Shopee Video, Live Streaming, and Affiliate Links on Purchase Decisions through Trust

Abstract

The growth of social commerce in Indonesia has encouraged e-commerce platforms like Shopee to introduce content-based digital marketing features, namely Shopee Video, affiliate link sharing, and live streaming. Despite high exposure to this content, not all consumers who are exposed to the content ultimately make purchases, especially for skincare products that require a higher level of trust before being decided to buy. This study aims to analyze the influence of Shopee Video, affiliate link sharing, and live streaming on purchasing decisions, both directly and through consumer trust as a mediating variable, in the Shopee affiliate program for the Glad2Glow product. The study used a quantitative approach by distributing questionnaires to 151 active Shopee user respondents who had purchased Glad2Glow products through affiliate recommendations. Then, the data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling. The results showed that Shopee Video had a positive and significant effect on consumer trust and direct purchasing decisions. Affiliate link sharing and live streaming had a positive and significant effect on consumer trust, but did not have a direct effect on purchasing decisions. Consumer trust was proven to have a positive and significant effect on purchasing decisions, and significantly mediated the influence of affiliate link sharing and live streaming on purchasing decisions. These findings conclude that consumer trust plays a vital role in converting digital marketing exposure into actual purchasing decisions on skincare products.