Online Engagement and the Role of Digital Influencers in Product Endorsement on Instagram

Abstract

The article aims to analyze the forms of engagement generated from the endorsement of products by digital influencers on Instagram, considering the characteristics of their online posts. A qualitative approach was used to investigate digital influencers’ posts based on semiotic image analysis and the critical incidents technique. The results reinforced that digital platforms enable distinct forms of engagement by establishing new configurations that affect relationship marketing and promotion strategies. In particular, on Instagram, the development of engagement can involve four participants who play different social roles, expanding the process of value co-creation.     

Technical efficiency of high technology medicine

Intensive care units (ICUs) are classic examples of high technology medicine. The ICU has become an essential step in the clinical management of patients passing through a phase of critical illness, However, the costs are extremely h9gh (1% of GNP in the USA), whereas it has not ben adeqyately demonstrated that routine admission to intensive care is associated with an increase in survival rate and a decrease in morbidity. Consequently, intensive care is a logical arena in which to encourage more efficient use. The paper focuses on determinates of the technical efficiency of the ICU. Technical efficiency can only be ensured when the ICU is conceived as a responsibility centre where inputs, throughputs and outputs are measured. The reaponsbility centre in characterized by management control, which is dependent on reliable information regarding incentives and constraints of ICU performance. On the basis of the medical and economic literature, conjectures are made on determinants of ICU performance. In addition, some results are presented of a feasibility study commissional by the Netherlands Ministry of Health.     

The Role of Incentives in the Public Sector: Issues and Evidence

Using incentive pay to improve public-sector efficiency is animportant component of the UK government's public-service modernizationagenda. In this paper, we review the important issues in performancepay in the public sector, and summarize the evidence on itseffects. We consider how optimal incentives for public-sectorworkers may differ from those in the private sector and, ifthey do, what types of incentives are more appropriate for thepublic sector. We investigate the reasons for the infrequentuse of explicit incentives in the public sector. We summarizeevidence of particular relevance to the public sector, on issuessuch as the impact on output of incentive pay schemes, gamingand dysfunctional behaviour, multiple principals, intrinsicmotivation, and teamwork. Finally, we comment on the designof new policies being introduced in the UK public sector inthe light of the theoretical arguments and the evidence.