A meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social media influencers: Mechanisms and moderation

Abstract

The use of social media influencers as persuasive marketing agents has become ubiquitous. However, a comprehensive understanding of their effectiveness, mechanisms, and moderation is still lacking. To address this gap, we conducted a meta-analysis of 71 papers, yielding 135 experimental studies and 571 effect sizes related to the impact of social media influencers compared to other forms of brand endorsements. Our results reveal that social media influencers significantly impact both consumer engagement and purchase intention, and they are relatively more effective than brand posts, virtual influencers, and celebrities. A meta-analytic structural equation model analyzing the influencing mechanisms suggests that social media influencers enhance consumer responses indirectly through their credibility and attractiveness. A meta-regression analysis further shows that various factors—including characteristics of the influencers, message, products, social media platforms, and followers, as well as their interaction with influencer size—moderate the effectiveness of social media influencers. Notably, our results indicate that influencer size can address some inconsistencies in previous research. For instance, small and medium-sized influencers are more effective in driving engagement, while larger influencers have greater impact on purchase intention. Our research provides novel, rich, and nuanced insights that can help managers with decisions such as: (a) when to choose influencers over alternatives, and (b) how to optimize their use.