What types of lifestyle and food content are 18-24 yr olds interested in seeing and engaging with on Instagram?

Researcher: Laura Landale

Department: Business School: Marketing

Contact details: laura.t.landale@durham.ac.uk

Supervisor name: Dr Chrysostomos Apostolidis

Supervisor contact details: chrysostomos.apostolidis@durham.ac.uk

You are invited to take part in my anonymous online questionnaire study that I am conducting as part of my MSc Marketing dissertation project in becoming an Instagram Influencer. I am conducting customer and market research to justify the ability of my channel which will focus on lifestyle and food.

This study has received ethical approval from the Business School ethics committee.

Before you decide whether to agree to take part it is important for you to understand the purpose of the research and what is involved as a participant. Please read the following information carefully. Please get in contact if there is anything that is not clear or if you would like more information.

What is the purpose of the study?

Aim: To identify what types of lifestyle and food content 18-24 year olds are interested in seeing and engaging with on Instagram.

Objectives:

1. To determine if seeing an aesthetic countryside lifestyle and food content is of interest to my target audience.

2. To identify if my proposed audience is interested in viewing an individual’s overall lifestyle and if it has an effect and influence on them.

3. To understand what types of lifestyle and food content (e.g. videos, stories, photos etc.) are of most interest and have the largest effect on my proposed audience.

Why have I been invited to take part?

You have been invited because you are a Durham University student who is between the ages of 18-24 years.

Do I have to take part?

Your participation is voluntary and you do not have to agree to take part. If you do agree to take part, you can withdraw at any time, without giving a reason.

What will happen to me if I take part?

· If you agree to take part in this study, you will be asked to complete an online questionnaire on Google Forms that will take no longer than 15 minutes to complete. You may complete this questionnaire in a place that you feel most comfortable in with limited distractions.

· I will be collecting information on your opinions on lifestyle and food influencer marketing.

· Because this study is a questionnaire you may omit any questions you do not wish to answer.

Are there any potential risks involved?

This project has very few risks and the questions you are asked to answer should cause no one harm, discomfort or upset.

What will happen to my data?

Data will be recorded on Google Forms and will only be seen by myself and my assessor. Your data will be anonymised and you will not be required to share your name or any personal details at any point. Your data will only be used to answer my research aim and objectives. All raw data will be deleted after submission and the analysis will not be published.

You can find information about the University’s responsibilities for data protection and your rights under data protection legislation in the University’s privacy notice at: https://www.durham.ac.uk/about-us/governance/information-governance/privacy-notices/generic-privacy-notice/

What happens to my data if I withdraw?

Data will be collected through an anonymous survey, participants can stop the survey at any point before completion, however, once submitted their data cannot be identified and therefore deleted. Data you provide prior to withdrawal will normally be kept and included in the study. If you have any concerns about such use of your data, please contact the researchers to discuss.

What will happen to the results of the project?

The outputs of the project will contribute to my dissertation research in the form of a presentation on my research findings to the module leaders of this module Influencer and Content Marketing: Theory and Practice. The results will not be made public and data will not be archived for further research.

Upon completion of my research, I as the researcher will be able to send the results if participants wish to see how their data was used.

Who do I contact if I have any questions or concerns about this study?If you have any further questions or concerns about this study, please email me or my supervisor using our contact details above. If you remain unhappy or wish to make a formal complaint, please submit a complaint via research.policy@durham.ac.uk.



Thank you for reading this information and considering taking part in this study.