Genuine or Generated? The Impact of AI-Generated versus Human Created Social Media Content on Brands

This study explores the effects of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) adoption in creating social media content on brand authenticity and brand outcomes, including trust, loyalty, and attitudes. While GenAI offers benefits such as increased productivity and cost savings, concerns arise about its impact on creative tasks like Instagram posts’ generation. The research investigates how customers perceive AI-generated versus human-created posts, focusing on the moderating roles of brand authenticity and brand fondness. A scenario-based online experiment will be conducted, randomly assigning participants to view either AI-generated or human-created posts for the brand Dove. A structural equation modeling approach is used to analyze the data. The study hypothesizes that GenAI adoption may negatively affect brand authenticity and brand outcomes, but higher levels of brand fondness and authenticity could mitigate these effects, making customers more willing to accept AI-generated content. The findings are expected to provide valuable insights for marketers on the role of AI in content strategies and its potential impact on customer-brand relationships.