University of Twente Student Theses
Finding the perfect match: The impact of congruence between brand, consumer and social media influencer on source credibility and endorsement effectivenes
Matti, D.N. (2018) Finding the perfect match: The impact of congruence between brand, consumer and social media influencer on source credibility and endorsement effectivenes.
|
PDF
3MB |
| Abstract: | More and more companies are nowadays investing in the relatively new field of influencer marketing in order to promote their products and brands. The selection of social media influencers is, however, of great concern given the risks associated with the choice of inappropriate endorsers and the large sums of money invested in this type of advertising. In order to understand what makes this strategy effective, this study aims to examine the effects of (in)congruencies across the triad of brand, endorser, and consumer on source credibility (attractiveness, expertise, and trustworthiness) and endorsement effectiveness, among which ad attitude, brand attitude, purchase intention, and online engagement. For this purpose, an online experiment was conducted, employing a 2 (brand-endorser congruency: congruent vs. incongruent) x 2 (brand-consumer congruency: congruent vs. incongruent) x 2 (consumer endorser congruency: congruent vs. incongruent) between-subjects research design among a sample of 206 female participants. Results indicated that the brand-consumer match exerts a significant impact on brand attitude and purchase intention, whereas the endorser-consumer match has a significant influence on ad attitude and online engagement. The brand-endorser match-up, however, showed no significant outcomes. Moreover, source credibility appeared not only to mediate the relationship between the endorser-consumer match and the outcomes of ad attitude and online engagement but appeared also to act as a predictor for ad attitude, brand attitude, purchase intention, and online engagement. The present study is one of the first to provide information regarding the effects of these three pairs of (in)congruencies in a single framework, in relation to the increasingly popular influencers. New insights form a theoretical and practical basis for recommendations about (in)congruency in influencer marketing. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Master) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 05 communication studies |
| Programme: | Communication Studies MSc (60713) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/75781 |
| Export this item as: | BibTeX EndNote HTML Citation Reference Manager |
Show download statistics for this publication
Show download statistics for this publicationRepository Staff Only: item control page