The impact of social presence cues in social media product photos on consumers’ purchase intentions

• Social presence evokes positive emotional reactions and arousal in consumers. • Implied human presence (vs. human presence) leads to greater photo diagnosticity. • Photo diagnosticity, positive emotions, and arousal increase purchase intentions. On social media, brand-generated photos enable firms to communicate information about their products. The present research investigates the effect of social presence cues in product photos on consumers’ purchase intentions. We conducted three experiments to explore how varying levels of perceived social presence (i.e., physical, implied, or absent human presence) in product photos affect consumer responses. The results indicate that social presence positively influences consumers’ emotions and product photo diagnosticity, which, in turn, positively impacts purchase intentions. In addition, a consumption background in product photos moderates the relationship between social presence and product photo diagnosticity. Utilizing the Elaboration Likelihood Model, this research contributes to the literature on social presence and mental imagery in the context of brand-generated photos. The implications for managers are also discussed, highlighting how the level of social presence in product photos influences consumers’ purchase intentions.