Building trust with Gen Z on Instagram: Malaysian influencers’ strategies for authentic storytelling, engagement, communication, and honest brand promotion

Abstract

Influencer marketing continues to expand rapidly in Malaysia, yet sustaining trust among Generation Z remains a persistent challenge. This qualitative study explores how Malaysian Instagram influencers build and maintain trust with Gen Z audiences through four interrelated practices: authentic personal storytelling, comment-based engagement, two-way communication, and honesty in brand promotion. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with six influencers and supplementary Instagram content observations, the study applies Social Exchange Theory, Source Credibility Theory, and the Theory of Planned Behavior to interpret trust-building mechanisms within Malaysia’s multicultural, collectivist context. Thematic analysis reveals that authenticity is shaped by culturally grounded emotional expression; engagement thrives through consistent conversational interaction; two-way communication creates co-creative relationships; and transparent brand promotion fosters integrity. These findings position trust as a dynamic, relational, and ethically anchored process. The study offers practical guidance for influencers and marketers seeking to build meaningful, culturally sensitive relationships with Malaysian Gen Z and contributes to the theoretical understanding of consumer behaviour and digital trust formation in Southeast Asia.