literature review
This chapter begins with a discussion of the definitions of consumer fashion blogs. The second
section contains a discussion of cultural capital and how to determine the success of blogs. The
subsequent sections elaborate on the cultural factors: collectivism, individualism, narcissism, and
materialism. As a result, following the definitions of central concepts of cultural influence, these are
applied to the analysis of the diverse presentations of successful fashion blogs.
2.1. Consumer fashion blogs
As defined by Rettberg (2008), blogs are webpages normally managed by individuals, which
provide content and links to other sites and allow audiences to leave comments. McConnel & Huba
(2007) also assessed that there are no boundaries for or limits to blogs; individuals can post news,
information, pictures, graphics, and videos without having to edit or control the posts. As a result,
consumer blogs are often run by non-professional individuals, who do not necessarily have any
expertise in the industry, but who blog out of their personal interest. For example, consumer fashion
bloggers write about topics such as clothing, accessories, styles, and cosmetics without having any
relevant experience within the fashion industry. Despite this, fashion bloggers still gain mass attention
and influence by means of collecting, evaluating, and posting according to their aesthetic preferences,
The importance of blogs in today’s society can be explained by the phenomenon of electronic
Word of Mouth (eWOM), which is especially prominent in the blogosphere. There are two different
kinds of eWOM: organic and amplified (WOMMA, 2011; Kulmala, Mesiranta & Tuominen, 2013).
The former occurs when an individual wants to share a positive or negative experience about a certain
product or company. The latter takes place when marketers use blogging as part of a campaign or
marketing strategy. However, it is important to note that even though amplified is not as varied and
pure as organic eWOM content, consumer fashion bloggers consider them to function similarly
(Kulmala, Mesiranta & Tuominen, 2013). Therefore, even though both sponsored posts of blogs and
the brand commercials are promoting the same item and content, audiences are more willing to trust
the recommendations of bloggers as sincere opinions.
Kulmala et al. (2013) also indicate that many different forms of fashion blog marketing could be
applied, such as organizing competitions with bloggers, supplying bloggers with products or gift
vouchers, or establishing a continuous relationship with a blogger through a cooperation agreement.
Therefore, it is important for brands and marketers to realize the limitation of manipulating the content
of blogs when they sponsor the posts. The sponsored content needs to fit with the bloggers’ own style
and match with their sense of dress. Otherwise, bloggers might receive negative feedback from their
Following Mcquarrie et al. (2013), the importance and subsequent effect of eWOM have been
coined as the “megaphone effect”. This indicates that ordinary people can have access to and maintain
a substantial influence over a mass audience through the Internet. This further highlights that, in
certain industries, blogs run by unprofessional people have garnered enormous attention and become a
competitive force for traditional media, as they have the influence is powered outstanding aesthetic
discrimination. The megaphone effect is one form of eWOM, but which involves more frequent,
ongoing communication between ordinary people and a mass audience. Bloggers are also seen as
opinion leaders or marketmavens (Kozinets et al. 2010). Mcquarrie et. al (2013) argue that the
boundaries between media professionals and amateurs have become blurred. Thus, there is no need for
institutional certification or enablement to reach potential consumers.
Furthermore, blogs are actually threatening the authority of traditional media, like newspapers and
television (TV) commercials. The relevance of advertising in traditional media has been decreasing
because of the increasing influence of blogs. This forces companies in the fashion industry and
traditional media to adapt to this new method of online marketing. The megaphone effect of bloggers
in particular has fundamentally changed the marketing and media strategies of the fashion industry.
This eWOM effect demonstrates how the influence of bloggers can be used in the online marketing
positive with the sponsored brand and more likely to purchase the products. However, in order for
companies to adapt to this new method of online marketing, it is important for them to be aware of the
factors that contribute to a successful blog.
The success of fashion blogs lies in the ability of bloggers to accumulate cultural capital
(Mcquarrie et al., 2013). In other words, most of the bloggers who are not trained or have not worked
as professionals in the creative industry, achieved a certain level of experience to allow them to
become society’s fashion guides or opinion leaders. By posting, practicing styling, and interacting with
readers, bloggers gain more experiences and ideas of fashion tastes. This is known as cultural capital.
The bloggers need to have the capability of styling taste, captivating writing skills, or outstanding
photos to attract audiences to establish their fashion authority. If they are not able to obtain cultural
capital, they would not be able to establish themselves as experts in the field of fashion.
A plethora of literature discusses the meaning and effect of cultural capital. Rettberg (2008)
defined the meaning of blogs, while eWOM (Kulmala, Mesiranta and Tuominen, 2013) and the
megaphone effect (Mcquarrie et al., 2013) illustrate the power of blogs. Both theories shed light on the
importance of consumer fashion blogs, which are run by non-professional individuals. The capabilities
limitations on outer forces, such as marketers, to manipulate the presentations of blogs. This study
further examines how cultural factors impact bloggers’ abilities to gain positive attention from a mass
audience, and how bloggers accumulate cultural capital according to the country they are living in.
2.2. Cultural capital
Drawing on the work of Bourdieu (1992), cultural capital can be defined as forms of knowledge
(values, traditions, beliefs) that have value in society in relation to status and power. Fashion bloggers
can thus be theorized as “individuals who start with some capacity for taste and proceed to accumulate
cultural capital from its repeated exercise and display” (Mcquarrie, Miller, & Phillips, 2013, P.139).
Therefore, fashion bloggers perform as cultural capitalists, accumulating more and more cultural
capital by engaging with and exercising dominant aesthetic tastes. As long as bloggers’ displays of
taste have reached a certain audience size, the cultural capital of bloggers can be converted into
economic and social capital, as bloggers begin to be part of the established fashion system (Mcquarrie
et al. 2013). Economic capital involves concrete material rewards, for instance, money or free gifts. On
the other hand, social capital is an abstract bonus, such as social connections, exclusive event
invitations as a Very Important Person (VIP) guest for fashion shows, and public prestige (publicity
Furthermore, fashion bloggers accumulate cultural capital in various ways. For instance, one of
the main reasons why fashion bloggers are so successful is because of their unique and outstanding
fashion tastes, and their creativity in crafting their own styles and looks. Unlike Bourdieu’s definition
of “habitus”, the choices made by fashion bloggers are not influenced by their professional
background, but through adapting to trends. Moreover, studies by Holt (1998), Berger & Ward (2010),
Bernthal, Crockett, & Rose (2005), Henry (2005), and Üstüner & Holt (2010) indicate the problem of
Bourdieu’s underlying assumption of habitus: “Under its original conception as a form of habitus, no
ordinary consumer could possess or even acquire cultural capital, inasmuch as ‘ordinary,’ consistent
with Turner (2010), means not endowed with preexisting social position” (Mcquarrie, Miller, and
Phillips 2013, P.138). As such, fashion bloggers today do not need to have a relevant educational or
professional background. Their success lies in their ability to notice, learn, adapt to, and even create
new trends.
By informing audiences about current trends, fashion blogs become a point of reference for
consumers before purchasing items. Nowadays, in order to gain more information on specific products
they are interested in, consumers look for reviews from other consumers who have previous purchase
experiences (Hennig-Thurau & Walsh, 2003). Online channels, especially blogs, which provide
ways bloggers can accumulate cultural capital, as they are regarded as an important point of reference
for consumers.
Moreover, in order to differ from other competitors and to influence a large audience, bloggers
have to display taste leadership. Cultural capital in the fashion field “can now refer to the capacity to
exercise taste in the sense of discrimination of aesthetic quality” (Mcquarrie, Miller, & Phillips 2013,
P.139). Customers want to be different from the style controlled and delivered by fashion institutions.
However, at the same time, they do not really know how to establish their own style. As stated by Arsel
& Thompson (2011), consumers learn to calibrate their tastes to a field, community, or group with
which they identify—to join with others who share the same taste regime (Arsel & Bean 2013). The
internet and online social media have made the communication between individuals and others much
faster and easier. This enables the followers of blogs to obtain diverse information quickly and find
groups of styles they belong to. Through commenting, they feel part of the fashion community of their
choice.
Additionally, bloggers bridge the gap between fashion and daily dress, and make their audiences
believe that they can be as stylish as they are by following their aesthetic discrimination. Continued
success in this endeavor requires diminishing the boundaries that separate a blogger from their
followers. Fashion blogging thus reveals how cultural capital can operate to remove rather than
cultural capital according to Lamont (1992), in which he argues that taste is exercised to exclude
others, which allows a certain elite to distinguish themselves from ordinary people. In summary, the
success of a fashion blog can be defined by the ability of the blogger to accumulate cultural capital
from exhibiting taste leadership, informing audiences about current trends, and encouraging
interpersonal exchange.
While a successful blog can be measured by its cultural capital, the ways of accumulating cultural
capital differ across cultures. This is because taste differs from country to country and thus, the
bloggers have to exhibit different methods to appeal to their respective audiences. Taste as a construct
is culturally bounded because it is a way of individuals to seek connection and identification within a
group (Holt, 1998). People follow the demotic trend and imitate the prevalent taste to fit in to the
community they belong to (Thompson, 2011). Thus, the methods and presentation of blogs for
attracting followers from different cultural backgrounds would vary according to the country they are
in.
The theories of cultural capital from Bourdieu (1992) and Mcquarrie et al. (2013) provide the
framework to define what is the success of fashion blogs and how is it achieved. Fashion bloggers
collect cultural capital by constantly exercising the dominant tastes of the cultures they are in. They
countries (Holt, 1998; Thompson, 2011), bloggers have to exercise taste in a particular way in order to
attract their target audience. If the aforementioned concept is taken into consideration, it is logical that
consumer fashion blogs are written from a cultural perspective.
Now that the key drivers behind successful fashion blogs have been identified, it is important to
understand how these drivers differ between countries. Specifically, it must be analyzed how cultural
factors affect the presentation of blogs. As this research paper compares bloggers from the U.S., the
Netherlands, and Taiwan, the next section discusses theories on individualist and collectivist cultures,
and how this might affect the choices made by bloggers.
2.2.1. Individualist and Collectivist cultures
People from collectivist cultures value the opinions of others more than individualists, and respond
more positively to their peers who also behave similarly (Cialdini et al. 1999). On the other hand,
people from individualist cultures appreciate uniqueness more and tend to dissociate themselves from
groups. They act based on their personal knowledge and attitudes, and not according to in-group norms
(Triandis & Harry, 2001). Conversely, collectivists are highly interested in interacting with in-group
members (Gudykunst et al., 1992). Bloggers from collectivist cultures therefore encourage
interpersonal exchange between followers to achieve cultural capital. They are more likely to share
details of their personal lives, constantly respond to the questions of followers, give explicit and long
People in individualist cultures, however, emphasize directness and efficiency (Triandis & Harry,
2001). They treat both group and out-group members more equally and, therefore, the power of
in-group norms is less influential compared to collectivist bloggers (Triandis & Suh, 2002). Individualists
prioritize their own needs and goals over the aims of their in-group (Triandis & Harry, 2001).
Therefore, bloggers from individualist cultures are less likely to encourage interpersonal exchange to
achieve cultural capital. Instead, they exhibit unique taste leadership for their personal gains, as
opposed to advising the audience explicitly on current (culturally defined) trends. Accordingly, in
terms of cultivating cultural capital, bloggers from individualist societies focus on their own styles,
while bloggers from collectivist countries focus more on in-group opinions, thus sharing more content
to create intimacy and trust.
Moreover, the consistency and stability of attitudes are important for individualists (Triandis &
Suh, 2002), while collectivists tend to care more about independence and sociability (Doney et al.,
1998). This is why bloggers from individualist cultures may share content, which is more consistent in
terms of style. They are less likely to change their style dramatically in order to keep a sense of
stability, which is key to accumulating cultural capital in individualist cultures. On the other hand,
bloggers from collectivist cultures, being less concerned with consistency and more with sociability,
Collectivism and individualism are the most representative and applicable cultural factors for this
study. They clarify the main differences between the Netherlands, the U.S., and Taiwan. According to
the discussed theories, it is expected that Taiwanese bloggers frequently interact with in-group
members (Gudykunst et al., 1992), write similar content, and dress more alike (Cialdini et al. 1999).
An abundance of personal information and long content is also likely to be found. Conversely, Dutch
and American bloggers are expected to emphasize the uniqueness of dressing styles (Triandis & Suh,
2002), try to differ from their in-groups, and display a consistent taste.
2.2.2. Narcissism
As blogging, by its very nature, is narcissistic, the following section discusses theories of
narcissism in order to assess if it can account for the ways fashion bloggers accumulate cultural
capital. Narcissism is the pursuit of satisfaction from vanity or admiration of one’s own attributes.
Individuals with narcissistic personality disorder are found to have highly positive self-ratings of their
agentic traits, such as independence and dominance (Campbell et al., 2002a). For example, Brown &
Zeigler-Hill (2004) argued that narcissists tend to show off their social status, privileges, intelligence,
and physical attractiveness. Narcissists gain confidence and satisfaction through feedback from their
peers. This is corroborated by Morf & Rhodewalt (2001), who claim that narcissists are involved in a
Self-presentation is a key concept of narcissism because they tend to show their advantages
attractiveness to gain positive feedback (Zeigler-Hill 2004). The way of self-presentation has
dramatically changed thanks to new technology (Jean & W. Keith, 2010). Blogs, for example, give
individuals a platform to present themselves to a wide online audience. As a result, individuals have
become more self-centered, spending time and energy to form a perfected image. They disclose
personal information (Amichai et al., 2010) in order to boast and garner attention. Moreover, people
committedly share pictures, quotes, and links for attention. ‘Like’ and ‘comment’ features on social
media platforms further provide instant gratification for individuals. This example of ‘fast fame’
encourages people to promote themselves in order to garner attention. Thus, another potential reason
for bloggers from collectivist cultures to post numerous images in one post, and at the same time
achieve cultural capital, derives from narcissistic tendencies.
Furthermore, narcissists not only tend to promote themselves (Jean & W. Keith, 2010) and are
eager to be leaders with dominant personalities (Campbell et al., 2002a), but they also believe
themselves to be all knowing (Jean & W. Keith, 2010). Therefore, bloggers are spontaneously
narcissistic, as they want to share, obtain feedback from others, and act as opinion leaders. Thus,
narcissism can explain why amateur bloggers are confident enough in the beginning to claim taste
Interestingly, studies on narcissism find higher levels of narcissistic traits in individualist
cultures (Foster et al., 2003). People from individualist countries demonstrate narcissistic
characteristics by being self-concerned, independent, and less caring about others, as well as pursuing
a high social status (Bradlee & Emmons, 1992). These traits contradict with collectivist cultures,
which emphasize intimate, communal relationships in tight-knit groups (Tanchotsrinon et. al, 2007).
Therefore, it is expected that fashion bloggers in individualist countries, such as the U.S. and the
Netherlands, show narcissistic traits when accumulating cultural capital. They are further expected to
exhibit taste leadership for their own personal gain, as they seek recognition for their posts.
For this self-concerned generation of bloggers, appearances are essential. Thus, the displays of
blogs are decisive for the success of bloggers. Additionally, the combination of celebrity culture and
media stimulate mass society to establish their personal images as a “brand” (Jean & W. Keith, 2010).
Therefore, in order to discover the presentation differences of bloggers due to cultural influences, it is
necessary to include narcissism in the discussion. The different degrees of narcissism may impact how
bloggers promote themselves for gaining cultural capital. For instance, the more narcissistic a culture
is, the more likely it is for a blogger to post more pictures of themselves modeling outfits or self-taken
photographs (commonly known as ‘selfies’). Self-modeling means demonstrating the outfits the
photographer, which are normally taken with a hand-held camera. Narcissists would be more eager to
post content, which is eye-catching and superficially captivating. On the contrary, bloggers from
cultures that do not excessively promote narcissism would discuss various topics, like the products,
rather than themselves.
However, all bloggers are narcissistic to a certain point, but individualist countries, especially
the U.S., a country defined by a highly matured narcissistic culture since the 1980s (Jean & W. Keith,
2010), is assumed to display narcissistic traits more than a collectivist country like Taiwan. The
theories suggest that people from narcissistic cultures boast more about privileges and physical
attractiveness (Zeigler-Hill, 2004) through pictures and words. More self-modeling photos and
dominant characteristics (Campbell et al., 2002a) are expected to be found. Furthermore, Narcissistic
people tend to demonstrate a positive orientation towards materialism. They are eager to gain power
(Jean & W. Keith, 2010), especially while boasting expensive items to demonstrate their power and
privilege. The following section further discusses theories of materialism.
2.2.3. Materialism
Materialism in philosophy is also called physicalism, which indicates a central purpose to acquire
material goods. People who are materialists believe in the importance of possessions in their lives, and
have shown that the desire of possessing material objects is essentially connected to compulsive or
addictive consumer habits (Dittmar, 2005a, 2005b). This is highly relevant to blogs, which display
tastes and advise audiences on what to wear and purchase.
Furthermore, materialism is connected with narcissism in numerous ways. Narcissism values
wealth, physical appearance, social status, and power (Brown & Zeigler-Hill 2004), which all require a
materialistic attitude and money. Nowadays, a person’s appearance can be augmented through plastic
surgery, personal training, expensive beauty products, and the like. However, this requires an extensive
income. Money can further connect celebrity and higher social classes that are influential in society.
According to Frambach, Roest, & Krishnan (2007), the process of purchasing can be perceived
in three individual stages: pre-purchase, purchase, and post-purchase. In order to gain more
information on a specific product they are interested in during the pre-purchase stage, consumers look
for reviews from other consumers who have previously purchased the same item (Hennig-Thurau &
Walsh, 2003). Online channels, especially blogs, which provide non-commercial but excellent
opinions, thereby become one of the best platforms and references for consumers before making
purchasing decisions.
Providing buying advice is one of the means by which bloggers accumulate cultural capital
cultures, the ways of presenting fashionable items and informing consumers of trends are different.
Materialists emphasize attractive, sponsored content due to the yielded benefit of economic capital
(sponsorship revenue) and their close brand partnerships. Therefore, for a blog, the higher the
materialist output is, the more likely it is that posts include more items from luxury brands,
sponsorship content, and relatively fashion irrelevant products.
Luxury brands are a modern set of symbols for Asian society members in particular to reform
their identities and social positions. The Taiwanese have the same obsession for designer goods that
sweeps most Asian countries today (Chadha & Husband, 2007). It is not surprising for an average
Taiwanese person to spend US$2-3000 on a bag, when that sum constitutes their monthly income
(Chadha & Husband, interview former head of Taipei 101, Lawrence Elms, 2007). Initially, Asian
customers bought luxury brands for the sake of their logos, which imply a social status. But as time
goes by, customers have evolved and absorbed the accumulated tastes of high-end fashion (Chadha &
Husband, 2007).
As the opinion leaders of the aesthetic realm, bloggers play a pivotal role in guiding their
audiences to higher levels of style, encouraging a keener awareness of seasonal trends, and creating
pattern, they shop luxury products more frequently, thus raising their personal acceptable price levels
and spending more money (Chadha & Husband, 2007).
In light of previous studies on materialism, this paper hypothesizes that materialistic countries
should emphasize the possessions of products (Richins & Dawson, 1992), especially brand luxury
items. The connection of addictive buying and materialism (Dittmar, 2005a, 2005b) should encourage
bloggers to write more about shopping recommendations, sponsored content, and include more photos
of products. Moreover, the status symbol and identity reform phenomenon (Chadha & Husband, 2007)
of Asian society suggest that Taiwanese blogs are likely to include a high percentage of luxury brand
outfits.
2.3 Conclusion
The theory of individualist and collectivist cultures provides a useful framework when analyzing
the key drivers of successful fashion blogs, and why fashion bloggers from different cultures
accumulate cultural capital in different ways. In addition, narcissism and materialism can also provide
an explanation for the ways in which bloggers achieve cultural capital and, when compared with
cultural factors, why bloggers from different cultures seek different types of recognition.
In the next part of this paper, the contents of a selection of successful blogs are thoroughly
analyzed. The results from this study are then compared with the above claims in order to answer the
3.
Methodology
In this chapter, the methodological process of Netnography is applied to the empirical analysis of
this paper. This section contains a discussion of field research to discover whether the cultural factors
have any influence on the presentations of blogs from different countries. It is composed of three
subsections. First, in the blog sampling in section 3.2.1., the definition and selection of successful
blogs are given. They are chosen based on leading social media channels and prestigious ranking
websites, such as Bloglovin and Style99. Second, in section 3.2.2., a blog analysis employs the theory
of cultural capital as a foundation to measure the bloggers’ abilities to demonstrate taste
discrimination. Then, the qualitative analysis software NVivo 9 and ground theory method are
introduced and linked with the third section 3.2.3., which discusses the coding method. As a result, the
central cultural factors and the coding comparison processes of this study are mapped.
3.1. Research Design
3.1.1. Country selection
In order to analyze and compare the key drivers of successful fashion blogs in different cultures,
the Netherlands and Taiwan are chosen as examples to represent Eastern and Western countries based
on similar size of the population and territory. The U.S. is added, as it is the country with the highest
3.1.2. Netnography
In this study, samples of blogs from the three countries are collected and analyzed with
netnography (Kozinets, 1964). Netnography is a qualitative research method by nature because it
involves the observation of textual discourse (Kozinets, 2002). This method is suitable because it is an
immersive social media approach and offers high accessibility to a broad spectrum of respondents
(Cooke, 2008), such as bloggers and followers. The non-participant observation extensively benefits
this study in selecting samples. The characteristics of openness and anonymity allow the researcher to
collect cultural insights from contextualized online data. It does not only offer continuity between
posts and blogs, but also offers terrific flexibility for making observations and analyzing. Thus,
netnography is the most applicable method to study blogs from different cultures.
3.1.3. Time span
The time span for this study was set up for three months in 2014, and the qualified blogs were
selected according to their ability to obtain cultural capital, which is convertible into economic and
social capital. All the blogs are examined by 10 posts each, in other words, 300 posts from three
countries in total. The verbal and visual texts, such as pictures, writing style, videos, comments of
audiences, and the interviews from other media channels such as Vogue.com and Elle.com, are
3.2. Field research
3.2.1. Blog Sampling
In order to measure the cultural capital of successful fashion blogs, the following criteria to
measure web popularity and online attention are identified: the number of page views, the number of
replies on blog posts, the number of clicks of links to other websites, the numbers of sales made in
online stores, and the amount of followers on any related social media site, such as Facebook fan
pages, Twitter, and Instagram. Most of these numbers can be found directly on the blogosphere, or are
relatively simple to measure by using online analysis packages like Google analytics. Sales numbers of
products would be confidential for the companies and harder for researchers to obtain. Therefore, it is
difficult to analyze the influence of blogs on the profits of individual companies. However, one can
still roughly discover how powerful the bloggers are by measuring how fast certain items they
recommend are sold out online or offline.
Furthermore, besides online attention in terms of page views or number of followers, most
successful bloggers receive other benefits, such as economic resources and social connections. It is
common that popular bloggers receive sponsoring from fashion companies by means of money, gifts,
and invitations to exclusive events. These economic and social benefits both contribute to the
Additionally, the sponsors or bloggers might hide this cooperation in order to gain more trust from
audiences or to avoid disputes. Therefore, the best methods to measure a blog’s cultural capital are
through the online statistics and netnography, as defined earlier.
The definition of a successful blog analysis has two presumptions. First, the blogger has a
relatively high income or profit from blogging, at least more than an average job. Therefore, bloggers
need to be well recognized by the fashion industry and by advertisers. The financial rewards vary from
being paid per article, displaying advertisements, or other forms of sponsorship. The second
presumption is that a blog has a huge influence online. If the blogs are known worldwide, have
millions of page views (website traffic), and numerous social media followers (Instagram, Twitter,
Facebook, YouTube, and Pinterest), they are qualified as successful. Therefore, in this study, the
success of blogs is measured by the cultural capital indicators, such as the number of page views,
number of replies, and the amount of followers.
Moreover, Bloglovin, a leading blog ranking website, is used for selecting blogs from the
Netherlands and the U.S. On this website, the blogs are ranked by the number of followers they have.
The blogs in Taiwan are selected by cross-comparing the page views of Wretch and Pixnet. In order to
gain a comprehensive overview of blogs beyond their page views and follower numbers, the online
by using Google link data, Majestic Search Engine Optimization (SEO), and Facebook and Twitter
Application Program Interfaces (APIs).
In this study, 10 blogs were selected from the Netherlands, the U.S., and Taiwan that have
achieved a sizeable audience, relying on the ranking of the websites mentioned above. The aim was to
select the most influential bloggers by all the criteria listed above and the amount of followers of
different social media channels, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Due to the different
population sizes, the diversity of activeness in different social media channels (for example, one
Taiwanese blogger barely uses twitter and Bloglovin), and different calculation of blog spaces
(Taiwanese blog sites can show the accumulated amount of visitors while the other two countries do
not), the standards vary between countries. Dutch blogs are deemed successful if they have more than
5,000 followers on both Bloglovin and their Facebook fan page, or if they achieve more than 250,000
followers on Instagram (see Table 1). For American blogs, they need to have more than 200,000
followers on both their Bloglovin and Facebook fan pages, or 60,000 followers on Instagram (see
Table 1). Last but not least, Taiwanese blogs need to obtain more than 10 million accumulated visitors
and 20,000 individual visitors per day, or more than 40,000 followers on their Facebook fan page (see
These blogs are primarily fashion blogs that discuss clothes, cosmetics, and relevant fashion
industry topics; thus, blogs dealing with topics such as traveling and food were eliminated. Another
selection criterion was that the focus of the blogs has to be on dressing styles, rather than cosmetics
only or DIY topics. The blogs have to be about mainstream fashion, thus, blogs that targeted specific
groups (mothers and older people, etc.) are excluded. In addition, the blogs have to be written by an
individual as a personal blog in order to eliminate blogs run by professionals, who might be building a
portfolio of work, and companies, who are using blogs for marketing purposes. Next, those blogs
written by men are eliminated because the style and content of men’s blogs are distinctly different
from female blogs. Women’s blogs focus more on their own fashion choices, while male blogs are
found that emphasize both men and women styles (Mcquarrie et al. 2013). Therefore, it is more
precise and useful for this research to target female fashion blogs. Following this, the blogs’ pictures or
styles have to be mostly demonstrated by the bloggers themselves, which consequently excludes blogs
that only report fashion trends, such as street looks or celebrities’ outfits. Finally, blogs that have been
active for more than three years and are still active during the time of this study are chosen for this
Table 1
The number of followers in different social media platform
Country Fashion blog Bloglovin *1
Twitter Facebook Instagram
NL Style Scrapbook 161,640 64,272 865,518 354,721
NL Fash n chips 5,859 1,902 5,055 8,726
NL Raspberry & Rouge 3,156 1,859 4,401 42,359
NL Lizzy van der Ligt 3,948 2,620 6,524 50,672
NL Liza Chloë 2,130 4,129 2,304 26,496
NL After DRK 31,188 13,322 36,599 62,539
NL Come over to the dark side we have candy (COTTDS)
11,778 6,467 10,008 23,798
NL Cocorosa 18,540 8,772 38,173 43,756
NL Chapter Friday 30,638 11,145 17,591 43,689
NL Negin Mirsalehi 4,789 NP*3 76,537 1,289,486
Country Fashion blog Bloglovin Twitter Facebook Instagram
US Fashion Toast 381,260 111,333 342,282 532,028
US Fashion Squad 231,102 38,078 301,103 183,199
US Cupcakes and Cashmere 271,491 194,845 292,491 198,184
US Sea of Shoes 207,087 96,217 33,769 123,385
US Song of Style 99,286 42,966 241,494 1,417,218
US Karla’s Closet 148,289 23,426 NP 64,868
US Atlantic-Pacific 94,240 43,301 81,393 436,083
US Sincerely Jules 55,151 35,076 2,037 official new /26,745 unofficial
1,132,651
US VivaLuxury 26,509 10,654 218,583 168,169
US Wendy's Lookbook 76,098 43,034 292,206 473,348
Country Fashion blog Pixnet *2 Twitter Facebook Instagram
TW Benshee。花猴。購物狂 123,574,985 1,302 291,396 35,676 TW 小安 oops!!! i am An 82,474,586 345 NP 77,347 TW 潔西卡 10,759,907 127 8,669 NP TW 娃娃 yumi 洋娃娃的夢幻城 堡♡MAKE UP BEAUTY 20,824,371 941 98,080 NP TW 韓妞!金老佛 愛玩美世界 9,383,253 603 42,108 NP TW Hannah 妞's fashionlist 36,027,033 838 245,502 NP
TW ♥STELLA'S BLOG♥ Stella
小美人 史黛拉 13,707,487 1,106 96,719 1,682 TW 米粒 Q MillyQ's Blog 11,290,066 717 58,588 11,797 TW 【 I ♥ 77 】時尚、百變、 愛 14,235,191 915 54,108 NP TW 購物狂小姐 Little Miss SHOPAHOLIC NP *4 1,104 48,609 13,420
*1 All the data were coded at the end of April 2014.
*2 The number of accumulated visitors, which was coded at the end of April 2014 *3 Negin Mirsalehi does not have a Twitter account
3.2.2. Blog Analysis
In this research study, cultural capital is measured by the ability of the blogger to exhibit taste
leadership, inform audiences about current trends, and encourage interpersonal exchange. This in turn
is convertible into economic and social capital, once bloggers are part of the established fashion
system. To assess if ways of accumulating cultural capital differ according to cultural factors, blogs
from three countries were compared: the U.S., Taiwan, and the Netherlands. The U.S. and the
Netherlands are identified as individualist cultures, whereas Taiwan is defined as a collectivist country.
10 posts were analyzed from each of the 30 blogs (10 from each country) during a fixed time period
between 15th April 2014 and 15th July 2014. The verbal and visual texts visible in these blogs are
analyzed and the pictures, the writing style, the responding behaviors, and the taste judgments made by
bloggers, as well as the followers’ comments over time, are examined. The textual method treats blog
posts as primary sources in order to examine whether cultural factors play a part in the choices made
by the bloggers regarding their presentation.
Moreover, published blog posts and follower comments for each blog are analyzed. Both the
pictures and writing styles of the posts are examined to see how they differ across cultures. The data is
manually coded using NVivo 9, a qualitative analysis software package. For the pictures, the average
number of pictures in one post; the average number of pictures that are not related to fashion; the
shots of the same outfit from different angles; the percentage of self-modeling; the percentage of
runway, magazine, or online pictures; and the percentage of pictures with their own logos are all
analyzed. The percentages and averages are calculated from 100 posts per country and presented in a
table.
When evaluating writing style, data is coded according to the following: the explanation of the
outfit or item; signs of self-deprecation; feigning similarity; how often they revealed the sponsorship,
shop, or brand; the personal nature of the post (e.g. information about family members, skin condition,
body size etc.); how often the blogger referred to the previous post; and the economic and social
capital yielded. Once again, from 100 posts per country, the percentage for each of the above aspects is
calculated and presented in a table for comparison. To measure the social and economic capital, data is
collected on sponsorships, paid advertising, gifts, invitations, etc. and used to calculate the percentage.
Finally, the number of comments of followers per post is counted and divided by 100. They are
also coded as supportive, promotional (if the readers are also promoting their own blogs or other sites),
referral (if they share on their own social media websites or on the others), critical, and asking
questions.
comparison method to identify emergent and different themes in blog posts from the three countries.
The blog posts were compared according to content, style, placement, and subject matter and then
compared with the cultural theories such as collectivism, individualism, narcissism, and materialism to
see if trends emerge.
Eventually, blogging style is coded with the written content (such as writing style, length, topics
etc.), comments from audience (to see the interaction and feedback) and visual content (to detect how
bloggers present pictures and what are they about). As mentioned above, the purpose of this empirical
study is to explore whether cultural background changes how bloggers accumulate cultural capital
through displaying taste discrimination. Therefore, it is more accurate to code and analyze the written
and visual content of blogs, and to cross-examine if they exhibit traits of specific cultural elements.
3.2.3. Coding Method
When analyzing the visual and written content of the blog posts, the following codes are applied.
The overview of coding can be found in table 2. The number of pictures per post is manually counted
(100 posts per country) to determine the average number of pictures per post. The reason to code the
number of pictures is to discover if the amount is consistent with the trait of collectivism, which is
defined by a passion for sharing, and to examine whether other cultural factors might link to the
display of pictures. If the connection is positive, collectivistic bloggers would post more pictures than
of pictures not related to fashion, such as food, scenic photos, and restaurants, are counted and divided
by 100 for each country. The result shows the average number of pictures that are not about
dressing and products.
Moreover, the number of different outfits in one post is counted according to the look. Each outfit
is counted as one, and the result reveals how many styles per post are included. The total number for
each country is divided by 100, which yields the average number of outfits. Each item is coded as an
individual product and the average number of individual items is calculated by dividing the total
number by 100 for each country. It should be noted here that there is a difference of coding between
outfit and items. For example, if the blogger is wearing a suede jacket, a wrap blouse, a skirt, sandals,
a scarf, a bag, and four different accessories, it is coded as one outfit but as 10 items.
To calculate the percentage of same outfit with different angles, different angles or close up
shots of the same outfit are coded as one while single shots are coded as zero. This means that if there
is more than one picture for the same outfit (top, button, and other accessories), it is coded as positive
one. For the percentage of self-modeling the outfit, bloggers wearing the clothes they want to share
themselves are coded as one. Bloggers posting the item picture or pictures of other people wearing the
products are coded as zero, regardless of whether the models are hired by bloggers or just pictures
Furthermore, to determine the percentage of runway, magazine, or online pictures, the number
of pictures not taken by the blogger is counted and the total number of pictures per country is divided
by 100. This indicates that as long as the pictures are not shot by the blogger herself or the cooperating
photographers, the pictures are considered to be outsourced and are counted as such. Finally, posts
with logos or signatures are coded as one, while posts without logos or signatures are coded as zero to
calculate the percentage of logos with their pictures. As long as a post has any picture with a
conspicuous brand logo, it is coded positive, regardless of how many pictures with logos there are in
the same post.
When analyzing the visual content of the blog posts, the following codes are applied.
The percentage of sharing feelings is calculated by coding the posts where the blogger expressed
feelings (happy, sad, excited, upset, etc.) as one. Posts that do not share feelings, and which only
describe products or do not exhibit emotion, are coded as zero. The length of content from 100 posts
is coded in four different categories: none, short, middle, and long. Less than 100 words are defined as
short, 101-500 words are defined as middle, and more than 500 words are defined as long. To
determine the percentage of the outfit/item explanation, posts where the blogger would explain the
details of the products (brand and shopping links are not considered positive), such as the material, the
For the percentage of revealing the sponsorship, posts that mention that the post or products are
sponsored (either money, free gifts, special access, other privilege invitations or any other cooperative
activities) are coded as one. Posts without sponsorship are coded as zero. To gage the percentage of
revealing the shops/brands, posts where the blogger acknowledges the item brand and where readers
can buy the items are coded as one. Posts without this information are coded as zero. The reason for
coding the percentage of revealing the sponsorship and percentage of revealing the shops/brands is to
explore if a country’s blogs exhibit the characteristics of materialism.
Moreover, the economic and social capital are closely linked to cultural capital. Bloggers
receiving financial benefits are coded as one, while those without are coded as zero, thus
demonstrating the percentage of economic capital. To calculate the percentage of social capital,
bloggers with invitations for exclusive events such as press conferences, runway shows, opening
parties, VIP treatment, or any other exclusive activities are coded as one. Those without invitations are
coded as zero. The percentage of self-deprecation/ridicule is determined by coding bloggers who
express self-deprecation or ridicule to belittle the glamor of their lifestyle as one, and coding those
who do not express self-deprecation or ridicule as zero.
Moreover, to calculate the percentage of feigning similarity, bloggers who attempt to bridge
information (such as weigh, height, family members, and details of personal life) are coded as one.
Posts exclusively about fashion-related content are coded as zero. To gage the percentage of referring
to previous posts, bloggers linking back to pervious posts are coded as one. Bloggers not doing this
are coded as zero. Finally, to identify the style category, the content is coded in the following
categories: dressing, mood, diary, cosmetic, skin care, medical beauty, cosmetic treatment, hair and
nails, traveling, food, DIY, fashion industry, fashion industry, shopping, interior design, event, career,
technology product, and video post. In order to calculate the coding, the overall percentage per country
that is coded positive as one and negative as zero is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. The result is
then summed up and divided by 100 per country. In the next chapter, an analysis of the collected and
Table 2
The coding among the Netherlands, the United States, and Taiwan
Coding
Visual Content
Average number of pictures per
post Add up all the pictures and divide by 100 for each country. Average number of pictures that is
NOT about dressing and products
Add up all the pictures, which are not about dressing and products and divide by 100 for each country.
Average number of outfits Add up all the outfit numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Average number of Individual items
Add up all the item numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of same outfit with different angles
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of same outfit with different angles is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of self-modeling the outfit
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of self-modeling the outfit is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of runway, magazine, online pictures
Add up the entire runway, magazine, online picture numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of logos with their pictures
Add up all the numbers of picture with logo and divide by 100 for each country.
Readers’ Feedback
Average number of comments Add up all the comment numbers and divided by 100 for each country.
Written Content
Type of posts
Coded as dressing, mood, diary, cosmetic, skin care, medical beauty & cosmetic treatment, hair & nails, traveling, food, DIY, fashion industry, fashion industry, shopping, interior design, event, career, technology product, and video.
Percentage of sharing feelings
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of sharing feelings is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Length of content from 100 posts Coded as Short, Medium, Long, and None
Percentage of the outfit/item explanation
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of outfit/item explanation is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
divide by 100 for each country. Percentage of revealing the
shops/brands
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of revealing the shops/brands is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of economical capital
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of economical capital is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of social Capital
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of social Capital is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of self-deprecation/ ridicule
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of self-deprecation/ ridicule is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of feigning similarity
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of feigning similarity is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of revealing personal information
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of revealing personal information is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide by 100 for each country.
Percentage of revering previous posts
Code positive as 1, and the negative is coded as 0. The overall percentage of revering previous posts is then calculated as 1=100%, 0=0%. Add up all the numbers and divide them by 100 for each country.
4.
Results
In this chapter the results are presented that are needed to answer the main research question,
namely: What is the influence of cultural factors on the presentation of successful fashion blogs
from different cultures (such as the Netherlands, the United States and Taiwan) and how do they
differ from each other when they try to gain cultural capital? The results suggest that cultural
elements have positive effects on how bloggers present their aesthetic discrimination to collect cultural
capital. In the following section, the written content, comments, and visual content are discussed in
detail separately. In addition, the cultural factors are cross-examined with the results (see Table 7) and
further explain the influences of culture differences on the presentation choices of the bloggers. In
short, this chapter explains the results and their connection to cultural elements.
4.1. Overview
30 blogs from three different countries are included in this analysis. Following table 3, these are
categorized as follows: the cities where the bloggers currently live; the general background of bloggers,
such as occupations (if not counting blogging as a full-time job) and education; the date the blogs
started; and the economic benefits and social connections. Most of the bloggers live in metropolitan
cites and have fashion relevant jobs as magazine editors, stylists, models, photographers, interior
Negin Mirsalehi started in 2013. It is common among all bloggers to obtain economic and social
capital, such as sponsored items and fashion show invitations (Mcquarrie et al. 2013).
Table 3
General background of blogs and economic/social capital
Fashion blog
Country/City Background Date started
Economic capital: Paid opportunities
Social capital: Inclusion opportunities
Style Scrapbook
NL /Amsterdam She is originally from Mexico. She is a freelance editor for GLAMOUR (NL) magazine.
Nov., 2007 Designed 2 collections of a highly successful camera bag line with Kipling (first production sold out within a few hours). She is sponsored to travel around and photo shoot.
Gave a TED talk about “The keys to successful Blogging”.
Fash n chips NL/Rotterdam She is a stylist Nov., 2010 She writes for VOGUE NL.
She is invited to Bloggerne launch party in Amsterdam
Raspberry & Rouge
NL /Amsterdam She is a freelance stylist, writer, and fashion consultant
May, 2011 Blogging for VOGUE NL on a weekly basis. Sponsored by brands such as Pimkie, Zanira for free trips and photo shooting.
River island press event, private HQs tour and was given a preview for the upcoming Fall/Winter collection
Lizzy van der Ligt
NL /Amsterdam She is a stylist at Scotch & Soda
Feb., 2011 Discount for clothes and her audiences.
Pull & Bear VIP store opening.
Liza Chloë NL /Amsterdam She works in Marie Stella-Maris as the concepts & branding creative. She is also the guest blogger for VOGUE NL
Jan., 2011 Sponsored by the clothing brand WE, H&,M and
VintyWomen. Blogging for VOGUE NL. Discount or free festival tickets for her audiences
Pull & Bear VIP store opening.
After DRK NL /Amsterdam She used to study Communication & Multimedia Design in Breda
Nov., 2009 She has a collection for Nelly.com. Sponsorship with Cartier.
She is invited to London for project launch.
Come over to the dark side we have candy (COTTDS)
NL /Amsterdam She is also working in PR for a film distribution company.
Apr., 2009 Sponsored by H&M, Charlie May, and Nike summer 2014
collection.
NP
Cocorosa Netherlands She has moved to New York City and is freelancing as a trend forecaster
Apr., 2009 She has collaborations: cocorosa x H&M for Fashion Planet Magazine.
She was invited to the Platinum Guild
International showroom for their Spring jewelry preview in New York Chapter
Friday
NL /Amsterdam Editor at ELLE Netherlands, award nominated marketing book author, and secret shoe hoarder
Jan., 2009 She has worked with partners like Chanel, Philips, L’Oréal and H&M.
She is the hostess of Blog Class Event.
