Why Your Favorite Brand Could Be Ruined by a Celebrity Endorsement
Why Your Favorite Brand Could Be Ruined by a Celebrity Endorsement
Psych 🧠- 344/500
Hello Reader,
This research paper investigates the potential downsides of using influencer marketing campaigns for brands, specifically focusing on how consumers with high brand attachment (BA) react to such campaigns.
What is it?
The research argues that using social media influencers (SMIs) can be perceived as a violation of the unwritten psychological contract between the brand and highly attached consumers, leading to negative consequences.
Major Findings
Influencer marketing can backfire for highly attached consumers: Across five studies, consumers with high BA reported lower purchase intentions and willingness to pay for a brand after seeing a sponsored SMI post compared to a brand post. This suggests that involving SMIs can be detrimental for brands when targeting their most loyal customer base.
Perceived norm violation drives the effect: Highly attached consumers perceive SMI partnerships as the brand giving preferential treatment to someone similar to them (the SMI), violating the norm of equal treatment for loyal customers. This perceived norm violation leads to negative affect and lower purchase intentions.
SMI attachment can mitigate the effect: If consumers also feel highly attached to the chosen SMI, the negative impact of the sponsored post is attenuated. This highlights the importance of strategic influencer selection for brands.
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What do I need to know:
Brand attachment has a "dark side": While high BA is generally positive for brands, it can also make consumers more sensitive to perceived unfair treatment, leading to negative consequences for influencer marketing campaigns.
Norm violation triggers negative responses: Consumers care about being treated fairly and equitably by brands, and perceived violations of this norm can damage their relationship with the brand.
Sponsorship salience matters: Explicitly highlighting the sponsored nature of an SMI post amplifies the perception of preferential treatment and increases the likelihood of negative responses from highly attached consumers.
Influencer selection is crucial: Brands should carefully consider consumers' potential attachment to the SMI, as well as the influencer's overall fit with the brand and product, to maximize campaign effectiveness.
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