Exploring innovative UGC as a branding tactic in the digital era

Adopting the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) model, this study regards perceived UGC characteristics (perceived usefulness, risk, and credibility) as the antecedents, brand perception (both functional and affective) as the mediator, and purchase intention as the dependent variable. 247 valid responses were examined using SPSS, revealing that perceived UGC credibility and usefulness positively impact brand perception, while perceived UGC risk negatively impacts functional brand perception.