A Study on the Impact of Information Quality of Influencer-Recommended Products on College Students’ Purchase Intention-Based on the SOR Model

Abstract

Existing research has paid more attention to influencers’ personal traits or content styles, while giving less consideration to the quality features of the recommendation information itself and how those features work for the audience. Current studies also fail to clearly explain the complete process through which purchase intention is influenced. Thus, this study focuses on the relationship between the information quality of influencer-recommended products and university students’ purchasing intentions. It uses the SOR model as the theoretical framework, sets influencer recommendation information quality as the stimulus variable, sets perceived value and perception of trust as the organism variables, and purchase intention as the response variable. Based on this, the study builds a research model and proposes a set of hypotheses to be tested. The study collected 141 valid responses through a questionnaire survey. The findings are as follows: First, the professionalism of influencers and the timeliness of their recommendations have a significant positive effect on perceived value, while the authenticity of the information has a significant positive effect on perception of trust. Second, both perceived value and perception of trust positively influence purchase intention. Third, perceived value and perception of trust partially mediate the relationship between recommendation information quality and purchase intention. This study not only clarifies the concrete path through which influencer recommendation information quality affects university students’ purchase intentions, but also provides practical guidance for influencers and brands to improve their marketing strategies.