How the strength of social ties influences users’ information sharing and purchase intentions

Social media technology provides users with opportunities to search and share information, purchase products, and communicate with others. Companies can also build relationships with users, conduct marketing activities, and sell their products through social media networks. The theory of social networks provides a basis for how social ties facilitate users’ behavior intention in the social commerce context. In this paper, by integrating theories of the social network and information sharing, we develop a model to explore how social ties impact users’ purchase intention and information sharing intention, the mediating effect of perceived information quality and perceived information incredibility and the moderating effect of professionalism. A survey of 455 users from social network platforms shows that the strength of social ties enhances the perceived information quality and information incredibility, and thereby facilitates the purchase intention and information sharing intention. These findings confirm the positive moderating effect of professionalism on the relationship between the strength of social ties and purchase intention. This paper contributes to the social ties and information sharing literature and opens the black box of users’ decision-making in the social network context. Collectively, these findings also have an impact on marketers to more effectively target users for spreading content with social media platforms.