Consumer intentions on social media: A fsQCA analysis of motivations

Abstract

With social media gaining rapidly in popularity, a large number of companies have initiated attempts to capitalize on the large user base present on such platforms. Yet, it still remains unclear how affordances that social media facilitate can influence consumer intentions to purchase and engage in word-of-mouth. This paper builds on the distinction between utilitarian and hedonic features, and empirically examines how these aspects present on social media platforms affect consumer behavior. Using survey data from 165 social media users we perform fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analyses (fsQCA) to extract patterns of factors that impact both purchase, and word-of-mouth intentions. The outcomes of the analyses demonstrate that realizing high purchase and word-of-mouth intentions can be achieved through multiple ways which also depend on gender and spending history. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed, particularly concerning how these findings can guide the design of successful social media outlets for commerce.