The COVID-19 vaccine has become a strategic vehicle for reducing the spread of the pandemic. However, the uptake of the vaccine by the public is more complicated than simply making it available. Based on social learning theory, this study examines the role of communication sources and institutional trust as barriers and incentives as motivators of people’s attitudes toward vaccination and actual vaccination. Data were collected via an online panel survey among Israelis aged 18–55 and then analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). Findings show that social media trust negatively mediates the effect of exposure to information on the vaccine on attitudes toward vaccination. However, mass media trust and institutional trust positively mediate this relationship. Incentives were effective motivators for forming positive attitudes and moderating the effect of institutional trust on attitude toward vaccination. This study facilitates a deeper understanding of health communication theory in pandemics and makes important recommendations for practitioners and policy makers.

PurposeGrounded in uses and gratifications (U&G) theory and relying on the congruence/incongruence approaches, the current research aims to contribute to the study of interactive marketing by measuring the effectiveness of social and personal sponsored post message appeals on consumer psychological and behavioral engagement. A conceptual framework is suggested.Design/methodology/approachData were collected during a field experiment conducted on Facebook, consisting of two sponsored Facebook post campaigns, followed by a survey distributed to consumers who were exposed to the experiment.FindingsA structural path model suggests that the congruence of the social message appeal of sponsored Facebook posts leads directly to psychological engagement that follows affective response. This path elevates an indirect effect toward behavioral engagement. Additionally, it was found that the incongruence of the personal message appeal of sponsored Facebook posts leads directly to behavioral engagement.Originality/valueThe novelty of the current research focuses on the unexplored subject of sponsored Facebook post message appeal effectiveness. Based on U&G theory applied to social media and the (in)congruence approaches, the study suggests a new dichotomy of message appeal for digital advertising, i.e. social vs. personal message strategies. Consumer engagement with the two appeals adds value to theory and practice by conceptualizing the effect of sponsored post content strategies on consumer engagement in Facebook while incorporating ad content with a hierarchical process.

The purpose of this study is to establish which message appeal is more effective in generating consumer engagement with social media posts of small and medium-sized agri-food businesses that promote direct-to-consumer sales during a COVID-19 type crisis. Using quantitative content analysis, 1024 posts from 48 Israeli farmers' Facebook brand pages were categorized into altruistic messages (ethnocentric, toward farmers, toward the environment, and maintaining public health) and egoistic messages (economic, emotional, functional, and hedonic values). The effectiveness of the message appeals was determined by consumer behavioral engagement (comments, shares and likes) with the posts. The results show that farmers used more egotistic arguments (mainly functional and hedonic motives) than altruistic arguments during the three stages of the crisis. However, a one-way ANOVA test revealed that posts with altruistic messages (specifically, altruism toward farmers) or posts that combine altruistic and egoistic motivations equally yielded significantly more consumer behavioral engagement. Practical recommendations regarding agri-food communications in times of crisis are given.

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