Title: Social media influencer marketing: a systematic literature review

Authors: Udita Trehan; Imran Nadeem Siddiqui; Jay Kumar Dewangan

Addresses: Amity Business School, Amity University, Chhattisgarh, India ' Amity Business School, Amity University, Chhattisgarh, India ' Amity Business School, Amity University, Chhattisgarh, India

Abstract: Social media influencer marketing is a growing area and becoming an inevitable part of the marketing mix of companies. The study realises that there is a necessity to conduct a systematic literature review available on social media influencers. This review gives a detailed insight into the literature available on social media influencers to shed light on domains that have been researched and the ones that are still unexplored. Accordingly, the study aimed to systematically review the current literature on social media influencer marketing. By reviewing 50 articles, this study provides an overview of the trends and themes covered by relevant literature such as the role of social media influencer in buying behaviour, the impact of social media influencers on firm's image and performance, and this study highlights the domains where influencers play a significant role. The findings of the review throw light on geographical locations, context, and journal type of the articles taken in the study.

Keywords: social media influencer marketing; social media influencers; Instagram; YouTube Bloggers; buying behaviour; purchase intention; consumer behaviour.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBEX.2025.150870

International Journal of Business Excellence, 2025 Vol.37 No.4, pp.488 - 505

Received: 13 Jul 2021
Accepted: 04 Dec 2021
Published online: 05 Jan 2026 *

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