Examination of the Impact of Trust in Influencers and Perceived Content Quality on Brand Awareness, Consumer Interaction, and Purchase Intent: The Case of Türkiye

Nowadays, many brands are increasing their collaboration with Influencers. For this reason, many social media celebrities appear before social media users with new content every day. The ability of influencers to gain response is undoubtedly closely related to gaining the trust of users and the quality of the content they share. Otherwise, it will not be possible for Influencers to be effective through their followers. The aim of this study is to examine the impact of social media users’ trust in Influencers and their quality perception of the content shared by these celebrities on brand awareness, consumer interaction and purchase intentions for the promoted products. Research data was obtained through an online survey form in January 2024. As part of the research, data was collected from a total of 350 participants across Türkiye. As a result of the research, it was determined that most participants purchased between 1-6 products because of influencer promotions. Although the participants largely follow Influencers in the fields of education, entertainment, food and beverage, technology and travel, one of the important research findings is that nearly half of the participants do not purchase any products. Again, because of the research, it was determined that most of the participants watched the promotional content of Influencers for a period of 1-3 hours. As a result of the research, it was determined that trust in Influencers and perception of content quality have a significant and strong effect on brand awareness, consumer interaction and purchase intention. It is evaluated that the research results will be useful for brands that consider collaborating with researchers and influencers working in this field.