Digital Storytelling and Audience Engagement: A Case Study of Chinese Fashion Designer-Entrepreneurs with a Focus on Jicheng

This study examines how fashion designer-entrepreneurs (FDEs) leverage digital storytelling on social media to build brand identity and engage audiences, focusing on the case of Jicheng, a Chinese FDE on Weibo. By analyzing posts over nine months, the research explores how storytelling formats (text, photos, videos) and cultural themes (such as human nature and time/space) affect audience engagement, measured through likes, comments, and shares. The findings indicate that text-photo combinations and relatable, timely content are the most effective in fostering interaction and social capital. The paper offers recommendations for FDEs to enhance digital storytelling, emphasizing the importance of balancing thematic consistency with content novelty to support brand growth and audience loyalty. This approach underscores the critical role of cultivating sustainable relationships between FDEs and their audiences.