The Influence of Content Authenticity and Digital Creativity on Affiliate Marketing Performance through Digital Trust on Facebook Pro User Content Creators

Abstract

The development of the creator economy has opened up opportunities for mothers to engage in affiliate marketing through Facebook Professional Mode. However, authenticity and creativity of content do not always result in clicks, sales, and commissions because audience decisions are also influenced by the level of trust in the creator. This study aims to analyze the influence of Content Authenticity and Digital Creativity on Affiliate Marketing Performance, both directly and through Digital Trust as a mediating variable for mom content creators using Facebook Pro. The study used a quantitative approach with an explanatory design. The sample consisted of 205 respondents selected using a purposive sampling technique based on the criteria of being mothers, actively using Facebook Pro, producing content, and having promoted products through affiliate links. Data were collected through an online questionnaire with a Likert scale of 1–5 and analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling based on AMOS version 31. The research model showed a good level of fit, with an RMSEA of 0.000, a CFI of 1.000, a CMIN/DF of 0.900, and an NFI of 0.943. The test results show that Content Authenticity does not have a significant direct effect on Affiliate Marketing Performance (β=0.127; p=0.174). Digital Creativity also does not have a significant direct effect (β=−0.003; p=0.974). Conversely, Content Authenticity (β=0.648; p<0.001) and Digital Creativity (β=0.578; p<0.001) have a positive effect on Digital Trust. Furthermore, Digital Trust has a positive effect on Affiliate Marketing Performance (β=0.657; p<0.001). The Sobel test proves that Digital Trust fully mediates the effect of content authenticity and creativity on affiliate performance. These findings confirm that digital trust is the primary mechanism that transforms content quality into measurable affiliate marketing results.