“It’s Just Addictive People That Make Addictive Videos”: Children’s Understanding of and Attitudes towards Influencer Marketing of Food and Beverages by YouTube Video Bloggers

Abstract

Exposure to influencer marketing of foods and beverages high in fat, sugar, and/or salt (HFSS) increases children’s immediate intake. This study qualitatively explored children’s understanding of, and attitudes towards, this marketing, to elucidate potential mechanisms through which exposure affects behavior. In six focus groups (n = 4) children (10–11 years) were shown a YouTube video featuring influencer marketing of an HFSS product. Inductive thematic analysis identified six themes from children’s discussions of this marketing: (1) YouTubers fill a gap in children’s lives, (2) the accessibility of YouTubers increases children’s understanding of their actions, (3) influencer marketing impacts all—the influencer, the brand, and the viewer, (4) attitudes towards influencer marketing are most affected by a YouTuber’s familiarity, (5) YouTuber influencer marketing is effective because they are not ‘strangers’, (6) children feel able to resist influencer marketing of HFSS products. Children had an understanding of the persuasive intent of this marketing, and although most were sceptical, familiar YouTubers elicited particularly sympathetic attitudes. Children felt affected by influencer marketing of HFSS products, but believed they were able to resist it. Beyond theoretical insight, this study adds to the growing body of evidence to suggest children’s exposure to HFSS influencer marketing should be reduced.

Adolescents’ Reactions to Adverts for Fast-Food and Confectionery Brands That are High in Fat, Salt, and/or Sugar (HFSS), and Possible Implications for Future Research and Regulation: Findings from a Cross-Sectional Survey of 11–19 Year Olds in the United Kingdom

“…The findings are consistent with consumer research that has demonstrated the importance of examining how marketing shapes and reinforces attitudes towards HFSS products/brands [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21], in addition to research examining the associations between the volume and frequency of marketing exposure and dietary outcomes [1]. The findings are also consistent with suggestions that some young people may be more susceptible to the persuasive intent of HFSS marketing.…”

“…The eight reaction measures, albeit informed by focus groups [16] and existing research [46], are not exhaustive of all possible reactions. It is plausible that young people may have formed other opinions to the adverts (both positive and negative) that were not captured in the measures, and a more detailed understanding concerning appeal and interpretation could have been generated by showing creatives in qualitative research [15][16][17][18][19][20]. We also cannot determine to what extent, if at all, reactions were influenced by existing heuristics and attitudes towards the brands depicted (e.g., due to prior exposure to other forms of marketing).…”

“…Experimental research with both children and adolescents has also consistently shown that exposure to advertising for HFSS foods is associated with positive attitudes towards, and stronger attachments to, the brands depicted [5,[12][13][14]. Moreover, qualitative research has also demonstrated that children and adolescents in the UK consider the marketing of HFSS foods to stimulate curiosity, hold important cultural and social capital, and normalize and socialize consumption [15][16][17][18][19][20].…”

“…Although existing research suggests that adolescents in the UK do have positive attitudes towards marketing for HFSS foods [15][16][17][18][19][20], much of this evidence is based on qualitative studies which lack the ability to generalize to larger samples, or content analyses which are only able to hypothesize (but not show) appeal. In this study, we therefore examine how adolescents react to two adverts for HFSS foods using a demographically representative sample of 11-19 year olds in the UK.…”

“Wasn't Even on My Radar”: Increasing Parental Mediation of Influencer Marketing Behaviors in 35 Minutes with a Brief Theory of Planned Behavior Informed Online Randomized Controlled Intervention

“…The popularity may result from vlogs being the most likely video genre to feature positive, neutral, and negative types of self-disclosure, and this may lead to more interesting content and a stronger para-social relationship between viewers and influencers (Ferchaud et al, 2018). Young consumers are motivated to watch vlogs because they provide entertainment, information, social validation of their own interests, and window into different yet highly interesting lives (Coates et al, 2020). They feel a strong attachment, intimacy, and even addiction to the influencers as young consumers perceive them to be more accessible, authentic, and similar than traditional celebrities (Coates et al, 2020).…”