40% of Americans pretend to be travel influencers on vacation, new survey says

Two in five Americans pretend to be influencers on vacation (39%), according to new research.A survey of 2,000 social media users found that these respondents would take vlog-style videos, post more than when not on vacation and caption their posts creatively.Most respondents see using social media when traveling as a good thing (58%) and more than half would be likely to post about their travels (55%).The survey conducted by Talker Research in partnership with BeachBound Vacations found that they most enjoy seeing pictures and videos of scenic views (50%), landmarks or tourist locations (44%) and food and drinks (36%) on social media.Thinking about their own feed, those surveyed would post similar content along with selfies (32%) and beach or pool pictures (30%).Half of social media users would document every minute of their travels and another 38% would go through the effort of editing a vlog or slideshow for others to see, although more would opt for a short social media-friendly video (49%).When’s the best time to post? While 50% would post about their vacation activities at some points throughout their vacation, 30% would hold off on posting until it’s over.That may be the right move to avoid FOMO, with a quarter of those who have posted on social media while traveling admitting that they’ve felt guilty about not being present in the moment (24%).Looks do matter for these respondents, as nearly one in four have been disappointed when their vacation content didn’t get as many likes as they hoped (23%).But it’s their own eyes that matter most in the end, with two-thirds of those surveyed sharing that reminiscing on their old social media posts of past trips inspires them to plan future trips.“Sharing our travel experiences on social media goes beyond just capturing pictures — I use social media as a digital scrapbook to look back on my favorite family trips, right on my phone,” said Dana Studebaker, vice president of marketing of consumer brands...