The More Familiar You Are, The Less You Will Buy：The Moderating Effect of Relationship Strength
Keywords:
Suitability, Key Opinion Leader, Continuance of Watching, Relationship Strength, Purchase IntentAbstract
With the rapid expansion of internet technology, the user base of live broadcast platforms has been steadily increasing. This surge in online activity has led to a growing trend of consumers turning to live broadcasts for product information before making purchasing decisions. Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) who live stream have become central figures in this virtual landscape, prompting extensive research into the dynamics of relationship strength within these platforms. In light of this, our study centers on KOL live broadcasts and explores the moderating effect of relationship strength on the continuity of viewer engagement and its impact on audience purchase intention.
We collected data from 251 respondents and employed questionnaire surveys along with structural equation modeling for analysis. Our findings reveal a positive correlation between the suitability of KOLs and live broadcast products, and viewers’ sustained engagement. Additionally, continuity of viewership positively influences purchase intentions. Furthermore, varying levels of relationship positively strength significantly moderate the impact of sustained viewership, with audiences potentially being swayed by different relationship dynamics in the information presented during live broadcasts.
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