Fear of missing out (FOMO) has become an increasingly common strategy in digital marketing, which brands employ to motivate consumers to engage with their products. This research sought to investigate the effect of the use of FOMO-based advertising strategies on undergraduate students' perception and behaviour regarding Cowrywise, an online savings and investment app based in Nigeria. A descriptive and correlational survey design was employed for the study. Structured questionnaire was used for data collection and was distributed online to undergraduate students enrolled at Bowen University, Nigeria. Among 200 questionnaires harvested, only 131 complete responses were included in the final analysis. Descriptive and Pearson Correlation statistics were used for data analysis. The study found that the respondents perceived Cowrywise positively, with 85.5 percent having faith in the app's capabilities to help them save and invest (M = 4.27, SD = 0.77). Moreover, the impact of the adoption of FOMO-based advertising strategies on undergraduates' perception and consumer behavior towards the company was found significant (r = .431, p < .05) and consumer behaviour (r = .792, p < .05). The respondents further confirmed that the campaign by Cowrywise made them feel a sense of urgency and social comparison, leading them to use the app. It is concluded that FOMO advertising techniques can have a positive effect on the engagement level of students towards fintech apps; however, the ethics surrounding such marketing campaigns should not be ignored. The findings of the study need to be taken in their context since they are based on a one-institution sample and non-probability sampling method. The study advocates the use of FOMO techniques by fintech companies for ethical reasons.
Vol. 5, No 1, pp. 51-60.