See now, act now: How to interact with customers to enhance social commerce engagement?

“I follow what you post!”: The role of social media influencers’ content characteristics in consumers' online brand-related activities (COBRAs)

As the use of live-stream marketing by corporations to sell products is increasing, the sustainability of this marketing model has been a controversial topic in recent years. In this study, we propose that live-stream marketing can be used as a sustainable strategy to improve the relationship between customers and the companies endorsed by broadcasters. Based on signal theory and the framework of “affordance--psychological outcome--consumer behavior”, this study answers the question from the perspective of virtual gift visibility, and finds that social presence and self-esteem serve as mediators, and self-monitoring personality as a moderator, of the relationship between online visibility of virtual gifts and green purchasing. Our research model was tested using structural equation model analysis. Data were collected from 552 users of Chinese live streaming platforms in China, and it was found that online gift visibility of live-stream marketing can be used as a sustainable strategy to stimulate customers’ purchase intention. Social presence is a full mediator of the relationship between the online visibility of virtual gifts and green purchases. Furthermore, self-monitoring personality moderates the relationships among the online visibility of virtual gifts, social presence, and green purchase intention. Our research not only extends the understanding of online gifts as a link between consumers and broadcasters, but also clarifies the process of how online gifts lead to green purchase intention.

Using virtual gifts on live streaming platforms as a sustainable strategy to stimulate consumers' green purchase intention


Purpose
This paper aims to examine how consumers respond to social media influencers that are created through artificial intelligence (AI) and compares effects to traditional (human) influencers.


Design/methodology/approach
Across two empirical studies, the authors examine the efficacy of AI social media influencers. With Study 1, the authors establish baseline effects for AI influencers and investigate how social-psychological distance impacts consumer perceptions. The authors also investigate the role of an influencer’s agency – being autonomous or externally managed – to test the boundaries of the results and determine the interactive effects between influencer type and influencer agency. Study 2 acts as an extension and validation of Study 1, whereby the authors provide generalisability and overlay the role of need for uniqueness as a moderated mediator.


Findings
The authors show that there are similarities and differences in the ways in which consumers view AI and human influencers. Importantly, the authors find no difference in terms of intention to follow or personalisation. This suggests that consumers are equally open to follow an AI or human influencer, and they perceive the level of personalisation provided by either influencer type as similar. Furthermore, while an AI influencer is generally perceived as having lower source trust, they are more likely to evoke word-of-mouth intentions. In understanding these effects, the authors show that social distance mediates the relationship between influencer type and the outcomes the authors investigate. Results also show that AI influencers can have a greater effect on consumers who have a high need for uniqueness. Finally, the authors find that a lack of influencer agency has a detrimental effect.


Research limitations/implications
The studies investigate consumers’ general response to AI influencers within the context of Instagram, however, future research might examine consumers’ response to posts promoting specific products across a variety of category contexts and within different social media platforms.


Practical implications
The authors find that in some ways, an AI influencer can be as effective as a human influencer. Indeed, the authors suggest that there may be a spill-over effect from consumer experiences with other AI recommendation systems, meaning that consumers are open to AI influencer recommendations. However, the authors find consistent evidence that AI influencers are trusted less than traditional influencers, hence the authors caution brands from rushing to replace human influencers with their AI counterparts.


Originality/value
This paper offers novel insight into the increasingly prominent phenomenon of the AI influencer. Specifically, it takes initial steps towards developing understanding as to how consumers respond to AI influencers and contrast these effects with human influencers.


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Unreal influence: leveraging AI in influencer marketing

This study draws on tourism literature and current examples to propose that the emergence of Travel Live Streaming (TLS) provides new affordances for live streamers, viewers, and sponsors. Despite its increasing popularity and the new opportunities for communication and marketing in tourism, TLS has received limited attention in the academic literature. The aim of this paper is to use affordances theory to understand some of the key features and benefits of TLS. It is argued that TLS affordances include temporal, spatial, interactive, and media affordances. These affordances support new opportunities and actions for travel live streamers, viewers, and sponsors. The paper proposes an affordance-based TLS framework and concludes with three propositions to guide future research directions.

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Travel live streaming: an affordance perspective

Understanding the impact of social distance on users’ broadcasting intention on live streaming platforms: A lens of the challenge-hindrance stress perspective

Qiulai Su

Papers

Understanding the impact of social distance on users’ broadcasting intention on live streaming platforms: A lens of the challenge-hindrance stress perspective