Will you buy if your favorite podcaster recommends it: through a lens of self-congruity, credibility and culture

Abstract

Self-congruity has been widely studied in the influencer market, but its role in the podcast market remains unexplored. This study investigated the influence of listeners' self-congruity with podcasters on listeners' purchase intentions, as well as the role of credibility (perceived authenticity and expertise). A questionnaire survey was conducted among Swedish and Chinese listeners, and it was analyzed using regression, mediation and moderation analysis. The results first show that self-congruity directly and positively affects purchase intentions. We then found that credibility partially mediates this effect. We also explored the influence of culture (Sweden vs. China). When listeners come from collectivist societies (e.g. China), the influence of self-congruity on their purchase intentions is stronger. The study contributed to podcast and influencer marketing research by conceptualizing podcasters as influencers and extending the self-congruity theory to the podcast context. The finding also suggested the important roles of psychological congruence, credibility and culture background in influencing podcast listeners’ purchase intention.