Understanding influencer marketing: The role of congruence between influencers, products and consumers

•An experimental design includes followers of a top fashion influencer.•Influencer–follower and influencer–product congruencies affect follower–product congruence.•Congruence between the follower and the product positively affects attitude.•Attitude toward the sponsored product leads to higher intentions to purchase and recommend. Influencers increasingly provide sources of information and innovation to followers. Grounded in balance, cognitive dissonance, and congruity theories, the current article highlights how a congruence psychological mechanism, leveraged in influencer marketing campaigns, can contribute to the success of this novel form of persuasive communication. To understand consumers’ behavioral intentions when they encounter product recommendations from fashion influencers on Instagram, this study addresses the congruence among the three inherent contributors to any influencer marketing campaign: the influencer, the consumer (or follower), and the sponsored brand. The study involves 372 followers of a famous fashion influencer. Results confirm that when influencer–consumer congruence is fixed and high, high (low) influencer–product congruence prompts high (low) consumer–product congruence. Strong congruence between the consumer and product then generates more favorable attitudes toward the product, as well as higher purchase and recommendation intentions, ensuring optimal returns on influencer marketing campaigns.