Faculty Profiles

Colleges and Departments

Dr. Holly Atwood Syrdal

  • Associate Professor - Department of Marketing
  • Associate Professor - Department of Marketing
Portrait of Dr. Holly Atwood Syrdal

Biography and education

Ph.D. in Marketing from University of Texas at Arlington, MBA from Southeastern Louisiana University, and B.S. in Marketing from University of New Orleans | 5 years industry experience working for national service provider and regional hospital | 12 years of experience teaching a variety of courses, including digital marketing, social media marketing, marketing research, marketing management (strategy), IMC/promotion strategy, services marketing, public relations, principles of marketing, and advertising | Research interests in digital marketing, especially social media engagement and influencer marketing, as well as strategic storytelling and marketing pedagogy | Established record of research with numerous high-quality journal publications

Teaching Interests

Research Interests

  • Syrdal, Holly Atwood. Prolific and Qualtrics data collection, McCoy College of Business, Texas State University, $6307. (Funded: September 28, 2022 - Present). Grant.
  • Syrdal, Holly Atwood. McCoy College Dean’s Summer Research Stipend Program, McCoy College of Business, $8000. (Submitted: February 5, 2021). Grant.
  • Syrdal, Holly Atwood. The Value of Digital Marketing Certifications, McCoy College of Business, Texas State University, $5000. (Funded: October 10, 2019 - Present). Grant.
  • Myers, S., Sen, S., Syrdal, H. A., Woodroof, P., & Stafford, M. (2025). Signals for Success: The Intersection of Influencer Linguistic Personality, Content, and Follower Size. Journal of Interactive Marketing, (Quality Indicators: ABDC “A,” CABS “3,” Impact Factor: 10, CiteScore: 20.2). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/10949968251317204
  • Syrdal, H. A., Myers, S., Sen, S., Woodroof, P., & McDowell, W. C. (2023). Influencer Marketing and the Growth of Affiliates: The Effects of Language Features on Engagement Behavior. Journal of Business Research, 163, (Quality indicators: ABDC “A,” CABS “3,” Impact Factor: 11.3, CiteScore: 16). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.113875
  • Myers, S., Syrdal, H. A., Mahto, R. V., & Sen, S. (2023). Social Religion: A Cross-platform Examination of the Impact of Religious Influencer Message Cues on Engagement – the Christian Context. Technological Forecasting & Social Change, 191, (Quality Indicators: ABDC “A,” CABS “3,” Impact Factor: 12, CiteScore: 17.2).
  • McDougal, E. R., Syrdal, H. A., Gravois, R., & Kemp, A. F. (2021). Telling the Tale: Applying a Strategic Brand Storytelling Process for STP Planning. Journal of Strategic Marketing, (Quality Indicators: ABDC “A,” CABS “2,” Impact Factor: 4.1, CiteScore: 8.2). https://doi.org/10.1080/0965254X.2021.1892803
  • VanMeter, R., Syrdal, H. A., Powell-Mantel, S., Grisaffe, D. B., & Nesson, E. T. (2018). Don’t Just “Like” Me, Promote Me: How Attachment and Attitude Influence Brand-related Behaviors on Social Media. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 43(1), 83-97 (Quality Indicators: ABDC "A", CABS "3", Impact Factor: 11.8, CiteScore: 17.4). https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1016/j.intmar.2018.03.003
View all scholarly/creative works
  • Award / Honor Recipient: MEA Conference Best Refereed Paper Award, Marketing Educators' Association. April 2021
  • Award / Honor Recipient: ACME AxcessCapon Teaching Innovation Award, Association of Collegiate Marketing Educators. March 19, 2021
  • Award / Honor Recipient: Foundations of Excellence Award, Texas State University Student Foundation. November 2020
  • Award / Honor Recipient: Business Advisory Council Research Award in the College of Business, The University of Southern Mississippi. 2018
  • Award / Honor Recipient: Best Paper in Social Media & Marketing Technology Track, Society for Marketing Advances. 2016
View all awards
  1. Editor

    Special Issue of Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice

  2. Editorial Review Board Member

    Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice

  3. Other

    Social Media Marketing Coordinator - Department of Marketing

  4. Co-Chair

    Digital and Social Media Marketing Track, 2025 Winter AMA Conference

  5. Co-Chair

    Influencer Marketing Track, Society for Marketing Advances Conference 2024

  6. Reviewer / Referee

    Journal of Marketing Theory & Practice

  7. View all activities