Building followers’ loyalty in social commerce: influencers’ perspectives and theoretical insights from social presence and media richness theory

Purpose This study explores the impact of online events, social presence and professional domain knowledge on followers’ purchase behavior and loyalty, focusing on how platform utilization strategies (single vs multi-platform) moderate these relationships. Design/methodology/approach An online survey collected data from 207 influencers in Taiwan. Structural equation modeling (SEM) with multi-group analysis (MGA) and the PROCESS macro tested the research hypotheses and analyzed moderating and mediating relationships. Findings Online events, social presence and professional domain knowledge positively influence followers’ purchase behavior and loyalty. Platform utilization strategies moderate the effects of online events and social presence on purchase behavior, showing different impacts for single vs multi-platform use. Research limitations/implications The cross-sectional design limits causal inferences. Future research should use longitudinal designs to examine these relationships over time. Practical implications The findings offer strategic insights for influencers and marketers to enhance follower engagement and loyalty by leveraging online events, social presence and professional domain knowledge. Platform utilization strategies are essential for optimizing marketing efforts. Social implications Online events, social presence, professional domain knowledge, platform utilization, purchase behavior and loyalty. Originality/value This research integrates social presence theory and media richness theory to investigate how influencers can foster follower loyalty in social commerce, uncovering the moderating and mediating mechanisms in influencer–follower dynamics.