Brand Trust Mediation Between Digital Branding, Social Media Engagement, And Perceived Value on OFD Purchase Intention

Abstract

This study examines the effects of digital branding, social media engagement, and perceived value on purchase intention, and it investigates the mediating role of brand trust among online food delivery (OFD) consumers in Pekalongan, Indonesia. Using an explanatory quantitative design, data were collected through an online questionnaire from 100 active OFD users selected through purposive sampling. The data were analysed using multiple linear regression, path analysis, and the Sobel test. The results show that digital branding (β = 0.299; p = 0.002), social media engagement (β = 0.230; p = 0.040), and perceived value (β = 0.498; p < 0.001) significantly enhance brand trust. However, digital branding and social media engagement do not directly influence purchase intention, whereas perceived value (β = 0.220; p = 0.002) and brand trust (β = 0.480; p < 0.001) have significant positive effects. Mediation analysis further shows that brand trust fully mediates the effects of digital branding and social media engagement on purchase intention and partially mediates the effect of perceived value. These findings highlight brand trust as an important psychological mechanism converting digital marketing stimuli into purchase intention, while perceived value remains relevant through both direct and indirect pathways. The study extends OFD consumer behaviour research to a secondary-city context. It suggests that OFD providers should integrate credible digital branding and responsive social media engagement with consistent value delivery to strengthen consumer purchase intention.