The effects of food influencers' characteristics on consumers' purchase intentions

Abstract

Abstract

Purpose The current research seeks to determine the influential attributes of influencers and examine the influence of food influencers (food bloggers) on consumers' purchase intention. Design/methodology/approach Firstly, the content analysis method was applied to identify the characteristics of the influencers, and after extracting factors and characteristics from previous studies, the factors were categorized based on similarities and experts' opinions. Then, an integrated model was designed based on the research hypotheses. In the second step, an online survey was performed on 291 Instagram users. Findings The results of structural equation analysis demonstrated that the influence of three factors: persuasive power, the scope of influence and influencer honesty, is stronger on purchase intention compared to other characteristics. The findings of this paper presented comprehensive recommendations on the paths to success for brands, marketing experts and influencers and provided valuable insights for influencers, food business owners, restaurant managers and audiences to build persuasive influencer marketing strategies and these lead to the consumers' encouragement to buy more. Originality/value The theoretical contribution of this study extends the food influencer literature and by identifying the most frequent and effective features of food industry influencers (key elements of food bloggers persuasion) on the purchase intention of followers on Instagram, it provides insights into how food industry professionals can use social media influencers to develop effective marketing strategies and enhance strong relationships.