Who Sells Knowledge Online? An Exploratory Study of Knowledge Celebrities in China

Chen, X., Chua, A. Y., & Pee, L.G. (2022). Who sells knowledge online? An exploratory study of knowledge celebrities in China. Internet Research,32(3),916-942.

48 Pages Posted: 9 Jun 2022

See all articles by Xiaoyu Chen

Xiaoyu Chen

Shanghai University

Alton Chua

Nanyang Technological University (NTU)

L.G. Pee

National University of Singapore (NUS)

Date Written: April 15, 2019

Abstract

This study explores identity signaling used by an emerging class of knowledge celebrities in China – Knowledge Wanghong – who sell knowledge products on online platforms. Because identity signaling may involve constructing unique online identities and controlling over product-related and seller-related characteristics, the purpose of this study is two-fold: (1) to uncover different online identities of knowledge celebrities; and (2) to examine the extent to which the online identity type is associated with their product-related characteristics, seller-related characteristics and sales performance. A unique data set was collected from a Chinese leading pay-for-knowledge platform – Zhihu – which featured the online profiles of tens of thousands of knowledge celebrities. Online identity types were derived from their self-edited content using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) topic modeling. Thereafter, their product-related characteristics, seller-related characteristics and respective sales performance were analyzed across different identity types using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and multiple-group linear regression. The results suggested that knowledge celebrities were clustered into four distinctive online identities: Mentor, Broker, Storyteller and Geek. Product-related characteristics, sell-related characteristics and sales performance varied across four different identities. Additionally, the online identity type moderated the relationships among their product-related characteristics, sell-related characteristics and sales performance. As emerging-phenomenon-based research, this study extends related literature by using the notion of identity signaling to analyze a peculiar group of online celebrities who are setting an important trend in the pay-for-knowledge model in China.

Keywords: Digital influencer, Identity signaling, Knowledge celebrity, Knowledge products, Pay-for-knowledge, Sales performance

Suggested Citation

Chen, Xiaoyu and Chua, Alton and Pee, L.G., Who Sells Knowledge Online? An Exploratory Study of Knowledge Celebrities in China (April 15, 2019). Chen, X., Chua, A. Y., & Pee, L.G. (2022). Who sells knowledge online? An exploratory study of knowledge celebrities in China. Internet Research,32(3),916-942., Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3372179

Xiaoyu Chen (Contact Author)

Shanghai University ( email )

99 Shangda Rd, Baoshan District,
Shanghai, Shanghai 200444
China
+86-15827282469 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://https://sites.google.com/view/chenxiaoyu/home

Alton Chua

Nanyang Technological University (NTU) ( email )

S3 B2-A28 Nanyang Avenue
Singapore, 639798
Singapore

L.G. Pee

National University of Singapore (NUS)

1E Kent Ridge Road
NUHS Tower Block Level 7
Singapore, 119228
Singapore

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