Is Consumer Generated Branding the Way Forward for Digital Advertising: Examining the Effects of Message Source, Presentation Format and Involvement on Consumer Decisions on X (Formerly Twitter)

This empirical study compares the effects of consumer generated brand-related content versus brand generated advertising on X (formerly Twitter). Guided by the theory of planned behavior, elaboration likelihood model of persuasion, and media richness theory, this study utilized a 2 (source: user generated content vs. advertising) x 3 (format: video vs. image vs. text) x 2 (involvement: high vs. low) between-subjects research design (N = 493). Results revealed that consumer generated branding in richer media format has significantly greater influence on consumer decisions than brand generated ads. Findings lay the foundation for interdisciplinary research into the impacts of consumer-generated branding. These results challenge online marketers to rethink their advertising strategies on X and other social networks.