Asian Journal of Economics, Business and Accounting

Influencer marketing has become a central component of brand communication on social media, yet the mechanisms through which influencer credibility translates into consumer behavioral intentions remain insufficiently specified. While prior research has established credibility as a key driver of persuasion, less attention has been paid to the psychological processes that explain how credibility is converted into intention formation in narrative-driven digital environments. Drawing on source credibility theory and narrative persuasion perspectives, this study examines whether brand storytelling engagement functions as a mediating mechanism linking influencer credibility to behavioral intentions in a naturalistic social media context. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey design was employed, targeting active social media users who follow influencers. The proposed hypotheses were tested using regression-based mediation analysis. The findings indicate that influencer credibility is positively associated with behavioral intentions and that this relationship is partially mediated by brand storytelling engagement. Specifically, credible influencers appear to enhance followers’ willingness to engage cognitively and emotionally with brand narratives, which in turn strengthens intention formation, while credibility also retains a direct influence on intentions beyond narrative engagement.

This study contributes to influencer marketing and brand storytelling research by offering a process-oriented explanation of how influencer credibility operates in social media persuasion. By identifying brand storytelling engagement as a key mediating mechanism, the findings highlight the importance of pairing credible influencers with narrative-driven content to effectively shape consumer intentions in digital environments.