Abstract: The purpose of this study is to examine the relative effects of travel social influencers (TSI)’ total number of follower and engagement level on consumers’ intention to travel to advertised destination and purchase the advertised product as well as their perceived credibility, expertise, and attractiveness. The results suggest that engagement becomes an important characteristic of TSI in determining the effectiveness of advertising messages delivered by them and their perceived attractiveness especially when consumers are skeptical about influencer messages. Meanwhile, TSIs’ total number of followers better predict the effectiveness of advertising messages delivered by them and their perceived expertise when consumers are not skeptical about influencer messages.
Tag: social influence
The Roles of Celebrity Endorsers’ and Consumers’ Vegan Identity in Marketing Communication about Veganism.
Abstract: Celebrities endorsing veganism may exert social influence on consumers’ attitude toward veganism and behavioral intention to become vegan. A between-subjects online experiment (N = 303) examined the effects of consumers’ eating habits (meat eater versus non-meat eater) and celebrities’ vegan identity (altruistic motivation versus egoistic motivation) on various outcomes of health communication about veganism. Results of statistical analyses revealed a significant multivariate main effect of consumers’ eating habits on health consciousness, intention to spread electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) about veganism, and behavioral intention to become vegan. The results also reveal interaction effects between vegan celebrity endorsers’ motivation and consumers’ eating habits on health consciousness, intention to spread eWoM about veganism, and behavioral intention to become vegan. Additionally, moderating effects of source credibility, subjective norms, and identification with the vegan celebrity endorser were found. This study sheds some light on celebrity endorsements of veganism and effects of message framing on consumers’ veganism-related attitude and behavioral intention.