Influence of short-form video advertising on purchase intention in social commerce: the power of word-of-mouth and flow experience

Purpose The rapid rise of social commerce, fueled by the popularity of short-form advertising videos, has transformed how businesses engage digitally with consumers. However, existing literature has overlooked the role of word-of-mouth and flow experience within the Stimulus-Organism-Response framework in shaping purchase intention. Design/methodology/approach To address this gap, the study develops and empirically tests an integrative model examining how positive short-form video attributes – informativeness, credibility, entertainment and incentives – foster immersive flow experiences and trust, ultimately influencing purchase intention through enhanced socially driven engagement (word-of-mouth). A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 499 Romanian and Hungarian social commerce users, and the data were analyzed using PLS-SEM. Findings Results show that flow, strongly activated by short-form video features, primarily stimulates word-of-mouth as a form of socially driven engagement, whereas trust, though less directly shaped by video attributes, emerges as the strongest predictor of purchase intention. Together, these mechanisms highlight the complementary technological (flow) and social (word-of-mouth, trust) pathways through which short-form videos shape user behavior in s-commerce. Practical implications Short-form videos boost trust, technological and social engagement, and purchase intention. Marketers should craft credible, contextual and incentivized content, platform designers enhance interactivity and personalization, and policymakers safeguard user privacy, security and responsible consumption. Originality/value The role of word-of-mouth and flow experience is reconsidered into a comprehensive Stimulus-Organism-Response-enabled purchase intention assessment.