IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ijrema/v38y2021i3p531-548.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The impact of influencer motives and commonness perceptions on follower reactions toward incentivized reviews

Author

Listed:
  • Gerrath, Maximilian H.E.E.
  • Usrey, Bryan

Abstract

Brands often incentivize influencers to review their products. However, such incentivized product reviews may reflect negatively on the influencers’ credibility and authenticity, especially if the reviews are positive. Given the more personal nature of influencer-crafted reviews than other product review formats, we posit that the motives to accept incentives—disclosed by the influencer—determine followers’ reactions to incentivized reviews. In one survey, three experiments, and one field study, we contribute to prior research by showing that intrinsic incentivization acceptance motives can mitigate the negative effects of positive incentivized reviews on credibility and, ultimately, revisit intention and behavior. Moreover, we extend past work by demonstrating that influencer type (review vs. lifestyle) determines followers’ perceptions of influencer authenticity, feelings of betrayal, word of mouth, and revisit intention in reaction to an incentivized review. Specifically, we find that review influencer followers’ reactions are determined by their perceptions of incentivized review commonness, such that motives matter more if incentivization is less common, while motives matter less if incentivized review are perceived to be more common. By contrast, we show that lifestyle influencer followers’ reactions are driven by the communicated incentivization acceptance motives, regardless of the perceived commonness of incentivized reviews.

Suggested Citation

  • Gerrath, Maximilian H.E.E. & Usrey, Bryan, 2021. "The impact of influencer motives and commonness perceptions on follower reactions toward incentivized reviews," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 38(3), pages 531-548.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ijrema:v:38:y:2021:i:3:p:531-548
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijresmar.2020.09.010
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167811620300860
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ijresmar.2020.09.010?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. J.J. Brakus & B.H. Schmitt & L. Zarantonello, 2009. "Brand Experience: What Is It? How Do We Measure It? And Does It Affect Loyalty?," Post-Print hal-00799102, HAL.
    2. Folkes, Valerie S, 1988. "Recent Attribution Research in Consumer Behavior: A Review and New Directions," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 14(4), pages 548-565, March.
    3. Purnawirawan, Nathalia & Eisend, Martin & De Pelsmacker, Patrick & Dens, Nathalie, 2015. "A Meta-analytic Investigation of the Role of Valence in Online Reviews," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 17-27.
    4. Kannan, P.K. & Li, Hongshuang “Alice”, 2017. "Digital marketing: A framework, review and research agenda," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 22-45.
    5. Audrezet, Alice & de Kerviler, Gwarlann & Guidry Moulard, Julie, 2020. "Authenticity under threat: When social media influencers need to go beyond self-presentation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 557-569.
    6. Uribe, Rodrigo & Buzeta, Cristian & Velásquez, Milenka, 2016. "Sidedness, commercial intent and expertise in blog advertising," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(10), pages 4403-4410.
    7. Campbell, Colin & Evans, Nathaniel J., 2018. "The Role of a Companion Banner and Sponsorship Transparency in Recognizing and Evaluating Article-style Native Advertising," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 17-32.
    8. Kristine de Valck & Roberts V. Kozinets & Andrea C. Wojnicki & Sarah J.S. Wilner, 2010. "Networked Narratives: Understanding Word-of-Mouth Marketing in Online Communities," Post-Print hal-00458424, HAL.
    9. Napoli, Julie & Dickinson, Sonia J. & Beverland, Michael B. & Farrelly, Francis, 2014. "Measuring consumer-based brand authenticity," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(6), pages 1090-1098.
    10. Labrecque, Lauren I., 2014. "Fostering Consumer–Brand Relationships in Social Media Environments: The Role of Parasocial Interaction," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 28(2), pages 134-148.
    11. Reimer, Thomas & Benkenstein, Martin, 2016. "When good WOM hurts and bad WOM gains: The effect of untrustworthy online reviews," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(12), pages 5993-6001.
    12. Jin, Liyin & Huang, Yunhui, 2014. "When giving money does not work: The differential effects of monetary versus in-kind rewards in referral reward programs," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 107-116.
    13. Kim, Junyong & Gupta, Pranjal, 2012. "Emotional expressions in online user reviews: How they influence consumers' product evaluations," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 65(7), pages 985-992.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Sesar, Vesna & Martinčević, Ivana & Hunjet, Anica, 2022. "How Influencer Credibility and Advertising Disclosure affects Purchase Intention," Proceedings of the ENTRENOVA - ENTerprise REsearch InNOVAtion Conference (2022), Hybrid Conference, Opatija, Croatia, in: Proceedings of the ENTRENOVA - ENTerprise REsearch InNOVAtion Conference, Hybrid Conference, Opatija, Croatia, 17-18 June 2022, pages 248-263, IRENET - Society for Advancing Innovation and Research in Economy, Zagreb.
    2. Bleier, Alexander & Fossen, Beth L. & Shapira, Michal, 2024. "On the role of social media platforms in the creator economy," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 41(3), pages 411-426.
    3. Edeling, Alexander & Wies, Simone, 2024. "Embracing entrepreneurship in the creator economy: The rise of creatrepreneurs," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 41(3), pages 436-454.
    4. Hsieh, Jung-Kuei, 2023. "The impact of influencers' multi-SNS use on followers’ behavioral intentions: An integration of cue consistency theory and social identity theory," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    5. Perez, Dikla & Stockheim, Inbal & Baratz, Guy, 2022. "Complimentary competition: The impact of positive competitor reviews on review credibility and consumer purchase intentions," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    6. Leite Ângela & Lopes Silvia & Rodrigues Anabela, 2023. "Who are Portuguese followers of social media influencers (SMIs), and their attitudes towards SMIs? An exploratory study," Management & Marketing, Sciendo, vol. 18(4), pages 556-576, December.
    7. Zhao, Xiaowen & Zhu, Zhenzhong & Shan, Minghui & Cao, Rui & Chen, Haipeng (Allan), 2024. "“Informers†or “entertainers†: The effect of social media influencers on consumers' green consumption," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Elvira Ismagilova & Emma L. Slade & Nripendra P. Rana & Yogesh K. Dwivedi, 2020. "The Effect of Electronic Word of Mouth Communications on Intention to Buy: A Meta-Analysis," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 22(5), pages 1203-1226, October.
    2. Ismagilova, Elvira & Dwivedi, Yogesh K. & Slade, Emma, 2020. "Perceived helpfulness of eWOM: Emotions, fairness and rationality," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 53(C).
    3. Zheng, Lili, 2021. "The classification of online consumer reviews: A systematic literature review and integrative framework," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 226-251.
    4. Elvira Ismagilova & Emma L. Slade & Nripendra P. Rana & Yogesh K. Dwivedi, 0. "The Effect of Electronic Word of Mouth Communications on Intention to Buy: A Meta-Analysis," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 0, pages 1-24.
    5. Spörl-Wang, Katja & Krause, Franziska & Henkel, Sven, 2025. "Predictors of social media influencer marketing effectiveness: A comprehensive literature review and meta-analysis," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).
    6. Román, Sergio & Riquelme, Isabel P. & Iacobucci, Dawn, 2023. "Fake or credible? Antecedents and consequences of perceived credibility in exaggerated online reviews," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    7. Christian Homburg & Moritz Tischer, 2023. "Customer journey management capability in business-to-business markets: Its bright and dark sides and overall impact on firm performance," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 51(5), pages 1046-1074, September.
    8. Conde, Rita & Casais, Beatriz, 2023. "Micro, macro and mega-influencers on instagram: The power of persuasion via the parasocial relationship," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    9. Lena Steinhoff & Denni Arli & Scott Weaven & Irina V. Kozlenkova, 2019. "Online relationship marketing," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 369-393, May.
    10. Anand Jhawar & Sanjeev Varshney & Prashant Kumar, 2024. "Sponsorship Disclosure on social media: literature review and future research agenda," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 74(3), pages 1589-1617, September.
    11. Agnieszka Zablocki & Bodo Schlegelmilch & Michael J. Houston, 2019. "How valence, volume and variance of online reviews influence brand attitudes," AMS Review, Springer;Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 9(1), pages 61-77, June.
    12. Andonopoulos, Vasiliki & Lee, Jenny (Jiyeon) & Mathies, Christine, 2023. "Authentic isn't always best: When inauthentic social media influencers induce positive consumer purchase intention through inspiration," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    13. Nguyen, Hang T. & Chaudhuri, Malika, 2019. "Making new products go viral and succeed," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 39-62.
    14. Kawaf, Fatema & Istanbulluoglu, Doga, 2019. "Online fashion shopping paradox: The role of customer reviews and facebook marketing," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 144-153.
    15. Ana Babić Rosario & Kristine Valck & Francesca Sotgiu, 2020. "Conceptualizing the electronic word-of-mouth process: What we know and need to know about eWOM creation, exposure, and evaluation," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 48(3), pages 422-448, May.
    16. Chen, Jie & Teng, Lefa & Yu, Ying & Yu, Xueer, 2016. "The effect of online information sources on purchase intentions between consumers with high and low susceptibility to informational influence," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(2), pages 467-475.
    17. Brüns, Jasper David & Meißner, Martin, 2024. "Do you create your content yourself? Using generative artificial intelligence for social media content creation diminishes perceived brand authenticity," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    18. Wedel, Michel & Bigné, Enrique & Zhang, Jie, 2020. "Virtual and augmented reality: Advancing research in consumer marketing," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 443-465.
    19. Roest, Henk & de Graaf, Patrick, 2023. "In brands we trust : The development and validation of a contemporary brand trust scale," Other publications TiSEM 65455a8d-e2cc-44d4-9c36-3, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    20. Yong Wang & Shamim Chowdhury Ahmed & Shejun Deng & Haizhong Wang, 2019. "Success of Social Media Marketing Efforts in Retaining Sustainable Online Consumers: An Empirical Analysis on the Online Fashion Retail Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(13), pages 1-27, June.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ijrema:v:38:y:2021:i:3:p:531-548. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/international-journal-of-research-in-marketing/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.