Behind the click: who and how Instagram ads shape attitudes and intentions to purchase vegan products

Purpose Amid the increasing number of information sources, access to such resources creates a strong appeal to retain consumers' attention and encouragement. Persuasive communication will not be effective if consumers do not access the information. Therefore, this study examines how types of influencers (celebrity vs food expert) and message appeal (emotional vs informational message) shape consumers' attitudes and purchase intentions toward vegan food products on Instagram ads. Design/methodology/approach A 2x2 between-subject laboratory experiment was conducted with 180 Indonesian university students who were exposed to manipulated Instagram AI-generated ads featuring vegan food. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and Hayes's macro PROCESS to test the main and interaction effects. Findings Results reveal significant main and interaction effects of influencers and message appeal. It turns out that celebrity and informational messages mostly influenced consumers' attitudes to be interested in the vegan food advertisements and products, which subsequently drove purchase intentions. The findings highlight the interplay between the types of influencers and message appeal. Practical implications The compatibility between the products, types of influencers and message appeal plays an important role in shaping particular consumer responses. Marketers should select an influencer according to the types of messages being delivered to enhance persuasive effectiveness while maintaining sustainable business in a competitive digital market. Originality/value By integrating the elaboration likelihood model (ELM), this study extends prior advertising research by considering not only visual imagery but also caption content as a persuasive mechanism in shaping consumers' responses.