The Moderating Role of Social Media Advertising in Customers' Purchase Intention

Social media advertising has been studied from different perspectives in the last decade. This research aimed to investigate how the advertising relevance moderates the relationship between social media advertising and customers' purchase intention. Social media networks advertising is a strategy that can be used to enhance the credibility of a promotional message from the brands, making the advertisement more persuasive and credible. The study included 1973 respondents, aged between 18 and 60 years (M = 29.60; SD = 9.73) with a majority of female respondents (53.0%). To measure Purchase intention, a composite variable was created, consisting of the four items developed by Duffett (2015), namely: (i) I will buy the products I see in the commercials; (ii) I wish to buy the products that are advertised in the commercials; (iii) I am likely to buy the products I see in the commercials; and (iv) I intend to buy the products I see in the commercials. Data analysis revealed that the most purchased products through online advertising on social networks are mass consumption products (71.7%), which are commercialized in large retailers. Based on these results, it was considered relevant to understand whether the relevance attributed to advertising moderates the relationship between online advertising on social networks and purchase intention. Data analysis revealed that, online advertising on social networks and the relevance attributed to advertising are analyzed separately, both variables significantly influence consumers' purchase intention. However, when they are in interaction, the effect is no longer significant. The positive effect of interaction suggests the tendency to buy mass consumption products through online advertising on social networks is greater when consumers consider advertising relevant.