REFLECTIONS OF INSTAGRAM SPONSORED CONTENT ON CONSUMER PERCEPTION AND DECISION-MAKING IN DIGITAL COMMUNICATION: A QUALITATIVE STUDY BASED ON THE ELABORATION LIKELIHOOD MODEL

This study aims to understand how users experience sponsored content shared by influencers on Instagram and how the meaning of this content is reflected in their purchase intentions within the framework of the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM). In the study, which was conducted by adopting the phenomenological design, one of the qualitative research designs, in-depth interviews were conducted with 29 Instagram users. The findings revealed that users structure their interactions with sponsored content through two basic forms of cognitive processing: central and peripheral. Participants who engaged in central processing focused on the informational quality of the content, the contribution of the product to daily life and the sincerity of the influencer, while those who engaged in peripheral processing found superficial cues such as the popularity of the influencer, visual narrative style, user comments and campaign language more decisive. Participants' attitudes towards the content and the contexts of meaning they construct with the product are shaped not only by content features but also by individual perceptions, social media usage practices, and digital relationships with the influencer. The study draws attention to the multi-layered nature of user experiences in social media communication and emphasizes the importance of authenticity, knowledge-based narratives, and trust in content design