Dancing for Taste: The Impact of AI and Human Influencers on Aesthetic Perception and Purchase Intention for Food Products

TL;DR

This study explores how AI and human influencers, combined with different dance styles, affect consumer perceptions and purchase intentions for food products.

Contribution

The research introduces the concept of aesthetic congruence between influencer type and dance style in digital food marketing.

Findings

Aesthetic congruence increases purchase intention in digital food marketing.

The interaction effect is stronger with congruent combinations of influencer type and dance style.

Aesthetic congruity influences real purchase actions through cultural and technological aesthetics.

Abstract

As digital food marketing increasingly relies on short-form visual content, understanding how performance aesthetics interact with influencer characteristics becomes critical. The present research examines the effects of the combination of the influencer type (AI or human) and the dance style (modern or traditional) on the attitudes of consumers towards food products. We show that aesthetic congruence, where human and traditional dance performers are matched with AI and modern dance performers, respectively, can result in increased purchase intention in two preregistered experiments (N = 462). The interaction effect was significant in Study 1, and this emphasises the strength of congruent combinations. Study 2 also indicated that these influences are mediated through two different aesthetic feelings: cultural aesthetics and technological aesthetics. Also, one of the real measures of behaviour was that aesthetic congruity affected the real purchase actions. These results indicate that performed aesthetics could be used to improve the effectiveness of digital food marketing, provided it is strategically aligned with influencer identity.

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