Influence of Social Media on Personal Branding of selected Gospel Musicians in Nairobi

Abstract

The study sought to investigate the influence of social media on personal branding of Gospel Musicians in Nairobi. Four objectives guided the study; (i) to establish the forms of social media used for personal branding by Gospel musicians in Nairobi, (ii) to identify the factors influencing the use of social media for personal branding by Gospel musicians in Nairobi, (iii) to evaluate the extent to which social media is used for personal branding by Gospel musicians in Nairobi and (iv) to measure the effectiveness of social media use for personal branding by Gospel musicians in Nairobi. Two theories were used to guide the study. These are “the self-presentation theory” by Goffman (1956) and “the perception and visual communication theory” by Barry (2002). Mixed methods research design was adopted where both qualitative and quantitative approaches were be used. The target population was Gospel musicians who topped the charts in the music industry in the year 2018 in Kenya as provided by the Performers Rights Society of Kenya. A total of 1280 posts and interactions were retrieved, and studied. Interviews and content analysis schedules were used for data collection. The quantitative data obtained from the content analysis was analysed using frequencies, proportions, percentages and descriptive statistics while qualitative data obtained from interviews was transcribed and divided into meaningful analytical units which were coded for content analysis. The findings were that different forms of social media offer different options with regard to personal branding. Some social media platforms could offer more effective options over others. The pressure of the music industry pushes the Gospel musicians to outsource social media managers to run their social media pages. Factors that influence the choice of a platform for personal branding include computer literacy, access to smart phones, internet connectivity, internet speeds, target audience, popularity of the platform and the material prepared for release to the audience. Recommendations were that Gospel musicians hire personal branding professionals to increase their brand equities and fan base, establish e-commerce options that would enable them translate their social media fan base into music sales, establish commercial clientele that aligns to their personal brand with a view of growing their financial strength. Further research is suggested on the impact of social media on brand equity and financial performance and on the challenges faced by the musicians on the adoption of social media platforms for personal branding