Abstract/Summary

While fear of missing out (FOMO) laden content influences audiences’ perceptions and sense of urgency, using FOMO appeals to impact decisions among social media audiences remains largely unexplored. This paper addressed this research gap by presenting the findings of two studies investigating the influence of various endorsers and the interaction with audience demographics on travel-related decisions. Study 1 (n=238) was a cross-sectional survey to validate the hypothesized model. The findings from Study 1 indicate that anticipated elation, anticipated envy, and social influence are associated with personal FOMO, which in turn predicts intentions to visit and recommend. The same pattern is observed for social FOMO, although anticipated elation does not serve as a predictor. Study 2 (n=746) was an online experiment to examine the interaction effect of FOMO content endorsers and audience gender and age on travel decisions. Results indicated that travelers’ FOMO-laden reviews are more effective in influencing males, whereas influencers are more influential than other endorsers in affecting females. While younger audiences are more susceptible to FOMO content than mature individuals, no interaction with endorsers is observed, suggesting a consistent and more potent effect across different endorsers. This research contributes to the growing knowledge of FOMO advertising on social media. Specifically, it provides an understanding of the interaction of FOMO content endorsers and audience demographics on travel decisions.