INFLUENCER MARKETING

ANALYSIS
Through the Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model

Gülnihal Beyza Akcan & Sokar Mohammed

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Overview
Introduction
Media Effects Theories
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Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model (DSMM)

The Four Position of DSMM
Application on Influencer Marketing
Types of Influencers

The Model in Influencer Marketing Campaigns

Conclusion
References
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Introduction
Influencer marketing is simply a form of transactional communication between social media users who
produce content on a certain topic(s) on social media, and a large follower base who are interested in those
topics and are homogenized in terms of gender, age and interests. It has become a new and powerful form of
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media use and communication brought about by the digital age with individuals leveraging their online
presence to sway the opinions and behaviors of their followers.
This new media use, which has become popular in the last decade, does not only occur between influencers
and their followers, but also brands, companies and marketers often take part in this communication with
various strategies. Since this mechanism brings together a micro and macro level audience with similar
characteristics on a platform where they will consume content, it is very suitable for individualized
communication in the field of marketing.
As one of Media Effects Theories, The Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model (DSMM) provides a
comprehensive framework for understanding the variability in how individuals are affected by media. These
effects can be either conscious or automatic, impacting cognitions, emotions, attitudes, beliefs, physiology,
and behavior. The effect of media use in influencer marketing on triggering individuals' purchasing habits is
another example of this.
In this study, we will analyze how influencer marketing works and gains an effective direction as indicated by
DSMM.
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Media Effects Theories
Previous definiton Current definiton
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refers to a handful of mass media also media technologies that includes

newspapers the interactions of audience with
radio others and technologies
film social media
television games

Valkenburg and Oliver found that studies published in communication journals

between 2007 and 2017 have introduced many new theories or developed existing
ones due to the rapid changes in the new media landscape.
e. g. Reinforcing Spiral Model, Differential Susceptibility Model of Media Effects,
Communication Mediation Model, Framing Theory, Model of Psychological
Reactance to Persuasive Messages, Extensions of Spiral of Silence Theory.
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Media Effects Theories
Early mass communication theories refer to the "massness", homogeneous media and homogenous
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media effects. In the past two decades media use has become progressively individualized (Valkenburg
and Oliver, 2019).
Until the last two decades, mass media as the only media channel, use required mass communication to
address large audiences by a single tool. As much as technology allowed, a one-way communication
format between the media and the message receiver was mostly possible. Compared to the past, not
only mass media use and mass communication maintain, but also new media use, personalized
messages and transactional communication are on the rise due to the development of technology and
the increasing value of individualization. Therefore, it is expexted that the mass has turned increasingly
obsolete in contemporary media effects theories (Chaffee & Metzger, 2001)
A media effects theory: explains the uses and effects of media on individuals, groups, or societies as a
whole. A media effects theory requires to conceptualize media use and the potential changes that this
media use can bring about in individuals, groups, or societies.
Whereas mass communication theories have traditionally embraced both postpositivist and critical or
cultural approaches, media effects theories are primarily associated with postpositivist approaches.
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Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model

The DSMM builds upon earlier individual-level media-effects theories and well-cited media-effects
theories by Valkenburg and Peter.
Overview: They refer to media effects as the deliberative and non- deliberative short- and long-term
within-person changes in cognitions, emotions, attitudes, beliefs, physiology, and behavior that
result from media use.
Valkenburg and Peter investigates on: which individuals are more highly susceptible to media effects
than others, how and why media use influences those individuals, how media effects can be
enhanced or counteracted.
According to DSMM, media effects are not uniform; rather, they vary based on dispositional,
developmental, and social susceptibility variables.

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The Four Position of DSMM

Dispositional susceptibility:
Individual dimensions (gender,
personality, beliefs, moods)
Developmental susceptibility:
Selective responsiveness (social and
emotional)
Social susceptibility:
All social-context factors (family,
friends, school, worki cultural norms)

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Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model

Already in the 1940s, Lazarsfeld et al. (1948) discovered

that individuals predominantly select media messages
that serve their needs, goals, and beliefs. generally
based on three propositions:
Audiences pay attention to a restricted part of
messages out of the various ones that can
potentially influence them,
Media use is a result of dispositional, situational, or
social-context factors
Only those messages they select have the potential
to influence them.
(Klapper, 1960)
According to the DSMM, people are affected
differently depending on their media use.
For example, adolescents' exposure to violent
media content has the effect of encouraging
aggressive behavior (Slater, 2007).
From this point of view, media stimulates
people's emotions and ways of thinking, affects
their values ​and beliefs. Media is an effective
factor in directing people.

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Application on Influencer Marketing
By identifying and analyzing the various susceptibility variables outlined in DSMM, researchers
and marketers can better comprehend why certain individuals are more influenced by the
product they sell than others.
The disposition-content congruency hypothesis states that when an audience consumes
content that aligns with their personality, the media has a greater impact on them.
In the contrary of mass media, influencers have a homogeneous audience in terms of gender or
age, with their own specific interests. In the contrary of mass communication, they send
messages to their followers with a individualized communication language. In this type of
media use, message receivers consume personalized content. Partnerships with influencers
present the product or service only to those who are already inclined to consume it, in a direct
and self-customized language. Therefore, as DSMM points out, the most efficient result is
achieved at the intersection of a product or service's target audience and an influencer's
audience.
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Types Of Influencers
divided into categories, usually according to their number
of followers. Haenlein & Libai (2017) propose the following division:
mega-influencers, who are perceived as experts in their field and are
widely known – for example, popular bloggers; and micro-influencers, who are ordinary people that
have a relative influence on a smaller circle. There is an intermediate category, the macro-
influencers and the category of nano-influencers for those who exert advocacy in local context or in
approximately to niche audiences

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Types Of Influencers
Nano Social media Influencers: Nano influencers are creators with the smallest reach. They have
fewer than 10,000 followers

Micro Social Media Influencers: A micro-influencer is someone who has between 1,000 to 100,000
followers. A micro-influencer focuses on a specific niche or area and is generally regarded as an
industry expert or topic specialist.

Macro Social Media Influencers: A macro-influencer's follower count should fall somewhere between
100,000 and one million followers.

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Conclusion
The Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model (DSMM) offers a valuable framework for understanding
the nuanced impact of influencers on their audiences. By considering the dispositional, developmental, and
social susceptibility variables, we can better grasp why certain individuals are more influenced by certain
media content than others. This model highlights that media effects are not one-size-fits-all but are instead
highly individualized, shaped by personal traits, developmental stages, and social environments.
Applying DSMM to influencer marketing provides deeper insights into the mechanisms through which
influencers affect their followers. It reveals how personality traits can make individuals more or less
susceptible to media influences.
Understanding these dynamics allows marketers and researchers to design more effective and ethically
responsible influencer campaigns. By leveraging the principles of DSMM, influencers can promote the certain
products or services more effectively, fostering the interests of the followers.
In conclusion, the DSMM framework not only enriches our understanding of media effects in the context of
influencers but also provides practical guidance for enhancing the impact of influencer marketing. Future
research should continue to explore these interactions, particularly in the evolving digital landscape, to
optimize the benefits of media influences on specific aspects.
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References
Chaffee, S. H., & Metzger, M. J. (2001). The end of mass communication? Mass Communication
and Society, 4(4), 365-379. doi:10.1207/S15327825MCS0404_3
Klapper, J. T. (1960). The effects of mass communication. Glencoe, IL: Free Press.
Lazarsfeld, P. F., Berelson, B., & Gaudet, H. (1948). The people's choice: How the voter makes
up his mind in a presidential campaign. New York, NJ: Columbia University Press.
Slater, M. D. (2007). Reinforcing spirals: The mutual influence of media selectivity and media
effects and their impact on individual behavior and social identity. Communication Theory, 17,
281–303. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2885.2007.00296.x
Valkenburg, P. M. & Oliver, M. B. (2019). Media effects: An overview. In J. Bryant, A. Raney, & M. B.
Oliver. Media effects: Advances in Theory and Research, 4th edition (pp. 16-35) New York:
Routledge.
Valkenburg, P. M., & Peter, J. (2013). The differential susceptibility to media effects model.
Journal of Communication, 63(2), 221–243. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12024

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THANK YOU
Gülnihal Beyza Akcan & Sokar Mohammed