The Influence of Social Media on Entrepreneurial Identity and Self-Presentation

Abstract

This research paper examines how social media influences entrepreneurial identity and self-presentation. Social media provides entrepreneurs with a unique platform to showcase their ventures, interact with stakeholders, and present their desired selves to the public. This study analyzes the influence of social media platforms on the construction and portrayal of entrepreneurial identity and self-presentation. The theoretical foundations for the study were taken from self-presentation, impression management, and identity construction on social media. This study investigates the way entrepreneurs’ brand themselves across social media platforms. For this purpose, we employed a mixed-methods approach, performing content analysis of social media profiles of entrepreneurs and interviews with stakeholders. The findings of the study reveal that entrepreneurs use content curation, visuals, text, and storytelling as techniques and tools to present and project their entrepreneurial identities. The analysis further reveals that the use of tools and techniques is the key strategy for entrepreneurs to capture the audience and to convey and convince them by keeping them engaged and expressing a strong association with the audience. The findings of the study are an attempt to add to the growing body of knowledge about social media, entrepreneurship, and audience perception by highlighting the challenges, opportunities, and scope of the emerging social media platforms.