The Role of Digital Influencers in the Purchase Intention Process

Web 2.0 has changed the paradigm of brand communication: through developments on the Internet and social networks, the consumer has taken on the level of Prosumer, capable of producing content about the brands they consume and disseminating Word-of-Mouth more easily and effectively. However, certain users - often referred to as Influencers - manage to gather large audiences made up of other individuals predisposed to consuming their content and who allow themselves to be influenced, either through their behaviour or even their intention to buy. With this in mind, the research aims to identify the impact that influencer communication has on the purchasing intentions of their followers, based on the deductive method through qualitative analysis of data collected during focus group interviews. Among the main conclusions reached with this work, it was found that the influence on purchase intention is noticed by followers at three levels: arousal of the need to buy, when the follower takes an interest in a product/service, triggering the purchase decision-making process.