The Impact of Exaggerated and Deceptive Influencer Advertising and Influencer Attractiveness on Consumer Purchase Intentions

Abstract

Influencer marketing is a growing trend where companies hire social media influencers to promote their brands through paid content. Influencers create engaging posts and interact with their followers to share personal experiences. However, consumers have expressed concerns about the potential negative effects of these promotions. Focusing on the negative aspects of influencer marketing, this study illustrates how followers perceive the misleading techniques used by influencers. This research aims to see how influencer appeal affects consumers' purchase intentions in exaggerated advertising generated by influencers. The data was gathered through an online survey. Three hundred eighty-eight valid responses were received from active Instagram users. SPSS and AMOS programs were utilized to assess the data and examine hypotheses. This study finds that deceptive adverts made by influencers negatively affect their attractiveness and significantly reduce purchase intentions. In contrast, exaggerated advertisements do not affect purchase intention. As expected, influencers' attractiveness is positively related to purchase intention. These findings emphasise the importance of ethical advertising practices in influencer campaigns.