Classifying the narrated #selfie: genre typing human-branding activity

Abstract

Purpose This paper explores the purposive use of the selfie in the construction of personal narratives that develop and support an individual’s human brand. Selfies were divided into archetypical clusters of “genres” that reflected the combined story told through Instagram image and accompanying text captions. Design/methodology/approach The analysis drew a randomized sample of 1,000 images with accompanying text from a large capture of 3,300 English language captioned selfies. Coding for semantic and semiotic data used a three-wave technique to overcome interpretive limitations. Findings Based on their structural characteristics, seven genre types emerged from the coded sample set. These primary genres of selfie meta-narratives are autobiography, parody, propaganda, romance, self-help, travel diary and coffee-table book. Research limitations/implications The research is limited in generalization to the Instagram photo-sharing app platform by design. Samples were taken from the app due both to its popularity and its capacity to annotate images. Selfies conducted in non-public, non-annotation-based apps may produce alternative genres and classifications. Practical implications The paper presents a genre classification to examine how selfies are used to “show, not tell” a portion of the consumer’s life story. Brands, firms and marketers can apply genres to examine the selfie types that best connect with the identity of their brands and consumers, based on how their consumers communicate within the Instagram network. Social implications Selfies are an oft pathologized and moralized aspect of consumer conduct. We present a view of the selfie as a deliberate, consciously considered communication approach to maintaining social bonds between friends, family and wider audience. Selfies are presented as a combined effect of consumption of a social media service (Instagram) and the co-production of valued content (the selfie) that recognizes the individual as an active constructor of their digital self. Originality/value The paper outlines a novel framework of selfie genres to classify the deliberate human-brand narratives expressed in selfies. By taking a narrative perspective to the Instagram selfie practice, the genre type captures the combined effect of the mimesis and diegesis, where the mimesis showing of self is contextualized with the diegesis of the provided captions to capture an intentional storytelling act of image and text.

Role of Micro-Influencers in Affecting Behavioural Intentions

“…Micro-influencers are known to paint their instagram accounts to a desired lifestyle and create an ideal image in their category of expertise, which other users find to be attractive and trustworthy. As per Eagar and Dann (2016), numerous clients who are celebrated on Instagram, positioning themselves between a big name and a regular individual to extend themselves as dependable sources to their supporters. The social influence through their posts showing the way of powerful or the greatest an item or administration is and consequently attempt to vary the reasoning of the other web based life clients .Based on the writing accessible for big name and the associated supporting, miniaturized scale influencers could estimated building .…”

Assessing the effect of narrative transportation, portrayed action, and photographic style on the likelihood to comment on posted selfies

“…Conversely, parody selfies, which are carefully thought-out, allow consumers to play with their visual identities and disclose their sense of humour by deliberate contortion of facial features (Eagar and Dann, 2016). In a similar vein, snapshot elsies are not centred on self-aggrandizing objectives but tell the story of someone other than the photographer.…”

“…In contrast with the snapshot style, selfies taken through such lenses are thoroughly thought-out. Selfie lenses allow consumers to play with their visual identities and nurture their parody selfie (Eagar and Dann, 2016) through deliberate contortion of facial features (Newton, 2016).…”

Selfie‐Help: The Multimodal Appeal of Instagram Poetry

“…Indeed, rather than view selfies solely as a form of narcissism, one could also view them as a democratization of celebrity through new global technologies. Toni Eagar and Stephen Dann argue, “Individuals who were excluded from human‐branding performance because of the traditional media's control of access to production can now create a mediated human‐brand image” (1836). As such, Instagram poets can amass followers on their sites by branding themselves in certain ways, using not only poetry but also selfies.…”