This study aims to analyze the influence of social media marketing on purchase
intention for RUCAS products, with brand image as a mediating variable.
Businesses are depending more on online marketing strategies to reach customers
and affect their choices as a result of the increasing popularity of social media.
Therefore, it becomes crucial to comprehend how social media marketing
influences buy intention. This study employs a survey method in conjunction with
a quantitative approach. An online survey was used to gather information from
respondents who were aware of RUCAS products but had not yet made a purchase.
With the use of SmartPLS software, partial least squares structural equation
modeling was used to analyze the data. The results indicate that purchase intention
is positively and significantly impacted by social media marketing. Furthermore,
brand image is significantly impacted by social media marketing, and purchase
intention is positively influenced by brand image. Brand image is found to have a
complimentary mediating effect in the interaction between social media marketing
and purchase intention, according to Zhao et al.'s mediation research. This indicates
that social media marketing affects purchase intention through brand image, both
directly and indirectly. These results show that successful social media marketing
campaigns can contribute to the development of a favorable brand image, which in
return motivates customers to be more likely to buy RUCAS products. It is expected
that this study would help businesses create social media marketing strategies that
are more successful.