Business Is Business: The Difference in Perception of Influencer’s Morality Between Generation Y and Z

Parallel to increased usage of influencer marketing among practitioners this type of advertising gained increased attention of the scientific community. Existing literature on the topic provides various findings on consumer responses to influencer marketing and this research adds to it by examining the potential moral issues from the followers’ perspective. The results of four focus groups among members of Generations Y and Z showed there are four types of unethical conduct noticed, and they vary depending on the respondent’s age. This research provides a starting point for examining potential consequences of different immoral actions that can be found in influencer marketing and gives practitioners more insight on the follower’s responses toward influencer’s online behavior, depending on their age.