The Swift Shift – Promotional Marketing (Taylor’s version): How Social Media and Fan Engagement Shape Album Release Strategies
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Asuncion, Angela
Nairn, Angelique
Trelease, Rebecca
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Intellect
Abstract
Evolving dynamics in the music industry increasingly position social media platforms as a space where promotional labour, audience participation and algorithmic visibility converge. In this shifting promotional landscape, this article investigates how TikTok functions as a co-creative marketing environment through the lens of Taylor Swift’s "Red (Taylor’s Version)" and the #SwiftTok community. By integrating theories of participatory culture, parasociality and transmedia storytelling, the research evaluates how fan activity bolsters – and at times overtakes – conventional industry-led promotional strategies. Applying Braun and Clarke’s thematic approach, the examines a representative dataset of four TikTok’s spanning the pre-announcement, post-announcement and post-release phases. Specific attention was given to identifying platform-specific fan practices and interpretive norms. Three key dynamics are identified: speculative Easter egg interpretation as audience-led hype-generation; choreographed authenticity as strategic relationship management, and transmedia Easter eggs across media channels as a tactic for extending narrative and promotional lifecycles. Ultimately, these findings highlight a significant shift in promotional paradigms, demonstrating how fan-led produsage on TikTok fundamentally transforms the way visibility, value and ownership are negotiated within the modern music industry.
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1902 Film, Television and Digital Media, 2002 Cultural Studies, 2005 Literary Studies, 3605 Screen and digital media, 4702 Cultural studies, 4705 Literary studies, TikTok, participatory culture, parasocial relationships, transmedia storytelling, produsage, algorithmic visibility, music promotion, fandom
Source
Australasian Journal of Popular Culture, ISSN: 2045-5852 (Print); 2045-5860 (Online), Intellect, 15(1), 47-69. doi: 10.1386/ajpc_00128_1
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This is the Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in the Australasian Journal of Popular Culture © 2026 Intellect Ltd. The published version can be found at doi: 10.1386/ajpc_00128_1