Young consumers’ responses
to suspected covert and overt
blog marketing
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the responses of young consumers to suspected
covert and overt product-brand recommendations in a blog.
Design/methodology/approach – Experimental design was applied to investigate the effect of
covert and overt marketing on young consumers’ perceptions of blogger credibility and their
behavioural intentions.
Findings – Overt marketing had a negative effect on behavioural intentions, such as future interest in
the blogger, intention to engage in word-of-mouth, and purchase intention. Covert marketing did not
affect the intended behaviour. Neither covert nor overt marketing influenced the blogger’s credibility.
Research limitations/implications – The study was delimited to a small sample; one blog, one type
of product recommendation, and a well-known brand. Young, well-educated consumers with experience
in reading blogs may be able to filter the brand recommendations and focus on the content of the blog.
Practical implications – This study has implications for bloggers, companies, and policy makers.
Although overt marketing is the most open and the recommended form of blog marketing, the study
showed that overt marketing has negative effects. Therefore, bloggers need to carefully consider how
they present a sponsorship.
Originality/value – The study makes three important contributions. First, it answers the call for
research on consumer reactions to covert (deceptive) and overt marketing tactics. Second, it contributes
to blog marketing research by studying a case of suspected covert marketing where consumers do not
know whether the blog is sponsored or not. Third, the study contributes to knowledge around young
consumers, demonstrating that covert and overt tactics do not affect blogger credibility.
Keywords Blog marketing, Blogger credibility, Brand recommendation, Covert marketing,
Overt marketing
Paper type Research paper