Personal Branding on Instagram: The Challenges Encountered by Saudi Female Fitness Trainers

Abstract

In Saudi Arabia, significant investments in fitness field reinforcements were started since the announcement of the 2030 vision. Instagram is a popular marketing platform for fitness professionals. This study investigates the challenges Saudi female fitness trainers face when using Instagram as a personal branding tool. A purposive, typical sample of eleven Saudi female fitness trainers participated in two focus groups. The results indicated that factors such as media coverage, branding professionals and branding awareness were needed to enhance the personal branding strategies among the trainers. Social shyness was found as a personal barrier, which was associated with society's expectations' of females' social roles. There was also a relation between the type of sport and the choices to start the personal branding journey. Moreover, religious values, family traditions, and conservatism were identified as the main challenges for Saudi female fitness trainers.