Extending Equity Theory: How Consumers Respond to the "Collaborative" Behaviour of Micro-Influencers in the Hospitality Industry

IMC Krems participates in groundbreaking study that includes data from the third-party perspective of social media users

Krems, Austria, 09. July 2024: Consumers using social media respond to interactions between micro-influencers and the hospitality industry when the latter two act in a „collaborative“ setting (free food/accomodation vs. mentioning the hospitality business on social media). Interestingly, the results of a study conducted by an international team of researchers, including IMC Krems University of Applied Sciences, indicate that consumers tend to dislike the „collaboration“ behaviour of micro-influencers, because they perceive it as unfair or unequal. The researchers‘ interpretation of the results, recently published in the prestigious Q1 magazine Journal of Tourism and Hospitality Management, helps to extend the application of the so-called equity theory by including the perspective of social media users as a third party.

Equity theory is a motivational theory suggesting that people seek fairness in social relationships by comparing their own efforts and rewards with those of others. Feeling unfairly treated compared to others leads to dissatisfaction, which may result in behavioural changes to compensate for the perceived imbalance. Based on equity theory, the current study analyses the perceptions and reactions of a third party (consumers using social media) to the exchange between the taking party (social media micro-influencers) and the giving party (restaurants) in „collaboration scenarios“ of the hospitality industry. Although practices of paid influencers have been well studied in the existing scientific literature, the collaboration phenomenon with unpaid micro-influencers has yet been a grey area as it is theoretically and empirically unclear how it influences user behaviour. Giancarlo Fedeli from the Institute of Tourism, Wine Business and Marketing at IMC Krems and his colleagues Zhuowei (Joy) Huang from Sun Yat-sen University (China) and Mingming Cheng from Curtin University (Australia) have tackled this so far poorly researched topic – and discovered some interesting facts.

Consumers’ perception: Do micro-influencers act unethically?

In the first part of the study, the researchers analysed user comments on YouTube videos showing collaboration scenarios between micro-influencers and small hospitality businesses. Unpaid micro-influencers with 10,000 to 100,000 followers tend to interact intensively with their followers and are perceived by online users as authentic, trustworthy and persuasive. They are often preferred by small businesses that cannot afford to pay for partnerships. Giancarlo Fedeli explains: „Five videos with over 6,200 comments were analysed and finally 326 comments reflecting personal views on micro-influencers were included in our evaluation. The majority of consumer reactions were clearly focused on the fact that asking of influencers for free meals or accommodation was unethical.“ Three main dimensions of this classification were identified – „erosion of trust“, „inappropriate behaviour“ and „unethical practice“. The first dimension expressed concern that „collaborative“ behaviour undermines the value of telling the truth – for example, refusing to give micro-influencers free meals leads to poor reviews on their social media channels. „Inappropriate behaviour“ means that the request for collaboration by micro-influencers is not perceived asworth the investment a restaurant would have to do – a „like“ on social media does not justify a free meal. Commenters also felt that micro-influencers should be making money from their content and branding their lifestyle, rather than using „unethical practices“ to ask for free stuff. Interestingly, only a small number of comments supported the „ethical“ perspective of „normal business operations“, focusing on the fact that asking for a free meal/stay in return for promoting the business is a common business practice in marketing.

Consumers’ reaction: Do different collaboration scenarios affect their attitude towards micro-influencers?

Based on the results of the first part of the study, the researchers developed a 2×2 experimental design, defining 2 factors as dependent variables, resulting in 4 different collaboration scenarios: The first factor was the response of the givers (restaurant) to the micro-influencers‘ collaboration request („accept“ or „decline“). The second factor was related to the online comments of the receivers (micro-influencers), i.e. positive or negative comments. Consumers – who were not directly involved, but very much part of the exchange – represented the third party. „For our experiments,“ Prof Fedeli describes, „our participants – the consumers – watched a short video in which a micro-influencer asked for a free meal at a restaurant in exchange for a picture on the Instagram page. Afterwards, each of the 438 participants was assigned to one of the four collaboration scenarios and asked to complete a questionnaire to analyse cognitive and behavioural outcomes towards the micro-influencer. “ The research team identified two main findings: First, participants consistently agreed that the micro-influencer’s „collaboration“ behaviour was inappropriate and undermined the value of truth-telling or authenticity in their post, regardless of whether the influencer left positive or negative comments on social media. Second, participants‘ trust in the influencer, their ethical perceptions of fairness to the restaurant and their post-engagement behaviour were rated significantly higher when the influencer left positive comments than when he/she left negative comments. In general, the results of both parts of the study suggest that – based on the principles of equity theory – consumers tend to perceive micro-influencers’ „collaboration“ with hospitality businesses as not equal or unfair. In addition, consumers reported that the micro-influencer is perceived as most unethical when the hospitality company refuses to cooperate and negative comments are posted online.

This study makes several significant contributions to the existing tourism literature by using equity theory to uncover the phenomenon of collaborative interaction effects in hospitality and the ethical issues involved. It extends the application of the theory from the giver-taker balance to include more stakeholders and the impact of social media, highlighting the role of social media users in equity assessment. Future research should replicate the experiment across different hospitality products and social media platforms to explore differences across the tourism sector and online audiences.

Original Publication: Trouble in paradise? Collaboration behavior and ethics of micro-influencers in the hospitality industry. Zhuowei(Joy) Huang, Giancarlo Fedeli, Mingming Cheng. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management 59 (2024) 25–35. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhtm.2024.03.005

Images available at request

IMC Krems at a glance

Located in the heart of the province of Lower Austria, IMC Krems is committed to promoting internationalisation, practically focused education and innovation. It has 160-plus partner universities, in excess of 1,000 partner companies worldwide and over 3,000 students from 90 countries spread across two locations in Austria, with another 700 studying at five sites abroad. The contemporary topics of sustainability and digitalisation feature prominently in all of the degree programmes at this dynamic, modern institution. IMC Krems offers 27 full-time and part-time bachelor and master degree programmes and four continuing education courses in its core subjects of business, digitalisation and engineering, health sciences, and life sciences. The university has strong links with research and business – total funding for the university’s numerous research projects currently amounts to several million euros. English and German as the languages of instruction, internships in Austria and overseas, as well as international exchange programmes and semesters abroad ensure that students are equipped with all the tools they need for careers in Austria or other countries. Outstanding performance: IMC Krems’ excellent reputation in Austria and abroad is reflected in numerous external distinctions (CHE Ranking, IQNet and Quality Austria for fulfilment of ISO standards, Diploma Supplement Label), certificates (evalag), membership of international organisations (FHK, AACSB, ÖAWI, EAIE), and accreditations from international organisations. Visit the IMC Krems website for the latest facts and figures about the university: https://www.fhkrems.ac.at/fachhochschule/medienportal/presse/#facts-figures.

Scientific contact

Prof. (FH) Dr. Giancarlo Fedeli

Institute Tourism, Wine Business and Marketing

IMC Krems University of Applied Sciences

Piaristengasse 1.

3500 Krems / Austria

T +43 2732 802 395

E giancarlo.fedeli@fh-krems.ac.at

W www.imc.ac.at

IMC Krems

Mag. Anita Winkler

Project Manager Science communication / Marketing & Public Relations