How Disability Shapes Influencer Marketing Effectiveness
(A2026-134117)

AUTHORS

Chengchen (Sheryl) Liu, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University; Qiyuan Wang, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University/The Hong Kong Polytechnic University; Jiewen Hong, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology; Yuwei Jiang, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University/The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

ABSTRACT

As influencer marketing continues to grow, brands face increasing choices about which types of influencers to engage. This research investigates the marketing effectiveness of a relatively underexamined yet increasingly prominent group: influencers with disabilities. Across four experiments and secondary social media data, the findings show that content from disabled influencers elicits greater consumer engagement and higher purchase intentions compared to content from nondisabled influencers. The results further demonstrate that this effect is driven by perceived authenticity. Specifically, disability acts as a cue that enhances perceptions of an influencer’s authenticity, which in turn strengthens marketing effectiveness. These findings shed light on how disability influences stereotyping in the influencer marketing context and provide implications for marketers to enhance consumer responses strategically.