Strategies of Eliciting Young People’s Affective and Quick Participation in a Youth Magazine’s Instagram Community

Abstract

Traditional media have merged with social media and pursue to produce engaging content and form relationships with online audiences. At the same time, social media has allowed young people a venue to practice their basic needs of interaction, identity, and self-expression, and provides communities of shared issues and social/political aspirations. By analysing the Instagram post caption data of the largest Finnish (girls’) youth magazine, this case study investigated what posting strategies used by the magazine elicited youth participation, and how do the strategies and participation align with young people’s media and online communication preferences. The study found the magazine to use various strategies; mostly affective topics and emoji/tag suggestion appeals. From those perceived as general posting strategies, affective topics and contests and ballots, and from more specific framing choices, a positive approach and topics providing information, peer-support and close topic angles for young women, elicited the most participation. Additionally, a suggestion to comment with a quick emoji/tag was the most engaging appeal suggestion. Young people preferred the image-dominated expressive participation towards both everyday/personal and civic/political topics. The study produces valuable, detailed information regarding young people’s online participation preferences and the potential of traditional media in engaging with online youth audiences.