Feeling present and curious in influencers’ product reviews: How sensory richness persuades in e-commerce

This paper examines how the sensory richness of social media influencers’ product reviews evokes telepresence and drives purchase intent in e-commerce. Drawing on media richness theory1 and the heuristic-systematic model (HSM),2 two online experiments were conducted to parse out what constitutes sensory richness in influencer content and how such sensory appeal persuades in the new media environment. By manipulating sensory modalities of product reviews (ie video, image, audio, text), Study 1 identified videos as the richest medium to evoke telepresence during product evaluation; further, text induced a similar level of telepresence as videos, while static images were the weakest in evoking such an immersive state. Delving deeper into videos, Study 2 extended product presentations through hedonic and utilitarian-oriented visuals to examine what content delivered via this medium embodies sensory richness and drives engagement. The results showed that hedonic visual framing within videos amplified perceived telepresence, independent of influencers’ verbal narration; curiosity functioned as an essential mechanism that translated the experiential benefits of telepresence into purchase intention. These findings offer actionable insights for content creators to leverage sensory presentations of products to engage consumers, while informing collaboration dynamics between brands and influencers to optimise e-commerce strategies. This article is also included in The Business & Management Collection which can be accessed at http://hstalks/business/.