From Packshots to Consumer Selfies: How Brand‐Image Types Influence Consumer Enjoyment of Brand Experiences in User‐Generated Image Campaigns

In social media marketing, brands increasingly rely on user-generated image (UGI) campaigns, yet limited research examines how different types of brand-related images shape consumer enjoyment of the brand experience. Grounded in impression management theory, this study proposes that brand-related image types, including packshots (product-only), consumer selfies (consumer's face with the brand), and brand selfies (branded products held by an invisible consumer), influence consumer enjoyment through self-presentational concern. We further theorize that platform tie strength moderates this process. Across two laboratory experiments, we test a moderated mediation model. Study 1 indicates that sharing consumer selfies significantly reduces enjoyment relative to packshots and brand selfies, and that this effect is driven by elevated self-presentational concern. Study 2 replicates these findings and suggests a nuanced moderation pattern: on strong-tie platforms, self-presentational concern is elevated for packshots and brand selfies, whereas on weak-tie platforms it is highest for consumer selfies, where the sharer's face is visible.