Using linguistics to inform influencer marketing in services

Abstract

Purpose To inform and optimize frontline service interactions associated with higher education recruitment, the linguistic content and context of online posts by brand ambassadors and prospective students in a brand community are examined. Design/methodology/approach Using Linguistic Inquiry Word Count (LIWC) with content analysis, the authors examine over 20,000 online communication posts to identify prospects’ needs and communication styles that may inform brand ambassadors’ outreach efforts. Findings Analysis reveals linguistic differences between brand ambassadors’ and prospective students’ posts across public and private spaces, suggesting gaps in exchange efficacy. Publicly, prospects express more positive emotion, affiliation and authenticity than in private posts, where posting engagement is the highest. Prospects overall low clout language, combined with brand ambassadors’ low authenticity scores, suggest limited influence in exchange efforts. Theoretically, findings suggest that given the hedonic nature of public exchanges, this is where brand ambassadors may be more influential than in private, utilitarian informational exchanges. An integrated influencer marketing servicescape model is developed to guide future research. Originality/value Findings extend and integrate the online servicescape and influencer marketing literatures by revealing the importance of service interaction context and linguistic styles in enhancing frontline informational exchanges. Aligning linguistic language such as analytical thought, clout, authenticity, emotional tone, temporal focus and affiliation between public and private contexts may enhance authenticity in frontline service interactions, thereby enhancing communication effectiveness.

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