The Influence of Social Media on Consumer Online Shopping Intention

Modern technology has changed the way people communicate, and social media, in particular, has changed people’s behavior. With technological advancements, people are changing the ways of purchasing goods and services, and this study examines the impact of social media on consumers’ online purchase intentions vis-à-vis social media. The study mainly focuses on the social media influence on consumer decision making process on online purchasing via Facebook. It is a quantitative study conducted with 283 respondents, and the data analysis is done using the SPSS software. The survey data is used to test the hypotheses drawn based on the findings of previous studies. The findings show that marketers should focus on the influence of social media on their customers, and that that the online purchase intention is significantly influenced by social media. It also highlights the mediating factor of consumer engagement. This study thus fills the knowledge gap in online purchase intentions, and the results will support organizations and marketers to focus more on social media campaigns. Future studies should focus on the qualitative aspects of social media influence on online shopping intent to get deeper insights.