Understanding the demand for illicit lifestyle medicines online

#Sponseredathlete: the marketing of image and performance enhancing drugs on Facebook and Instagram

“…Though this self-presentation could be construed as genuine, it seems likely that the posts are primarily a means of maximising customer engagement and, ultimately, sales. The ploy can be understood in relation to the inherent challenge of being perceived as legitimate and building trust with prospective consumers online as, given the technologically mediated interactions that the sellers rely upon, they must construct enough cultural capital in their posts to convince consumers of their trustworthiness (Koenraadt 2018 ). von Lampe and Ole Johansen ( 2004 ) note that kinship with customers greatly increases the initial trustworthiness of a drug supplier, and thus @superroids and @tren2000 clearly mobilise this shared connection to enhance their proximity to their customers.…”

“…This is particularly evident in @UKanaboliclord’s screenshot of a customer’s positive feedback (see Fig. 9 ), which aims to signal the supplier’s legitimacy and authenticity to prospective customers (Koenraadt 2018 , 2019 ). Here, the client’s review betrays the seller’s target market, as he references his ‘ naturally low testosterone ’ which has, prior to starting his cycle, inhibited the man from successfully growing a beard.…”