Digital Storytelling and Consumer Trust : Reframing Marketing Narratives in the Era of Social Commerce
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55606/jumbiku.v4i1.6035Keywords:
Consumer Trust, Digital Storytelling, Instagram Shopping, Social Commerce, TikTok ShopAbstract
The rapid growth of social commerce in Indonesia, particularly through TikTok Shop and Instagram Shopping, has transformed consumer purchasing behavior by integrating entertainment, social interaction, and online transactions. In this dynamic environment, consumer trust emerges as a crucial determinant of purchase intention and loyalty, given the absence of physical interaction and the prevalence of information asymmetry. To address this challenge, digital storytelling offers a promising approach to reframing marketing narratives by creating authentic and engaging brand experiences. This study aims to examine the role of digital storytelling in building consumer trust and its subsequent influence on purchase intention and loyalty, while also considering the moderating effects of social influence and technology acceptance.Employing a quantitative explanatory design, data were collected from 310 Indonesian consumers who had purchased products via TikTok Shop or Instagram Shopping within the past six months. Structural Equation Modeling with Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS) was applied to test the proposed hypotheses. The findings demonstrate that digital storytelling significantly enhances narrative transportation and authenticity, which positively affect consumer trust. Furthermore, consumer trust acts as a strong mediator between storytelling and both purchase intention and loyalty. Additional results confirm that social influence (e.g., peer recommendations, influencer endorsements) and technology acceptance (ease of use, perceived usefulness) contribute significantly to strengthening consumer trust in social commerce.This study contributes theoretically by integrating narrative transportation theory and trust formation models within the context of social commerce, providing a more comprehensive understanding of how digital storytelling shapes consumer behavior. Practically, the results highlight the importance for marketers, influencers, and platform managers in Indonesia to design authentic narratives that emphasize transparency, credibility, and emotional engagement. These strategies not only foster consumer trust but also sustain long-term loyalty, particularly in the face of evolving regulatory frameworks governing social media commerce in Indonesia.
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