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When more likes is not better: the consequences of high and low likes-to-followers ratios for perceived account credibility and social media marketing effectiveness

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  • Eline L. E. De Vries

    (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid)

Abstract

Previous research on social media marketing assumes that the more followers or “likes” an individual or company has on social media, the better. The current research is the first that challenges this assumption by showing that people make inferences about the credibility of social media accounts based on the number of likes a post receives relative to the size of its likely audience. The findings indicate that high as well as low likes-to-followers ratios negatively influence the perceived credibility of the account and, as such, dampen social media marketing effectiveness. The addition of hashtags is identified as a way to guard against the negative impact of high likes-to-followers ratios. Managers, (aspiring) influencers, and people in general involved in (personal) branding on social media can use the present findings to maximize the effectiveness of their social media marketing strategy.

Suggested Citation

  • Eline L. E. De Vries, 2019. "When more likes is not better: the consequences of high and low likes-to-followers ratios for perceived account credibility and social media marketing effectiveness," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 30(3), pages 275-291, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:mktlet:v:30:y:2019:i:3:d:10.1007_s11002-019-09496-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s11002-019-09496-6
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. De Vries, Eline L.E. & Duque, Lola C., 2018. "Small but Sincere: How Firm Size and Gratitude Determine the Effectiveness of Cause Marketing Campaigns," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 94(4), pages 352-363.
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    3. de Vries, Lisette & Gensler, Sonja & Leeflang, Peter S.H., 2012. "Popularity of Brand Posts on Brand Fan Pages: An Investigation of the Effects of Social Media Marketing," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 26(2), pages 83-91.
    4. Kirmani, Amna & Wright, Peter, 1989. "Money Talks: Perceived Advertising Expense and Expected Product Quality," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 16(3), pages 344-353, December.
    5. Sweeney, Jill & Swait, Joffre, 2008. "The effects of brand credibility on customer loyalty," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 15(3), pages 179-193.
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    Cited by:

    1. Tran, Trang P. & Lin, Chien-Wei & Baalbaki, Sally & Guzmán, Francisco, 2020. "How personalized advertising affects equity of brands advertised on Facebook? A mediation mechanism," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 1-15.
    2. Pittman, Matthew & Abell, Annika, 2021. "More Trust in Fewer Followers: Diverging Effects of Popularity Metrics and Green Orientation Social Media Influencers," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 70-82.

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