Digital Persuasion or Digital Exploitation? Understanding the impacts of FOMO Marketing on Gen Z Consumer Behaviour
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31305/rrijm.2025.v10.n10.010Keywords:
Brand trust, FOMO marketing, impulsive buying, perceived manipulation, post-purchase regret, psychological impactAbstract
Purpose: Digital marketing has led to the development of new strategies to influence consumer behaviour, and Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) marketing has become one of the primary target marketing campaigns aimed at Gen Z to generate urgency and anxiety, commonly leading to impulsive buying. This paper explores the psychological and behavioural effects of FOMO marketing on Gen Z consumers, which focuses on anxiety and urgency as mediators of impulsive purchases, perceived manipulation as a moderator of brand trust, and post-purchase regret as outcomes. Research design and methods: The survey of 300 Indian Gen Z users of social media was cross-sectional, and data were analysed using SPSS to conduct descriptive, correlational, regression, mediation, and moderation analysis of the data. Results: Results indicate that FOMO marketing has a high level of increasing anxiety and urgency, which partially mediates impulsive purchase, and perceived manipulation enhances the adverse effect of impulsive purchases on brand trust. Exposure to FOMO cues is also positively related to post-purchase regret. Research indicates that FOMO marketing is two-sided because, on the one hand, it may result in immediate sales, but on the other hand, it may have some psychological and ethical implications, causing losses in consumer trust and satisfaction in the long-term view. Implications: These findings can inform marketers with useful implications to create ethically transparent FOMO campaigns and theoretical advances by incorporating psychological mediators and perceptions of manipulation into FOMO studies.
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