Impact of Instagram Posts’ Characteristics on User Engagement: With Reference to Global Sports Instagram Influencers

Abstract

Social media has brought about a significant change in the way businesses’ products advertise, with the rise of influencer marketing being one of the most notable developments. Instagram has become a popular platform for influencer marketing, where influencers are paid to promote products or services in their posts. The Instagram post’s characteristics may have different effects on user engagement. For instance, sports influencers may use different strategies to engage their followers than other sectors. There are fewer studies on paid partnership posts and even fewer studies on sports influencers on Instagram. Combining those two, this study examines the impact of post-characteristics of global sports, and Instagram influencers on user engagement, referring to paid partnership posts. The study considered variables such as vividness, verbal interactivity, post-caption length, and publication schedule as indicators of post characteristics. Ordered Probit regression was used to analyze 753 paid partnership posts and the sampling technique was Quantitative content analysis. More broadly, the findings of this research contribute to the existing literature on social media marketing, providing companies with valuable guidance to optimize their influencer strategy and connect more effectively with their target audience with the use of paid partnerships. Implementing these recommendations can increase brand awareness and growth on Instagram. The study's originality lies in its exploration of specific characteristics within the context of influencer marketing, expanding the understanding of effective strategies in social media advertising.