Greatly inspired by Pierro et al.’s (2013) study on need for closure, the current study investigated whether high need for closure individuals outsource economic decisions in an influencer...Show moreGreatly inspired by Pierro et al.’s (2013) study on need for closure, the current study investigated whether high need for closure individuals outsource economic decisions in an influencer marketing context, similar to how Pierro et al.’s (2013) found high need for closure individuals to outsource organizational decisions to opinion leaders. Based on previous scientific literature a research model was developed to test the following two hypotheses: social media influencer credibility has a positive effect on purchase intentions towards influencer-promoted products, and the positive relation between social media influencer credibility and purchase intentions is moderated by need for closure, in a way that high NFC individuals have greater purchase intentions compared to low NFC individuals. A simple linear regression and a process model 1 moderation analysis were performed to test the hypotheses. Social media influencer credibility was found to have a significant positive effect on purchase intentions. Need for closure was not found to moderate this positive relation. The former finding replicated, strengthened, and extended findings from previous research to an influencer marketing context. Limitations, theoretical and practical implications, and suggestions for future research are discussed as well.Show less
Understanding how consumers perceive brand traits may help organizations enhance their positioning strategy and marketing. Previous research shows that personality traits are important in...Show moreUnderstanding how consumers perceive brand traits may help organizations enhance their positioning strategy and marketing. Previous research shows that personality traits are important in predicting social perception and behavior. This study (n = 216) aims to better understand the effect of brand morality and competence on brand attitude and purchase intentions, using an online survey with an experimental design. The findings showed that brand morality has a stronger effect than brand competence on brand attitude and purchase intentions. Previous research also shows the importance of brand trust in predicting consumers’ perceptions. Therefore, the mediation of trust in the relation between the traits and brand attitude and purchase intentions is investigated. The results show that trust is related to brand attitude and purchase intentions. Also, brand trust mediates the relationship between morality and brand attitude and purchase intentions, as well as the relationship between competence and brand attitude and purchase intentions.Show less
