INFLUENCER MARKETING AND ITS IMPACT ON CUSTOMER PURCHASE INTENTION

Abstract

In the digital age, influencer marketing has emerged as a powerful strategy for brands to interact with and engage their target consumers. Social media influencers profoundly impact consumer behaviour due to their perceived authenticity and strong follower engagement (Freberg et al., 2011; Lou & Yuan, 2019). This article analyses the influence of influencer marketing on customers' purchasing intentions, clarifying the methods through which influencers build trust, enhance engagement, and impact purchasing decisions (Djafarova & Rushworth, 2017). Comprehending this relationship allows organisations to customise their marketing strategies to effectively convert followers into customers (Casaló et al., 2020). This study investigates the influence of influencer marketing on customers' purchase intentions in Chennai. A sample of 157 respondents actively engaged in social media in Chennai was recruited for the study, which is descriptive in nature. The questionnaire functions as the instrument for data collection, and a convenience sampling method was employed to choose respondents (Creswell & Creswell, 2018). Multiple regression analysis and one-way ANOVA are the statistical techniques applied, with Cronbach's alpha of 0.834 validating the study's dependability at 83.9% (George & Mallery, 2019). SPSS version 25 is used for data analysis. The findings demonstrate that Reach, Engagement Metrics, and Relevance substantially affect consumers' purchase intentions, with Reach exerting the most significant influence, underscoring the value of an influencer's exposure and audience magnitude (Jin et al., 2019). In contrast, the Credibility of the Influencer and Content Style do not exert a statistically significant influence on purchase intention in this context. Additionally, age and occupation strongly impact influencer marketing, with younger respondents, particularly students, being more susceptible to its effects (De Veirman et al., 2017).