Published Paper Details:

Social media has quietly but substantially changed how people discover and decide to buy things. What was once driven by television commercials and newspaper ads is now increasingly shaped by a person with a ring light talking directly to their audience about a product they may or may not genuinely use. This shift from broadcast advertising to influencer-driven recommendation is the starting point of this research. This study explores how social media influencers shape consumer purchase intention, with particular interest in the human side of this process: the trust consumers place in influencers, the emotional connections they form, and the mental calculations they make before buying something. A qualitative approach was used, drawing on semi-structured interviews with six purposively selected consumers. Three theoretical frameworks guide the analysis: the Elaboration Likelihood Model, Parasocial Interaction Theory, and the Source Credibility Model. Five themes emerged from the data: how and why consumers follow influencers, what builds or breaks trust in a recommendation, how authenticity and emotional connection factor into purchase decisions, how the decision-making process actually unfolds across multiple stages, and how platform and content format shape the whole process. The findings suggest that effective influencer marketing is less about reach and more about trust built over time through credible, experience-based content.