Balancing self-representation and self-commodification: how influencers transform social media fame and authenticity into e-commerce sales in China

Purpose E-commerce influencers in China have cultivated a unique strategy that integrates personal brand building on social media with sales conversion on e-commerce platforms through their self-branded products. This study aims to examine how authenticity, along with its antecedents of influencer expertise and self-disclosure characteristics, influences followers’ purchase intention in this cross-platform strategy. Design/methodology/approach An online survey of 244 followers of e-commerce influencers examines the factors influencing their intention to purchase self-branded products promoted by these influencers. Findings The findings demonstrate the significant role of authenticity in balancing an influencer’s self-representation and self-commodification. The results show that authenticity, as the core of audience perception toward e-commerce influencers, mediates the effects of influencer expertise (i.e. product familiarity) and self-disclosure (i.e. disclosure intimacy and narrativity) on follower’s purchase intention. Research limitations/implications The research advances our understanding of e-commerce influencer entrepreneurship by investigating how authenticity mediates expertise, self-disclosure and purchase intention while validating a balanced self-presentation framework that integrates product familiarity with disclosure intimacy and narrativity. The findings also illuminate how influencers’ curated authenticity in personal branding effectively converts into product sales and sustainable brand value. Practical implications The findings provide guidance for influencers on building authentic personal brands through product expertise and self-disclosure, offer recommendations for platforms to enhance cross-platform collaborations and encourage followers to reflect on the rationale behind their purchase decisions. Originality/value The study examines a business model in which e-commerce influencers as entrepreneurs are both producers and endorsers of their own brands. This role duality transcends traditional influencer marketing approaches and reveals a new pattern of self-commodification.