“This is a sponsored blog post, but all opinions are my own”: The effects of sponsorship disclosure on responses to sponsored blog posts

Sponsored blog posts need to disclose sponsorship information, specifically whether the blogger received any compensation for the posts. While some bloggers simply include sponsorship information only (i.e., “simple” sponsorship disclosure), others add a note that the opinions in the post are honest although it is a sponsored post (i.e., “honest opinions” sponsorship disclosure). This study examines how emphasizing “honest opinions” in sponsored posts affect consumers' responses. This study found that, compared to the no disclosure (control) condition, source credibility perceptions and message attitudes became negative in the “simple” sponsorship condition. However, the negative effects of sponsorship disclosure on source credibility perceptions and message attitudes disappeared in the “honest opinions” condition. This trend was stronger among those who had high skepticism toward product review blog posts.