Research letter: the role of customer fear of missing out on purchase intention

Abstract

Despite the recent popularity of social media as a powerful marketing channel, limited studies have examined how customer personalities influence their reactions toward social media content. Thus, this study examines the role of a customer psychological characteristic known as fear of missing out (FOMO) in the formation of anticipated emotion (i.e. elation, envy, comfort, and expense regret) and purchase intention toward a restaurant based on social media marketing. Using surveys, the study collected information on 345 social media users. A SmartPLS estimation shows that customer anxiety over missing out is a strong indicator of anticipated emotions toward the restaurant experience. Specifically, positive impacts of anticipated envy and comfort on customer purchase intentions are found. However, customer anticipated expense regret toward future experiences negatively influences behavioural intentions. Finally, this study examines differences in relationships between FOMO, anticipated emotions, and purchase intentions across demographic profiles (i.e. gender, age, income, and education).