Title: Purchasing intentions and digital influencers

Authors: Dimitri Laroutis; Philippe Boistel; Mustafeed Zaman

Addresses: ESC Amiens, CEREM, 18 Place Saint-Michel 80000 Amiens, France ' ESC Amiens, CEREM, 18 Place Saint-Michel 80000 Amiens, France ' EM Normandie Business School – Métis Lab, 20 Quai Frissard, 76600 – Le Havre, France

Abstract: While the web marketing literature has recently called into question the impact of influencers on their followers' purchasing behaviour, very few studies have addressed this issue per se. Our study aims to fill this gap by examining the variables that boost followers' purchasing intention. Based on survey data collected from 247 followers, we built an econometric model designed to anticipate followers' buying intentions. Our findings show that followers' purchasing behaviours is influenced not only by the characteristics of the influencer being followed, but also by those of the follower in question, the product or service on offer, and the overall congruence of these factors. These variables reveal an impact on consumer intentions ranging from -54.4% to +17.81%. Our study examines both the theoretical and the operational implications.

Keywords: digital influencers; influencer marketing; purchase intentions; social media; social media influencers; stated preference method.

DOI: 10.1504/IJIMA.2023.132729

International Journal of Internet Marketing and Advertising, 2023 Vol.19 No.1/2, pp.172 - 191

Received: 29 Jun 2021
Accepted: 28 Nov 2021
Published online: 09 Aug 2023 *

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