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Transnational Marketing Journal
All rights reserved © 2023 Oxbridge Publishing House Ltd UK
Transnational Marketing Journal
March 2023
Volume: 11, No: 1, pp. 131-152
ISSN: 2041-4684 (Print) | ISSN 2041-4692 (Online)
TransnationalMarket.com
Received: February 2023 Accepted: May, 2023
DOI: https://doi.org/10.58262/tmj.v11i1.1010
The Power of Personal Connections in Micro-Influencer Marketing:
A Study on Consumer Behaviour and the Impact of Micro-Influencers
Dr Michael Gerlich
1
Abstract
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, influencer marketing has snowballed into a big phenomenon when businesses
around the world are trying to use influencers to promote their products and services. However, even though influencer
marketing is a craze in the market, the engagement rate and conversion rates of micro-influencers with a smaller size of
followers are higher than that of celebrities and mega influencers. It is important to understand the reasons why certain
influencers are successful and others are not. Past research mainly focuses on micro-influencers as one group but does not
differentiate between micro-influencers who are known personally by their followers and those who are not personally known.
This is important as consumers are sceptical towards the product promotion not only of mega-influencers because they believe
that influencers, in general, are using their base of followers to promote a product or service for money and fame. Therefore,
consumers trust the words and opinions of micro-influencers, who provide information based on their own experience and
expertise. It is worth investigating the underlying reason for the success of these micro and nano influencers. Is it the personal
connection with the follower? Is it the engagement rate and the choice of products and recommendations? These are some of
the points that have been investigated in this research. The objective of this research paper was to explore if followers who
share a relationship with or know the micro-influencers personally make their purchase decisions based on the
recommendations provided by the influencers. The research findings highlighted that when micro-influencers are known to
their followers on a personal level, they wield more persuasive power over their followers.
Keywords:
digital marketing; influencer marketing; micro-influencer; marketing; social media marketing;
consumer behaviour
Introduction
The evolution of Internet technology combined with the emergence of social media platforms
and the e-commerce market has contributed to the development of another phenomenon
called influencer marketing, which has further been advanced by the circumstances created
during the COVID-19 pandemic when people had to spend a considerable amount of time at
home due to social restrictions and lockdown measures. The concepts of influencer marketing
and social media go hand-in-hand because while influencers need the platforms and exposure
that come alongside social media to become famous, social media platforms need influencers
to retain their appeal to the public. Some of the popular social media platforms for influencer
marketing include Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and even Snapchat.
Haenlein et al. (2020) defined influencers as individuals who have achieved considerable fame
1
SBS Swiss Business School, Management Department, Flughafenstr. 3, CH-8302 Zurich-Kloten. m.gerlich@faculty.sbs.edu,
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4033-4403
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either as athletes, singers, actors or accomplished individual in a specific field. Influencers also
include those who achieved fame within the platform itself because of their outstanding
content and more than usual engagement with viewers. De Veirman, Cauberghe, and Hudders
(2017) defined social media influencers as social media users with a significant base of followers
and influence over them. According to Lou and Yuan (2019), social media influencers have
some expertise in some specific domains, including food, travel, healthy living, lifestyle,
fashion, and beauty. Using the influence they have on their followers, social media influencers
promote different brands and services. Companies are inclined to start collaborating with
influencers for various advertising and endorsement purposes. These companies understand
the persuasive power of social media influencers, and therefore, they are investing an increasing
amount of advertising budget in social media influencers for the promotion of their products
and services via influencer marketing. According to De Veirman et al. (2017), even though
influencer marketing can be compared with electronic word-of-mouth marketing, it does not
include explicit recommendations. The influencer marketing industry was estimated to be
worth $6.5 billion in 2019, and with the growing popularity of influencer marketing, the
demand for influencers is on the rise (Taillon et al., 2020).
Research Background
Online traditional forms of advertising in which recommendations for using a product or service
are presented more explicitly, influencer marketing involves presenting recommendations in the
form of the editorial opinion of the social media influencers rather than paid advertising because
of which viewers tend to rely on the endorsement of social media influencers. However, the
impact of mega social media influencers with millions of followers is the same on viewers as paid
advertising in traditional media. It is not a hidden truth anymore that social media influencers
publish posts on a variety of topics for the sake of making an income. Micro-influencers with
several followers ranging from 10,000 to 50,000 are no different. According to a report published
by Vox, a micro-influencer can earn between $40,000 and $100,000 annually (NFI, 2022). Since
viewers understand that some social media influencers are promoting a product or service in
exchange for monetary payment, they tend to rely on the words of influencers with a huge fan
following less compared to the smaller social media influencers with fewer followers as viewers
can relate themselves more to the influencers with fewer followers than influencers with a huge
number of followers (Taillon et al., 2020). However, the problem with using micro-influencers
with less than 10,000 followers is the problem of identifying them. Research conducted by
Software Advice revealed that 46% of marketers expressed encountering difficulty in identifying
social media influencers (Datta, n.d.). The primary reason for such difficulty is problems involving
privacy concerns and the inability of marketers to predict the actions of social media platform
users. Even though predictive analytics tool is quite popularly used in businesses for demand
forecasting, most marketers do not use predictive analytics to identify social media influencers.
However, marketers can use predictive analytics to engage with social media users and the
influencers they follow. Companies have come up with novel ideas for influencer marketing
strategies. Micro- and nano-influencer-based strategies are gaining popularity on social media
platforms. These strategies allow the followers to contribute to the existing content and also allow
them to gain some overnight fame within the small community they are a part of. Nearly all
current researches focus on micro-influencers as a homogeneous group that receives more trust
from their followers than mega-influencers. Based on the author's permanent interaction with
consumers, there was a growing suspicion that consumers might act differently when they have
a personal connection to the micro-influencer. Does knowing the influencer personally make a
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difference in the purchase decision? This is the underlying question that is being researched as a
part of this work.
Research Objective
Even though a significant amount of research has been done in consumer decision-making,
hardly any research has been done in determining the influence of social media influencers on
their followers when the followers know the influencers personally. Therefore, the objective
of this research paper is to explore the extent of influence micro-influencers have on the
followers who know them personally, either because these influencers are family members or
friends. Since past studies did not research this topic, this research paper aims to focus on
developing insightful views as regards the degree of influence micro-influencers have on their
followers when the followers know them personally and hopes that the research findings of
this research paper will fill in the gap existing in the literature currently.
Research Significance & Motivation
As mentioned before, there is very thin literature available on the research topic when it comes
to followers being influenced by the micro-influencers whom they know. So far, very little
research has been conducted within the micro-influencer group, as current research considers
the group homogeneous. Interaction with consumers, though, gave the impression that the
group of micro-influencers is not homogeneous but should be divided into micro-influencers
who are personally known to the follower and those who are not. This is very important for
the companies to understand if they need to give more weightage to micro- and nano-
influencer drove marketing campaigns when compared to macro- influencer driven campaigns.
Further, with internet penetration getting deeper and deeper and the advent of artificial avatars
for marketing, the topic of micro-influencer and nano-influencer categories is gaining traction.
At the end of this research, an attempt would be made for the marketing companies to
concentrate on certain themes that are important for designing any marketing campaign. This
vacuum in the existing literature and the rapid transformation of social media marketing
programs have been the underlying motivation for pursuing this research work. Since the
research has been carried out with an academic purview, there are certain limitations to the
research. These limitations have been mentioned at the end of the research.
Literature Review
The purpose of this literature review is to highlight insightful reviews on the trend of micro-
influencer marketing, the emergence of micro-influencers, and how family members and
friends contribute to the purchase decisions made by consumers.
Who are influencers?
As mentioned earlier, social media influencers are ordinary people who gained popularity and
fame by producing online content. There are various categories of influencers fall into starting
from mega-, macro-, micro-, and nano-influencers, depending on the size of their followers.
Micro-Influencers are influencers with several followers, between 1,000 and 100,000 but with
a robust relationship with the followers (Gerlich, 2022). Micro-Influencers can potentially
create 25% of 50% engagement per post (Gerlich, 2022). On the other hand, macro-influencers
are those who have several followers ranging between 50,000 and 500,000. Macro-influencers
generate a 5 to 10% engagement rate per post. Mega influencers are those who are athletes,
actors, artists, and social media stars with about 500,000 followers. Mega influencers create a 2
to 5% engagement rate per post (Gerlich, 2022).
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According to Kay, Mulcahy, and Parkinson (2020), the influence of social media influencers is
not limited to only the actual followers following the account of the influencers; influencers can
also connect with the followers of their followers who share the content posted or promoted
by the influencers, thereby extending the potential outreach of influencers significantly. The
difference between traditional celebrities and social media influencers lies in how influencers
gain fame to be considered a brand for promotion. Traditional celebrities, such as athletes,
actors, or actresses, gain fame by pursuing acting, sports, music, or politics, thereby getting a
significant base of followers because of their work, media relations, and interviews. On the
other hand, social media influencers gain fame and develop their brand by posting their content
on social media platforms (De Veirman et al., 2017). According to Booth and Matic (2011),
social media platforms like YouTube and Instagram encourage consumers to promote
themselves as a brand and gain fame, and due to this, a large number of consumers have turned
into influencers endorsing brands. The followers of the influencers feel a close connection with
the influencers when the influencers share a large part of their lives online (Djafarova &
Rushworth, 2017).
Social media platforms catering to different categories of audience
Even though all the social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok,
are known for influencer marketing, they cater to different categories of audiences, specifically
in terms of age and viewer characteristics. Users on Twitter and Facebook are usually in their
40s, while Instagram caters to the needs of consumers in their 30s. TikTok, on the other hand,
attracts more young viewers in their teens and 20s (Haenlein et al., 2020). It is to be noted that
the younger population precisely has consumption patterns different from their predecessors
as they are more sceptical of traditional forms of advertising. Influencer marketing targets the
younger population specifically.
Facebook has the biggest size of all social media platforms, with the largest user base exceeding
2.4 billion active users. On average, Facebook users make five visits per session, which is the
highest in terms of the monthly sessions of users. Facebook also boasts the highest percentage
of weekly user postings and the highest total usage of approximately 13 hours monthly.
However, Facebook has witnessed a significant decline of 26% in its engagement between 2017
and 2019 (Haenlein et al., 2020). Additionally, since the age group of Facebook users falls
relatively on the higher side, the cost for influencer marketing on Facebook is one of the lowest
among all platforms at $395. Less than 25% of marketing managers consider Facebook as the
most effective platform for influencer marketing. On the other hand, Twitter, which was
founded 15 years back, has a cost per post higher than that of Facebook at $422, even though
Twitter has the lowest number of active users of only 390 million and the lowest monthly usage
of approximately 2.5 hours (Haenlein et al., 2020). The higher cost for marketing on Twitter
compared to Facebook can be explained by the homogeneous base of users on Twitter for
some specific content posted on the platform.
According to Haenlein et al. (2020), behind the lukewarm appeal of Facebook and Twitter as
platforms for influencer marketing lies the reasons these platforms are used by users. Facebook
functions primarily as a social networking tool to stay connected with family and friends, while
Twitter serves as a source of news. The reasons for which these platforms are used by users
determine the reasons the users visit the sites. Compared to Facebook and Twitter, Instagram
and YouTube function more as social media platforms catering to the entertainment and time
pass needs of users. Therefore, YouTube and Instagram attract more influencers to promote
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their products and services. Instagram and TikTok also stand out in regard to the younger
population of users, who get specifically influenced by influencer marketing. TikTok witnessed
a 15-fold increase in engagement between 2017 and 2019, while the combined base of users
for Instagram and TikTok is approximately 2 billion (Haenlein et al., 2020). Additionally,
TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube are platforms based on rich, attractive content formats
comprising videos and images, which function as better platforms for influencer marketing
than platforms like Twitter, where the content is text-based. Also, since the purpose of these
three social media platforms is to provide entertainment to the users, it becomes easier for
influencers to achieve a significant number of followers in a short period.
COVID-19 pandemic and Micro-influencer marketing
Even though influencer marketing was in place before the COVID-19 pandemic, social
restrictions protocol and lockdown measures during the pandemic gave influencer marketing
a new dimension altogether. During the pandemic, when people spent an increased amount of
time on social media platforms to stay connected with the outside world, a new consumer
behavioural trend emerged, with customers beginning to rely more on the e-commerce market
(Taylor, 2020). The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic made many companies
shrink their marketing budget, and as a result, companies began to look out for cheaper
marketing options. This was when the influencer marketing trend snowballed into a grand
phenomenon, with a large number of businesses hiring social media influencers for marketing
purposes, as influencer marketing was a cheaper option than the traditional form of
advertisement. Brands started relying on social media platforms, such as Instagram and
Facebook, to promote their products and create brand awareness. For example, amid the
pandemic, the fashion brand Banana Republic started using Instagram for the promotion of its
products by using micro-influencers. Micro-influencers were used to promote Banana Republic
products by creating hashtags, including #brholiday and #brmakeitmatter (Sinha & Fung,
2021). Apart from the promotion of products, political campaigns and advocacy groups also
used micro-influencers to reach out to local followers. Some examples of using micro-
influencers in the campaigns involve Democrats like Andrew Young, Bernie Sanders, and
Kamala Harris and Republicans like Donald Trump (Sinha & Fung, 2021). Since micro-
influencers serve a specific target market, by using the micro-influencers, brands and political
campaigns were not only able to save costs on marketing budget but were also able to create
higher engagement with the target market.
Important characteristics for garnering the attention of viewers
Some of the characteristics important for attracting the attention of viewers by social media
influencers include attractiveness, source credibility, likability, and similarity or relatability.
Many research studies (Amos, Holmes, & Strutton, 2008; Till & Busler, 2000) have
demonstrated the importance of the attractiveness of social media influencers in their persuasive
impact. Source credibility is another factor that determines the effectiveness of endorsement
on social media platforms. A credible influencer leaves a positive impact on the minds of the
consumers, who make purchase decisions based on the trust they place in the words of the
influencer. Trustworthiness and expertise are two factors that define source credibility (Wang,
Kao, & Ngamsiriudom, 2017). When influencers are considered experts in a specific line of
products or services, they tend to be more persuasive and drive consumer purchase decisions.
Likability is also another factor that determines the persuasion factor of a social media
influencer. The likability factor is influenced not only by attractiveness but also by how the
influencer presents himself or herself to the viewers. Similarity refers to the extent to which a
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viewer can relate to the influencer. According to Taillon et al. (2020), when followers find a
perceived similarity to the influencer, they develop a more positive perception of the influencer.
The perceived similarity determines the relatability factor between social media influencers and
their followers. According to Senft (2008), social media influencers appear more real because
the power of their influence stems from the content they produce, which is based on their
personal lives. Increased perceived similarity can also determine the purchase decisions of the
followers. Micro-influencers project themselves through their Instagram or TikTok accounts
to a specific lifestyle by creating an image in a specific category of expertise, thereby establishing
a perceived similarity with people who follow or want to follow that specific lifestyle (Gupta &
Mahajan, 2019).
The credibility of Social Media Influencers
Despite the craze on influencer marketing, research shows that influencer marketing does not
always succeed in achieving the desired objective, which is to make the consumers take their
purchase decisions based on the influencer endorsement. A report published by Stackla showed
that only 23% of people believed in the content promoted by celebrities or social media
influencers (Walsh, 2018). Alternatively, 60% of people stated that their purchasing decisions
are influenced by the content promoted by their friends or family members (Walsh, 2018).
Additionally, the credibility factor of the influencers has been affected by the proliferation of
fake followers. According to Dahl, fake followers and fake likes are purchased by some social
media influencers (Gerlich, 2022). The fake accounts of these fake followers do not belong to
genuine users. These fake accounts are generated automatically and are known as bot accounts
created to generate fake follower bases and fake likes. As of 2018, 5000 fake followers could
be purchased by social media influencers for as little as $29 and 50,000 followers for $119.
Same way, 500 likes can be purchased by social media influencers for $14, and 20,000 likes can
be purchased for $1325 (Gerlich, 2022). The proliferation of fake followers and fake likes has
intensified mistrust among consumers towards anything promoted by influencers they do not
know personally.
Why is less better for credibility and authenticity?
Even though mega influencers with the largest number of followers can reach out to a greater
number of people compared to micro-influencers, the sceptical nature of the younger
population of users, who are the primary target for influencer marketing, has made companies
look out for micro-influencers with the smaller size of followers. Companies reach out to
micro-influencers because of the relatability factor, as sceptic viewers rely on the content
promoted by smaller influencers than the ones promoted by mega influencers. According to
Ehlers (2021), when the popularity of an influencer grows and more brands show interest in
working with the influencer, the influencer begins to post more sponsored content, which
reduces the credibility factor of the influencer, and the followers begin to distrust the
influencer's authenticity. According to Bucher (2012), the toughest part for any influencer is to
continue to engage the audience with content that the audience will not only like but will also
find trustworthy. A study conducted by Morning Consult highlighted that 88% of participants
spoke about the importance of influencers being authentic and genuinely caring about the
products or services they promote (Ehlers, 2021). According to Hunter (2016), as soon as social
media influencers start promoting commercial products, followers develop the perception of
the influencers losing their authenticity because they are promoting the products in exchange
for money and fame rather than for the sake of the greater good of the community. According
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to Calfee and Ringold (1994), about 70% of general consumers in the USA are sceptical about
product promotion or advertising by marketers because they believe that the sole purpose of
any marketer is to make the viewers buy things they do not want. Since micro-influencers have
smaller audiences, they are less likely to promote sponsored content, and that is why their
credibility factor is high among their followers. When micro-influencers promote a product or
service, their followers trust their endorsement because the followers trust the words of the
micro-influencers. Because of this reason, even though the outreach of micro-influencers is
comparatively less than macro-influencers, their engagement with their followers is high. A
study conducted by Social Bakers highlighted that compared to macro-influencers, micro-
influencers have a 60% more engagement rate (Ehlers, 2021). The conversion rate of micro-
influencers is also higher than that of macro-influencers, which helps brands in boosting their
online sales. However, Kay et al. (2020) revealed that when the number of followers increases
for a social media influencer, their engagement with their followers declines.
That micro-influencers are more effective in influencing the purchase decisions of followers
than macro-influencers is supported by the persuasion knowledge model that describes that
the knowledge or responses of people to persuasive marketing content is determined by the
realization of the consumers of the intent of the marketer (Stubb & Colliander, 2019). When a
consumer is exposed to the promotions of a product or service by both the micro-influencer
and macro-influencer, the consumer is more likely to interpret that the macro-influencer is
trying to persuade people by using their popularity and fame than the micro-influencer.
Therefore, consumers are less likely to trust the endorsement of a macro-influencer than that
of a micro-influencer (Kay et al., 2020). This shows that the authenticity of the promoted
message is a determining factor for the viewers who get influenced by social media influencers.
However, the paradoxical fact is that when an influencer begins to garner more followers, the
influencer becomes more crafty in producing the content by becoming more careful in selecting
and sharing personal moments from his or her life. The influencers then infuse emotional
stories and well-groomed pictures and videos with the original content to conjure up a product
that evokes emotions in the minds of the viewers, thereby making the followers engaged with
the content. This makes authenticity a choreographed projection produced with the purpose
of a strategic form of self-presentation so that the produced content sells in the market (Gaden
& Dumitrica, 2014).
Contribution of family members and friends to purchase decisions of consumers
As mentioned at the very beginning of this research paper, even though a substantial amount
of research has been done in identifying factors that contribute to consumer decision-making,
little to no research has been done to understand the extent of influence micro-influencers
have on their followers when the followers know them personally. However, in the absence of
literature directly dealing with micro-influencers' influence on their followers when they are
known to the followers personally, the researcher has taken into consideration the influence of
family and friends on the consumer decision-making process to establish what is the crux of
this research paper. For a long time, marketers have paid attention to the influence families
have on the consumer decision-making process. According to Sudeepa Sharma, the family is
the very unit that influences the purchasing decisions of consumers because many of the items
of consumer spending, including shelter, food, and transportation, are consumed collectively
within the family, and therefore, one of the primary objectives of the consumer purchase
decision is how the product or service being promoted fulfils the needs and wishes of the
family members (Kumar & Rao, 2019). Additionally, most of the families share similarities in
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financial affordability. For example, rich families may have the affordability to splurge on
luxurious goods or services and do not have price sensitivity as middle-class consumers. On
the other hand, middle-class and lower-middle-class families focus on utility items that will help
them in executing their daily routines (Kumar & Rao, 2019). Therefore, when micro-
influencers are known to the followers personally or when followers share a personal
relationship with micro-influencers, the followers tend to trust the words of the influencers. A
study conducted in the U.K. asked questions to 1000 UK consumers who belonged to the age
group between 18 and 40 years and found that family and friends have more influence on
consumers over their purchase decisions than celebrities (Degun, 2017). Furthermore,
marketers are also aware that families have a significant influence on the purchase decisions of
consumers, and hence marketers target family members of different age groups to evoke their
buying needs. For marketers, the knowledge that micro-influencers have more influence on
their followers when the followers know them personally is a tool for increasing their brand
awareness and converting the feelings of the consumers for product sales. For example, for
generations, the T.V. advertisement theme of Amul butter has centred around family members
sharing a relationship based on their common fondness for butter (Kumar & Rao, 2019).
Marketers for consumer merchandise thus can utilize the micro-influencers for the promotion
of the products and services among the families and extended social circle of the micro-
influencers. Family members also contribute to consumer scepticism towards paid advertising.
Researchers (Kumar, 2018) have found that scepticism is an outcome of interaction among
socialization agents, including peer groups, family members, and mass media. According to
Moschis and Churchill Jr (1978), family communication is an important factor that enhances
the knowledge and skills of consumers about products and services in the marketplace, which
in turn may contribute to the development of scepticism towards paid advertising.
Iyengar, Han, and Gupta (2009) conducted a study to evaluate the extent to which
friends influence consumer purchase decisions and found that friends significantly impact the
purchase decisions of consumers. Some previous studies (Belk, 1988; Wernerfelt, 1990) show
that the social identity of consumers is defined by their purchasing behaviour, preferences,
tastes, and attitude. According to Berger and Heath (2007), while social identity is determined
by consumer tastes, the inferences made from one's preferences are determined by group
membership. For example, people share or do not share tastes based on how much their
selection of a product is indicative of their social identity, and this social identity puts people
into different groups.
Use of Artificial Intelligence in Identifying Micro-influencers
As mentioned earlier, it is a problem for digital marketers to identify micro-influencers among
millions of influencers available on social media platforms. Therefore, the use of artificial
intelligence and machine learning can be useful in this regard. AlAnezi and Almutairy (2021),
in their research paper, showed that one important measure that can help in the process of
identifying an influencer is by calculating the influencer engagement rate. The purpose of the
engagement rate measure is to evaluate the extent to which an influencer can lure potential
customers. The existing engagement rate measures take into consideration information,
including the number of followers, comments, or posts made or received by an influencer.
AlAnezi and Almutairy (2021) Proposed a new measure that carefully analyzes the reaction of
potential customers to an advertisement post made by an influencer. This new approach will
only work on advertisement posts of influencers. With the help of machine learning
approaches, required information can be generated to calculate the new engagement rate
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measure. The machine learning approaches will be used in two phases. Firstly, classification
will be used to classify a specific post as an advertisement, and then a machine learning based
sentiment analysis approach will be used to determine the polarity of the comments received
on an advertisement post. This new approach can be used successfully across various social
media platforms. AlAnezi and Almutairy (2021) tested this new approach to calculating the
engagement rate measure of Instagram influencer accounts and found that this new approach
suggests potential influencers who are more aligned with the business requirements of digital
marketers.
Leonardi et al. (2020) performed a regression with Support vector machines for personality
trades and developed a different algorithm based on community-based values, Including self-
direction, security, achievement, power, hedonism, tradition, conformity, universalism, and
benevolence, among others. This functions as a gravitational field for clustering words
pertaining to a similar type of semantics. Leonardi et al. (2020) used this approach for various
classifiers to map micro-influencers and the relevant traits and values associated with them. To
know if micro-influencers use recurring lexical expressions related to various topics, Leonardi
et al. (2020) employed a pre-trained word embeddings model called GloVe, Which helped the
researchers identify the words under the human values (such as honest, forgiving, friendship,
helpful, meaningful, love, listed under the human value of benevolence, for example). The pre-
trained word embeddings and fine-tuning them when needed helped the researchers attach
different scores to the text sources, thereby finding more examples of micro-influencers for
classification purposes.
Methodology
A mixed methodology has been used for data collection using both qualitative and quantitative
methods. Qualitative research methodology refers to an interpretive research approach that
captures subjective viewpoints by collecting non-numerical data, such as literature reviews,
interviews, services, observation, or focus groups. On the other hand, a quantitative
methodology tries to obtain objective insight by using numerical, mathematical, or statistical
data. This research work involves collecting numerical data by circulating and also
substantiating the survey outputs with focused interviews.
The existing research attempts to identify the degree to which people are influenced by micro-
influencers, especially if the micro-influencers are known to them. A qualitative methodology
of interviews has been chosen, obtaining a subjective viewpoint of the degree to which micro-
influencers are able to influence the purchasing decisions of the followers if the followers know
the micro-influencers personally or do not know them personally. The quantitative
methodology of the online survey has been chosen to add objectivity to the research study,
thereby increasing its credibility.
Design and Procedure
To fulfil the objective of understanding how micro-influencers influence the purchasing
decisions of the followers who know them personally or the followers who do not know them
personally, data was captured using online surveys and a literature review. The primary criterion
for the selection of literature was the language of the literature. The literature needs to be
published in the English language. Although the researcher gave preference to collecting
information only from peer-reviewed journals, the availability of research studies on the
influence of micro-influencers is very thin and therefore, information was captured from
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legitimate newspapers and online articles as well. The databases used for the collection of data
included Google Scholar and Google search engine. Both past, as well as latest research studies
were included in the research. Even though the researcher aimed to collect data directly relevant
to the topic at hand, when direct data was not available, the researcher used information that
was partially relevant to the topic. For example, even though the primary objective was to find
out if micro-influencers known to the followers (friends or family members) impact their
purchase decisions, there is no relevant research study that highlighted the connection between
the two variables, and hence, the researcher collected data related to the influence of friends
and family on the consumer purchase decisions. Within the research realm, this could act as a
good proxy. The findings gleaned from the literature that discussed the impact of family and
friends on consumer purchase decisions were not directly relevant to this research paper but
were partially relevant to drawing conclusions in favour of the hypothesis.
An online survey was conducted between December 2021 and February 2022. Social media
platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook were used to promote the survey as a
paid advertisement. A survey questionnaire comprising seven multiple-choice questions was
presented to the participants. Only seven questions were asked to make sure that participants
did not find the questionnaire too lengthy and lost interest while completing the survey. To
reduce the risk of ambiguity, the questions formulated for the survey questionnaire were
straightforward.
The questionnaire began by asking the participants if they followed more than ten social media
accounts if they considered the opinion of micro-influencers they know personally or do not
know personally if they get influenced by micro-influencers they know personally or do not
know personally when they posted comments or promotions on their account. If the
participants answered negatively about their being influenced by micro-influencers in making
a purchase decision, they were presented with further multiple-choice options to identify the
reason for their not being influenced by micro-influencers. If the participants answered
affirmatively about being influenced by micro-influencers in making a purchase decision, they
were presented with further multiple-choice options to know the reason why they were
influenced.
The main logic behind such questions was to make sure that the responses captured:
1. Frequency of usage and no. of accounts followed
2. Consideration of opinion of micro-influencers (both personally known and not known
categories)
3. Reasons for consideration of opinion (if opinions are considered)
4. Getting influenced by the recommendation of the micro-influencers
5. Reasons for NOT getting influenced.
It was discussed with the supervisor, and the questions asked were deemed to be a good fit to
complete the research objective.
Unlike the previous study (Gerlich, 2022), in which the study participants were exclusively
asked to choose micro-influencers they did not know personally (acquaintances) or with whom
they did not have a personal relationship (family or friends), in the present study, the study
participants were asked to choose micro-influencers they knew personally or shared a personal
relationship with. This requirement was made in order to make sure that the study did not
collect any data that fell outside of the scope (i.e. participants inadvertently choosing micro-
influencers they did not know personally). The definition of "people been known personally"
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is not limited to friends and family (as often referred to in the literature) but as well
acquaintances and role models they know personally from their job, University, sports, etc.
This leads to the general hypothesis: "Micro-influencers who are personally known by their
followers have a substantially higher impact on the purchase decision than micro-influencers
who are not personally known by their followers".
Data Collection
A total of 1019 participants from Germany, Italy, and France took part in the survey. The
highest number of participants came from Italy, followed by Germany and France. The
selection of the countries, as well as the research design of this research paper, was based on
the research design of Gerlich (2022). The objective was to achieve a wide range of perspectives
from survey participants. The primary criterion used for the selection of participants was the
age group, as the researcher wanted to include young adults in the survey because young adults
are the primary users of social media platforms. Another selection criterion was that
participants were required to use social media for at least an hour every day, viewing different
posts produced by influencers on Instagram and Facebook. The education level of respondents
was also captured to check if education level can skew the results. All the participants were
aged between 18 and 35 years. 55% of the participants were male, while 45% of the participants
were female. Figure one below illustrates the participant demographics:
Figure 1: Country and gender of the survey participants
Data Analysis
In the current research, the researcher tried to find out if the survey participants were
influenced more by the opinions of personally known micro-influencers. The survey results
showed that 98.9% of female participants and 98.2% of male participants were influenced by
the opinions of micro-influencers they knew personally. On the other hand, the survey
participants were influenced least when they did not know the micro-influencers personally. As
can be seen in figure 2 that only 0.87% of female participants and 0.89% of male participants
were influenced by the opinion of micro-influencers they did not know personally.
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Figure 2: Influence level of micro-Influencers the participants knew personally or did not
know personally
One interesting revelation from the survey outcome is that even though the highest percentage
of both male and female participants get influenced by the opinion of micro-influencers when
they personally know them, men tend to be influenced significantly more than women when
the micro-influencers they know personally post comments or promotions on their account.
On the other hand, the influence level decreased when questioned about being influenced by
unknown micro-influencers. The majority of participants (98%), both male and female, did not
get influenced by micro-influencers they did not know personally.
Further probing was conducted to check on the reasons for respondents were not getting
influenced by the unknown micro-influencers. The participants were presented with multiple-
choice options (multiple answers were allowed). 94% of participants replied that the reason for
not being influenced by the posted promotions or comments of the micro-influencers is that
they know that it is a marketing gimmick. 67% of participants stated that they don't trust the
account holders to be qualified enough to give their opinions on a product or service. 64% of
the participants believed that the micro-influencers promoted too many different products or
services, which reduced their credibility. 67% of participants stated that Instagram is just
entertainment for them, and therefore, any type of posted comments or promotions did not
make any impact on them. 71% of participants stated that they used Facebook just for the sake
of entertainment, with the posted comments or promotions of micro-influencers having little
influence on them. 81% of participants expressed that they felt they were being used as a tool
for micro-influencers to obtain fame and money. Figure 3 summarizes the additional responses
of the participants.
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Figure 3: Reasons for the participants not being influenced by micro-influencers
The survey participants who expressed that they were influenced by the micro-influencers they
knew personally when influencers posted comments or promotions were further presented with
additional response options for their affirmative response. This was done to check the response
themes of the respondents on having a positive influence. 95% of the participants stated that they
believed in the posted comments or promotions of micro-influencers they knew because
influencers they knew personally did not fail to give good recommendations. 92% of the
participants stated that micro-influencers they knew personally knew their taste best as reasons for
trusting the promotions. 94% of the participants with an affirmative response to being influenced
by micro-influencers they knew personally stated that those micro-influencers have the same taste
as them. 96% of the participants stated that they believed in the promotions and posted comments
of the micro-influencers they knew personally because they trusted that the information presented
was true. Figure 4 below summarizes the additional responses.
Figure 4: Reasons for the participants being influenced by micro-influencers they knew
personally
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Since 80% of the survey participants had higher education, the responses were not analyzed
separately based on the education level of the participants, as the outcome was skewed.
Further, a chi-square independence test was done for both the cases of reasons behind being
influenced and reasons behind not being influenced across the response categories of gender,
geography and education level. The chi-square test of independence t allows us to draw
conclusions about a population based on a sample. Specifically, it allows us to conclude whether
two variables are related in the population, i.e. their responses will not be the same. For
instance, the theme-based response for a certain category, say the gender, would be different if
the variables are related and so on.
Case I – reasons behind being influenced
Reasons for being influenced in purchase decisions
Theme
I trust that the information is true
Trust
People I know have the same taste like me
Taste
The people I know, know me and my taste best
Awareness
People I know usually don't fail to give good recommendations
Credibility
These themes were tested across the response categories of gender, geography and education
level to check the independence. The null hypothesis was :
H0: The category and the theme for being influenced are not related in the population; The proportion of
responses within the category is the same for all themes
H1: The category and the theme for being influenced are related in the population; The proportion of responses
within the category is not the same for all themes
On performing the chi Square independence test, it was found that:
Gender
Geography
Education
Chi Square
0.35
0.23
0.24
Degrees of Freedom
1.00
2.00
1.00
P Value
0.45
0.11
0.37
Since none of the p-values for the test are less than 0.1, i.e. none of the values are significant
at 90% significance level. Therefore we cannot reject the null hypothesis, and it can be inferred
that across the population, the responses will be the same in each category.
Similarly, the chi-square independence test was performed for reasons not being influenced.
Case II - reasons behind NOT being influenced
Reasons for not being influenced in purchase decisions
Theme
I know it is just marketing
Marketing
I don't trust the account holder to be qualified enough
Qualifications
The account holders promote too many different products/services
Confusion
Instagram/ Facebook is just entertainment for me
Entertainment
I feel being used as a tool for the account holder to get rich
Feeling of being used
Similar to the last case, the null and alternate hypothesis was stated, and the results were:
Gender
Geography
Education
Chi-Square Value
30.87
12.73
54.89
Degrees of Freedom
1.00
2.00
1.00
P Value
1.00
1.00
1.00
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Again based on the p values, the null hypothesis can't be rejected, and therefore it can be
assumed that within the categories, the responses would be the same on the reasons for not
being influenced.
These themes are further substantiated in the interview scripts that have been recorded by the
respondents. The excerpts of the script from a couple of respondents along with the theme are:
1. Trust: "I do not trust influencers anymore that I do not know personally. Influencers get
paid for their promotions and would sell anything for money."
2. "I trust people I know personally. Most of them share the same taste and likes with me."
3. "I feel betrayed by influencers whom I trusted years ago when I thought they were honest,
and now I see that they just promote for money".
4. Influence: "Some years ago, I was not aware that influencers had an impact on my decision-
making, now I know that, and I do not like that. It is ok to be influenced by friends and
families or role models, but not by strangers. Even when they are celebrities."
5. "Influence can be positive and negative. Influence from people I know well is positive.
Influence from people I do not know personally is bad. I do not know their real
motivations."
Honesty: "I trust the people I know to be honest and not to lie to me to make money. All the
big influencers are not honest and get paid to advertise a product. For me, that is the same
when I see in a journal ad a football player advertising a shampoo."
Entertainment: "When I like a post on social media, I like the entertainment but not the promoted
product".
"For me, big influencers are fun to follow. It is entertaining and interesting. But I would not
buy something just because they promote it."
Discussion
The objective of this research paper was to find out if micro-influencers have an influence on
the followers when they are known to the followers personally. The hypothesis was that when
micro-influencers are known to the followers personally, they tend to have more influence over
the purchase decisions of the followers. The researcher adopted a mixed methodology
combining both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. The researcher relied on a
literature review and surveyed findings to develop an understanding of the hypothesis. 55% of
the participants in our study were male participants, and 45% were female participants. The
survey findings revealed that 98.9% of female participants and 98.2% of male participants were
influenced by the opinions of micro-influencers when they knew the influencers personally.
On the contrary, the participants were not influenced by micro-influencers when they did not
know the influencers personally. This finding goes in line with the findings of the literature
review that showed that family members influence the consumer purchase decision
significantly as family units share the resources within their financial means and since most of
the families share similarities in financial affordability and have similar tastes in terms of the
merchandise they consume when micro-influencers share a relationship with their followers,
they tend to be more persuasive to the followers (Degun, 2017; Kumar & Rao, 2019).
Another important observation was that male participants were more influenced by the micro-
influencers when they posted comments or promotions, indicating that male participants made
their purchase decisions based on the recommendations provided by the micro-influencers
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they trusted. On the other hand, only 9.37% of female participants were influenced by the
posted comments or promotions of micro-influencers they knew personally. This brings into
question the gender difference in consumption patterns. According to Kraft and Weber (2012),
while shopping, women look for products that are useful for the long term, while men look for
products that will fulfil their immediate short-term needs. Because of the way men and women
shop, they respond differently to advertising or product promotions. Since men are solution-
oriented, they look for greater functionality of a product and the benefits associated with it to
resolve an immediate or short-term need, but women not only take into consideration the
functionality of the product but also the longevity, elegance, and impression it may create while
responding to a product promotion (Spasova & Taneva, 2021). Lokithasan et al. (2019), in their
study, found that men tend to purchase video games recommended by male influencers as
these influencers have tested the video games and provided useful information. Women, on
the other hand, are more likely to buy beauty and fashion products promoted by female
influencers because they trust the information provided by these female influencers. This
indicates that depending on the product being promoted by the micro-influencers, who were
known to the survey respondents, men and women survey participants responded differently
to the product promotion of micro-influencers.
When the survey participants replied that they were not influenced by the promotions of the
micro-influencers, they were further inquired about the reasons for their not being influenced.
One of the reasons cited by the survey participants was that they knew that the promotion was
a marketing gimmick. By marketing gimmick, what the survey participants meant was that the
promotion was a paid advertisement that the micro-influencers were a part of in exchange for
the money they received from the marketers and the fame they earned from such
advertisements. This finding aligns with the revelation made by the literature review that
showed that how people will respond to a paid advertisement is determined by how consumers
perceive the marketer's intent (Stubb & Colliander, 2019). Past research showed that most of
the time, consumers are not influenced by the claims made by paid advertising and that
consumers consider paid promotions as a sort of aggrandized marketing attempt to sell the
products (Obermiller, Spangenberg, & MacLachlan, 2005). Consumers are aware that
marketers apply various strategies to sell products and exaggerate the attributes of a product or
service when needed, to boost sales. Therefore, when consumers perceive that marketers
intend to boost sales through paid promotion, they are less likely to trust the claims made by
the advertisement.
Another reason cited by the survey participants was that they did not consider the micro-
influencers to be qualified enough to give a recommendation for a product or service. This
finding also aligns with the literature review that reveals that when micro-influencers can prove
their expertise in a specific product or service, they can influence their followers (Wang et al.,
2017). This suggests that knowledge or expertise regarding a product or service is a crucial
selling point of a micro-influencer. If micro-influencers cannot present their expertise on the
product or service they are trying to sell convincingly, their persuasion of their followers fails
to meet the desired objective.
Another reason cited by the survey participants for not getting influenced by the promotions
of the micro-influencers was that they believed that the micro-influencers promoted too many
different products or services, which reduced their credibility. This again goes in line with the
findings observed in the literature review. The literature review showed that even though
celebrities are popular and have more followers, people get influenced more by social media
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influencers rather than celebrities when it comes to making purchase decisions. Even among
social media influencers, micro-influencers have more engagement and conversion rates
compared to mega influencers because people find micro-influencers more credible than mega
influencers. The primary reason for people to find micro-influencers more credible than
celebrities or mega influencers is that people believe that micro-influencers are recommending
a product or service based on their expertise and experience rather than because of money and
fame. Therefore, as soon as the popularity of micro-influencers begins to rise and they gain
more followers and endorse more products or services, their credibility factor declines because
people then judge their promotion as an attempt to sell products or services in exchange for
money and fame.
The survey participants of this study also cited the reason for using Facebook and Instagram
as a medium of entertainment only, and therefore, the products or services being promoted on
these platforms do not impact them or make them buy things. This finding takes us back to
the original objective of launching Facebook in 2004. The original purpose of Facebook was
to connect people with friends, colleagues, family members, and people whom they do not
know. Apart from connecting people, Facebook has also been a channel for people with low
self-esteem and loneliness to spend considerable amounts of time on this platform (Limniou,
Ascroft, & McLean, 2021). Facebook also serves as a medium for social comparison where
people get motivated by the lifestyle of each other and emulate the living style of others. With
time, Facebook launched a lot of video streaming facilities in which people can spend hours
watching videos posted by influencers on T.V. or news channels. Instagram, on the other hand,
is more image focused as Instagram allures people with colourful pictures and videos (Limniou
et al., 2021). Launched in 2010, Instagram encourages photo sharing and video sharing, and
therefore, it has become an important marketing tool for displaying products with appealing
visualization. To this date, Instagram, which is primarily used by the younger generation, is an
attractive medium for young mobile users to capture photos or pictures and share them with
others (Ting et al., 2015). Therefore, even though Instagram is a great marketing tool for brands
to promote their products and services, most users use Instagram for entertainment purposes
by posting and sharing pictures and videos with friends and family members.
The survey participants of our study also shared that they felt they were being used as a tool
for gaining money and fame by the micro-influencers. This also goes in line with the literature
review findings that showed that the marketer's intent is the determining factor for the viewers
if they want to be persuaded by the paid advertising or not. Since the primary objective of most
marketers remains to sell products to the viewers even if they do not need the product, viewers
are sceptical about the intentions of the marketers. Therefore, if the viewers feel that the micro-
influencers are getting paid for promoting a product or service, they grow scepticism of the
claims made by the micro-influencers about a certain product or service. In the end, when
micro-influencers promote a product or service in exchange for money, they just want to use
these social media platforms as a monetizing tool for their earnings and the fame that comes
along with it.
When the survey participants answered that they were influenced by the product promotions
of the micro-influencers they knew personally, they were further presented with questions to
determine the reasons for their being influenced by the micro-influencers. One of the reasons
cited by the participants for trusting the promotions of the micro-influencers they knew
personally is that they believed that the micro-influencers knew about their tastes and
preferences. The participants also mentioned that they shared the same taste as the micro-
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influencers they follow. This aligns with the findings of the literature review that stated that the
social identity of people is defined by their tastes and preferences, and a common social identity
puts people in specific groups identified by their predilection for a specific type of product or
service. For example, people with a common preference for Harley Davidson motorbikes share
a common social identity, and as such, because of their consumption preference, they form a
group based on their predilection for a unique bike. Social media influencers promote products
or services in a specific line of business. For example, some social media influencers promote
the lifestyle of veganism, some promote the lifestyle of yoga or healthy eating, some give
fashion or makeup tips for amateurs, and some others help their followers cope with grief or
life problems. People who follow the influencers have a penchant for a certain lifestyle that is
being promoted by the influencers. The homogeneity in lifestyle preferences binds the social
media influencers and their followers in a bond identified by shared tastes, and this indicates
why the survey participants believed that the micro-influencers they knew personally knew
about their tastes and preferences and shared the same taste as them.
The survey participants also stated that the micro-influencers they knew personally never failed
to give good recommendations. This again aligns with the literature review findings that
revealed that friends and family members influence consumer purchase decisions. The survey
participants trusted that the micro-influencers they knew personally or shared a relationship
with gave good recommendations because they know about the taste and preferences of their
audience, and hence, they suggest products or services they know will be useful to the
audiences.
The issue of micro-influencers losing their credibility when their number of followers increases
could be analyzed further with the use of data analytics and artificial intelligence that can help
companies do target marketing by focusing on micro-influencers as targets and getting them
convinced of the product and service offerings. Once the micro-influencers get convinced of
the product and service offerings, they can promote the products on social media. This way,
micro-influencers can maintain their integrity and give their honest feedback on the product
or service after their personal experience of using it. The companies do not have to pay the
micro-influencers for marketing because the micro-influencers will not be able to know that
they are being targeted for marketing by the companies.
Limitations
This research study has some limitations. The first limitation was that the sample population
selected for the survey was limited to only participants from three countries. Even though the
study outcome did not showcase any significant difference among the participants based on
countries, thereby eliminating cultural influence, if any, on the study outcome. Another
important point to note is that all three countries are members of the European Union and
share a similar western culture. If the participants were selected from a more culturally diverse
mix of eastern and western countries, the cultural influence might have played a role in the
study outcome.
Another limitation of the study outcome is that the sample population of participants with
primary education was significantly lower compared to the population of participants with
higher education. Therefore, the research study failed to show the influence of education on
the research outcome as the study outcome was skewed towards people with higher education
in all measures, making it difficult to evaluate if education played a role in the research outcome.
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Another limitation of the study was the age group, as the survey participants selected belong
to the age group of 18 and 35 years. This is a significant limitation because the literature review
showed that the majority of users on Facebook are in their 40s. Hence the limitation of the age
group prevented the research from including the perspectives of older age groups.
The final limitation was that the survey was promoted on two social media platforms, including
Facebook and Instagram. The inclusion of another popular social media platform like TikTok
could have generated a different outcome.
Conclusion
Influencer marketing got to a new level when social restrictions and lockdown measures forced
companies to shrink their marketing budget and look out for cheaper marketing options.
Influencer marketing emerged as a new marketing phenomenon, with marketers beginning to
promote their products and services increasingly through social media influencers, specifically
micro-influencers. Research has shown that micro-influencers with a smaller size of followers
have more engagement and conversion rates than celebrities or mega-influencers. It is because
consumers are sceptical towards paid advertising, and whenever celebrities or mega influencers
promote various types of products, consumers consider the promotion as a marketing gimmick
that the endorsers are being paid for. Therefore, they do not consider such promotions
authentic. Since micro-influencers produce content in a specific line of lifestyle that they have
expertise in, their followers follow their advice because of their perceived expertise, but when
micro-influencers achieve increasing popularity and the number of followers, their authenticity
diminishes in the eyes of their followers, who then begin to question the genuinity of their
promoted products.
The objective of this research paper was to evaluate if micro-influencers influence the purchase
decisions of the followers who know the influencers personally or share a relationship (family
members) with them. The researcher conducted a survey which showed that the majority of
the participants trusted the opinions and promotions of the micro-influencers they knew
personally but did not get influenced by micro-influencers they did not know personally. The
literature review showed that consumers make their purchase decisions influenced by the words
of advice of family members and friends. Consumers' scepticism towards paid advertising is
also an outcome of interaction among family members. Therefore, the survey finding that
participants get influenced by the promotions and opinions of micro-influencers they know
personally aligns with the revelation of the literature review. The chi-square test further
substantiated the finding that irrespective of the number of responses within the category, the
theme-based responses will be almost the same, and there is no interdependence.
Based on the research findings and analysis of the literature review, it can be concluded that
people tend to trust the words of micro-influencers if they know them personally. In other
words, if the micro-influencers are family and friends of the followers, they tend to have more
persuasive power over their audience. Since it is through family interaction that people develop
scepticism towards paid advertising, it also makes sense that when it comes to enhancing
knowledge and expertise of a product or service, consumers rely on the words of advice of
family members and friends.
Furthermore, the solution to the problem of micro-influencers losing their credibility can be
solved using data analytics and A.I. that companies can use to conduct target marketing on
micro-influencers so that they end up using the product and service and then promote the
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same on their social media accounts after they experience using it. It will not turn into a paid
promotion either, as micro-influencers will not be able to know that they are being targeted for
marketing by the companies. The whole promotion will remain organic, which will boost the
confidence of the followers.
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