How anchor characteristics affect consumers’ impulsive buying behavior in the context of live streaming of agricultural products

Purpose In this study, we assessed some of the factors that enable characteristics of anchors to influence consumers' impulsive purchasing behavior from the perspective of emotional rendering. As based on the stimulus-organism-response (SOR) theoretical framework, data were obtained from a questionnaire survey as a means to evaluate the impact of anchor characteristics on consumers’ impulsive purchasing behavior. The hypotheses proposed in this study were verified using AMOS software and structural equation modeling. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey focusing on responses to live streaming of agricultural products was disseminated to participants who were required to have had a prior shopping experience using live streaming platforms of agricultural products. The survey utilized the Wenjuanxing platform for data collection and analyses, with a total of 372 questionnaires distributed. To ensure the reliability and validity of the data analysis, some responses were excluded, resulting in a final number of 316 valid questionnaires for analyses (84.94% response rate). Findings The two major findings derived from these questionnaires were (1) in the context of agricultural product live streaming, the credibility, professionalism and attractiveness of anchors significantly impacted consumers' impulsive purchasing behavior and (2) emotional experience, including perceived pleasure and emotional trust, represented the main factors influencing consumers’ impulsive purchasing behavior. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that during the live streaming of agricultural products, anchors should direct their focus on enhancing consumers’ emotional experiences and guide these consumers toward arriving at rational and prudent purchasing decisions. Such measures have the potential to enhance the purchase intentions of consumers. Originality/value In this study, the impact of situational characteristics of anchors during the live streaming of agricultural products upon consumer impulse purchasing was investigated. These findings were based on the emotion-driven theory of consumer impulse purchasing and the SOR theoretical framework and focused on anchor characteristics, audience emotions and audience participation. Data were collected via questionnaires, with structural equation modeling employed to analyze and validate the theoretical framework and hypotheses of this report. The findings from this report have the potential to enrich research in related areas, such as live streaming of agricultural as well as other products, e-commerce and impulse purchasing.