ORIGINAL ARTICLE The impact of digital influencers on product/service purchase decision making—An exploratory case study of Portuguese people Fábio Caiado 1 | Joana Fonseca 1 | Joana Silva 1 | Soraia Neves 1 | Ana Moreira 2,3,4 | Ramiro Gonçalves 5,6,7 | José Martins 5,7,8 | Frederico Branco 5,6 | Manuel Au-Yong-Oliveira 9 1 Department of Economics, Management, Industrial Engineering and Tourism, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal 2 School of Psychology, ISPA-Instituto Universitário, Lisbon, Portugal 3 APPsyCI—Applied Psychology Research Center Capabilities & Inclusion, ISPA—Instituto Universitário, Lisbon, Portugal 4 Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Europeia, Lisboa, Portugal 5 Human-Centered Computing and Information Science, INESC TEC, Porto, Portugal 6 School of Science and Technology, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Vila Real, Portugal 7 Centro de Valorizaç˜ ao e Transferência de Tecnologia da ´ Agua, AquaValor, Chaves, Portugal 8 EsACT-Escola Superior de Comunicaç˜ ao, Administraç˜ ao e Turismo, Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Bragança, Portugal 9 INESC TEC, Porto, Portugal, GOVCOPP, Department of Economics, Management, Industrial Engineering and Tourism, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal Correspondence Frederico Branco, Human-Centered Computing and Information Science, INESC TEC, Porto, Portugal. Email: fbranco@utad.pt Abstract The growing use of technology and social media has resulted in the emergence of digital influencers, a new profession capable of changing the mentalities and behav- iours of those who follow them. This study arises to better understand the potential impact digital influencers might have on the Portuguese population's purchase behaviour and patterns, and for this purpose, seven hypotheses were formulated. An online questionnaire was conducted to respond to these theoretical assumptions and collected data from 175 respondents. A total of 129 valid answers were considered. It was possible to conclude that purchase intention does not necessarily translate into a purchase action. It was also concluded that the relationship between social network use and the purchase of products/services recommended by influencers is only statistically significant for Instagram. Furthermore, the individuals' generation is not statistically significant / linked with purchasing a product/service recommended by influencers. Yet further, a small percentage of respondents have also identified themselves as impulsive shoppers and perceived Instagram as their favourite social network. With the results of this study, it is also possible to state that the influencer's opinion was classified as the last factor considered in the purchase decision process. Additionally, there is a weak negative association between purchasing a product/ service recommended by influencers with sponsorship disclosure and remunerated partnership, which decreases credibility and discourages purchasing, in Portugal, a feminine culture which dislikes materialism. KEYWORDS consumer behaviour, digital influencers, impulsive buying, influencer marketing, information behaviour, information resources, purchase intention, social media 1 | INTRODUCTION “Despite the growing interest in digital influencers as a brand communication tool in recent years, much remains to be explored to understand how they can build a bond with their followers that shapes their perceptions and behaviours towards the endorsed brands.” (Jiménez-Castillo & Sánchez-Fernández, 2019, p. 366). Received: 7 February 2023 Revised: 25 May 2023 Accepted: 3 June 2023 DOI: 10.1111/exsy.13381 Expert Systems. 2023;e13381. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/exsy © 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 1 of 14 https://doi.org/10.1111/exsy.13381