Which people are loyal followers of influencers? An exploratory study

Abstract

Influencers are tools implemented in digital marketing as a communication mechanism between the brand and its target; however, there are few studies that observe the relationship between the personality of the follower and their attitude towards the influencer. The objective of this study is to explore whether personality traits influence positive attitudes towards influencers. An empirical study was carried out in Spain and Colombia with a sample of 381 individuals and cause-effect relationships were analysed using the partial least squares methodology. The results show that extroversion and disordered personality traits are related to positive attitudes towards influencers and there could be some differences between genders, specifically men with a calm personality and women with a sympathetic personality.