Social media influencers in China: A systematic review

Abstract

Social media influencers (SMIs) and influencer marketing (IM) have been widely incorporated in China’s marketing and advertising practices. The abundant academic literature is available in this area, featuring novel research based on American patterns. However, there is no systematic review to summarize these results, and scholarly work is inconsistent, incomplete, and fragmented. Moreover, due to differences in social culture and language, research results from China tend to be excluded from mainstream international discussion and are developing as an independent system, thus restricting research on SMIs/IM. In response, this study is the first systematic review of SMIs/IM research in China. Based on 91 studies from core Chinese journals, this study provides an overview of the current research and identifies five key themes. Using this analysis, the study synthesizes the findings, builds an integrative framework. Finally, future research directions and practical implications are presented.