The impact of social media influencer features on brand image and purchase intention with the scope of the TEARS model

With social media taking an active role in consumers' lives, various marketing methods have emerged. People who are called "influencers" and their collaborative promotions have emerged on many social media platforms. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of personal characteristics of people called social media influencers, described by Terence Shimp in 2000 and explained by the TEARS model, on brand image and online product purchase intention. In the study, 383 participants were reached with an online survey form and convenience sampling method. The data were analyzed with Hayes Macro Process, T test, Anova, Levene, Tukey and Tamhane T2 tests. According to the results, a significant and positive effect was found in all personal characteristics explained by the TEARS model. A significant and positive relationship was determined between the phenomenon characteristics, brand image and online purchase intention. Another result that emerged was that brand image has a mediating effect on online purchase intention. This result means that the positive brand image formed by the influence of influencers further strengthens consumers' purchase intention. These findings reveal important strategic points that brands should pay attention to when collaborating with social media influencers. The value that influencers add to the brand not only creates an immediate effect, but also strengthens the long-term perception of the brand and its position in the eyes of consumers. Therefore, it is understood that collaborations with social media influencers not only increase short-term sales, but also have the potential to positively affect the brand image in a permanent way.