Is Storytelling Marketing Effective in Building Customer Engagement and Driving Purchase Decisions?

Research aims : This study examines the relationship between storytelling marketing and customer engagement and its direct and indirect influence on purchasing decisions. Customer engagement serves as an intervening variable mediating the relationship between storytelling marketing and purchasing decisions. Design/Methodology/Approach : The research questionnaire was distributed to 200 respondents over 17 years who were active users of Instagram social media. The data analysis technique was a quantitative method employing Analysis of Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) operated through the Analysis of Moment Structure (AMOS) program. Research findings : The study's results demonstrated that storytelling marketing directly and significantly affected customer engagement and did not directly affect purchasing decisions. In addition, there was a positive and significant influence between customer engagement and purchasing decisions, and customer engagement mediated the relationship between storytelling marketing and purchasing decisions. Theoretical Contribution/Originality : Research on storytelling marketing in the context of social media platforms is new in marketing. Most previous research discussed the relationship of storytelling marketing to brand reinforcement and identity. Therefore, this study attempted to integrate the relationship model between storytelling marketing and purchasing decisions by adding customer engagement as an intervening variable. Practitioners/Policy Implications : This research can provide marketers insight into creating exciting and creative marketing content through storytelling marketing that can encourage consumer involvement in a brand or product to generate follow-up action and influence consumer purchasing decisions. Research Limitations/Implications : This research only focused on marketing storytelling and customer engagement variables, generally influencing consumer purchasing decisions on the Instagram social media platform. Hence, future research can focus more on one research object from a brand or product and develop other variables related to customer engagement from a different perspective.


Introduction
The population of internet users has grown extraordinarily worldwide in the last few decades, including in Indonesia.According to data released by marketing, We Are Social, in a report entitled "Digital 2021," internet users in Indonesia reached 202.6 million people, an increase of 15.5% compared to 2020, with internet penetration reaching 73.7% of the total population of Indonesia which amounted to 274.9 million people.A total of 88.1% of these internet users purchased products online through E-commerce.This percentage is the highest in the world based on the We Are Social survey results in 2021 (Riyanto, 2021).
Growth in internet users and online shopping transactions, accelerating digital transformation in all lines of business, has widely affected the marketing world.Companies face competitive business challenges to attract customer attention and influence purchasing decisions (Karampournioti & Wiedmann, 2021).Hence, knowing what factors influence consumer purchasing decisions in the Internet environment is essential.
In this regard, digital marketing is a currently widely used strategy by marketers to attract consumers' attention and interest in influencing their purchasing decisions (Huda et al., 2021).It also affects the way marketers promote their products.In digital marketing, promotional activities are packaged in more engaging and creative content (Pravitaswari et al., 2018), including storytelling marketing.
Storytelling marketing is digital marketing content becoming a new phenomenon in online marketing as a digital promotion technique.It is because consumers buy products and the experiences and emotions created by consuming them in the digital marketing era (Maria et al., 2019).Some researchers argue that storytelling marketing effectively communicates and promotes its products better to consumers and can influence purchasing decision-making (Kurniawan, 2020) (Hong et al., 2018).Storytelling marketing is also a communication medium for promoting company products packaged in narrative or story form using various supporting elements (Alexander, 2011).To create personal connections and engage with online consumers, businesspeople began using storytelling techniques to attract customers (Anaza et al., 2020) (Karampournioti & Wiedmann, 2021).
Nowadays, people have encountered much of the storytelling marketing content on various digital platforms, particularly on Instagram.The features offered on social media, such as Instagram ads, stories, reels, and videos, are supporting elements that make it easy for marketers to create interactive storytelling marketing content that engages consumers.The social media platform is used as a means for marketers to share storytelling content by promoting their products in the form of a narrated story so that the message conveyed will be easier to understand and touch the minds of consumers (Kemp et al., 2021).
Further, storytelling marketing can influence not only consumer purchasing decisions (Mahendra, 2020) (Lily Anita & Sukma Lestari, 2020) but also consumer involvement (customer engagement) for products from a company brand (Robiady et al., 2021).Previous research has also proven that storytelling is a powerful approach to building and creating customer engagement as a customer engagement strategy in various marketing domains (Robiady et al., 2021) (Harmeling et al., 2016) (van Laer et al., 2019).Strength in storytelling makes consumers emotionally and cognitively involved with the brand of a product and creates customer engagement, which can affect consumer buying decision behavior (Hari, 2020).Thus, storytelling content marketing can build customer engagement towards a product and influence the purchase decision.Consumer engagement with storytelling content distributed by the company will also drive future sales growth and company profitability (Vivek et al., 2012).
Research on the phenomena of storytelling marketing in the context of social media platforms is new in the marketing field.Previous studies regarding storytelling content marketing have mainly discussed how to influence storytelling on brand strengthening, brand identity, and brand awareness and its relation to purchasing decisions (Pan & Chen, 2019) (Pravitaswari et al., 2018) (Rizkia & Oktafani, 2020).Nevertheless, research that delves deeper into measuring the impact of storytelling marketing on enhancing customer engagement and influencing consumer purchase decisions on digital social media platforms remains significantly limited.Therefore, this study tries to integrate the relationship between the storytelling marketing model and purchasing decisions by entering customer engagement as an intervening variable in the model.
Seeing storytelling marketing as a new phenomenon in the marketing environment online, which is starting to be widely used by marketers in promoting their products on social media platforms, the problem raised in this research is how to influence storytelling marketing on purchasing decisions with customer engagement as an intervening variable.
Knowing and understanding how to influence storytelling, marketing, and customer engagement toward purchasing decisions, this study may help companies make digital marketing strategies by creating engaging marketing content and providing value for consumers.It can have implications for strengthening the company's brand identity and increasing its sales performance and profitability.In addition, this research can prompt companies to adopt a narrative-based marketing approach to enhance customer interactions and achieve their sales goals.From an academic standpoint, this study can stimulate the development of theories and concepts in narrative-based marketing.

Literature Review and Hypotheses Development
The phenomenon of storytelling marketing is now starting to become a trend in online marketing because of the increasing number of internet users and consumer behavior in shopping online.Research on the relationship between storytelling marketing, customer engagement, and purchasing decisions in the context of social media digital platforms such as Instagram is something new that is worth researching, given that storytelling marketing on the Instagram social media platform began to be used by marketers both companies and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).Using storytelling in promoting products through social media features is also increasingly popular among marketers (Kurniawan, 2020).Elements or features offered on the Instagram social media platform, such as Instagram ads, video stories, Instagram stories, and, most recently, reels, make it easy for marketers to create marketing storytelling content interactively and attractive to consumers.Further, the function of social media platforms has shifted, providing space for users to communicate and share content and becoming a source of information in seeking various references regarding offers from a brand of goods and services (Lund et al., 2018).
Storytelling marketing is adopted from Transportation Theory and is widely applied to various disciplines (Lee & Jeong, 2017).Transportation Theory explains the convergent process that allows consumers to be immersed in a situation provided by a story (Green & Brock, 2000).Transportation Theory in the context of marketing identifies and explains how the convergent process of a text or narrative becomes an effective persuasive strategy of a story that can build someone's involvement and influence their behavior in decision-making (Wang & Calder, 2009).
A study (Pravitaswari et al., 2018) explains that content storytelling marketing can create a long-term platform to strengthen brand awareness and shape consumer behavior patterns, serving as the basis for purchasing decisions regarding a product.Marketers using a storytelling marketing strategy can also build brand equity by making it easier for consumers to recognize and remember a brand, influencing purchasing decisions (Rizkia & Oktafani, 2020).Additionally, research (Pan & Chen, 2019) indicates that consumers are more interested in seeing product promotions presented as narratives or short stories rather than reading direct product information.It facilitates consumers in comprehending the conveyed product information and enhances their brand awareness, ultimately influencing purchasing decisions.The persuasive power of storytelling, aimed at promoting a product, has been proven to influence consumer trust in brands and their purchase decisions (Nurhayati, 2021).Several previous studies have also explored the concept of storytelling marketing presented on websites (Robiady et al., 2021), YouTube (Pravitaswari et al., 2018), and short TV advertisements (Nurhayati, 2021) concerning brands and purchasing decisions.
The studies mentioned above indicate that prior research has predominantly concentrated on investigating the association between storytelling marketing and brand purchasing decisions on platforms such as YouTube, websites, and TV channels.Nevertheless, research specifically exploring the linkage between storytelling marketing, customer engagement, and purchasing decisions within the Instagram social media digital platform remains considerably scarce and represents a novel area in the marketing field.
By analyzing storytelling marketing and its influence on customer engagement and purchasing decisions in the context of social media platforms, the authors can obtain valuable insights into the impact of narratives conveyed by companies through social media or other digital platforms on the level of customer engagement.Moreover, this study can offer valuable perspectives on how the adoption of storytelling marketing influences consumer purchasing decisions.Through data analysis and comprehensive research findings, how certain story elements can influence customer perceptions, emotions, and purchase intentions can be understood.Apart from the theoretical value, this research can also make a practical contribution by guiding companies on the importance of implementing a story-based marketing approach to increase customer engagement and achieve sales goals and to help companies understand storytelling strategies more effectively in the context of digital social media platforms, which have increasingly pertinent in today's marketing landscape.

The Relationship Between Storytelling Marketing and Customer Engagement
Several previous studies have found that storytelling marketing not only can influence consumer purchasing decisions (Mahendra, 2020) (Lily Anita & Sukma Lestari, 2020) but can also create customer involvement (customer engagement) in products from a company brand (Robiady et al., 2021) (Hong et al., 2018).Storytelling is a powerful approach to building and creating customer engagement at higher levels as well as a customer engagement strategy in various marketing domains (Robiady et al., 2021); (Harmeling et al., 2016);(van Laer et al., 2019).Storytelling marketing involves consumers and their experiences with the products used, and the results are in the form of persuasion and action to buy these products (Za et al., 2021).Marketing promotions packaged in storytelling can further effectively persuade and attract consumers' attention differently because they can touch consumers' cognitive and emotional aspects, thereby creating customer engagement with these products (Kurniawan, 2020).
H 1 : Storytelling marketing has a significant effect on customer engagement.

The Relationship Between Storytelling Marketing and Purchase Decisions
Research conducted (Pravitaswari et al., 2018) elucidates that storytelling marketing content can create a long-term platform to strengthen brand awareness and shape consumer behavior patterns as the basis for creating purchasing decisions for a product.The storytelling marketing strategy used by marketers can also build brand equity because it makes it easier for consumers to recognize and remember a brand so that it influences their purchasing decisions (Rizkia & Oktafani, 2020).A study (Pan & Chen, 2019) states that consumers are more interested in seeing the promotion of a product packaged in the form of a narrative or short story than reading product information directly.It makes it easier for consumers to receive information conveyed by a product, ultimately influencing their purchasing decisions.The strength of storytelling, communicated to consumers to promote a product, has been proven to influence consumer purchasing decisions (Nurhayati, 2021).Several previous studies have also discussed the concept of storytelling marketing broadcast on the website (Robiady et al., 2021) (Pan & Chen, 2019), YouTube ads (Pravitaswari et al., 2018), and short advertisements on the TV Channel (Nurhayati, 2021) about purchasing decisions.

The Relationship Between Customer Engagement and Purchase Decision
Other studies have uncovered that customer engagement influences consumer purchasing decisions (Robiady et al., 2021).The impact of consumer involvement on marketing content offered from a product is represented by consumer responses in giving likes and comments on uploaded marketing content and will ultimately influence consumer purchasing decisions (Mahendra, 2020).Customer engagement will build relationships between consumers and marketers, which can be a factor in influencing consumer purchasing decisions and making consumers loyal to the company (Vivek et al., 2012).
H 3 : Customer engagement has a significant effect on purchasing decisions.

The Relationship Between Storytelling Marketing and the Purchase Decision Through Customer Engagement as an Intervening Variable
The power of story in storytelling makes consumers emotionally involved with the brand of a product, which in the end is responded to in the form of actions to like, comment, and share stories with others and impacts consumer purchasing decisions (Hari, 2020).In the marketing context, Transportation Theory has identified and explained that a story in the form of text or narrative can be an effective persuasive strategy for building customer engagement and influencing customer purchasing decisions (Wang & Calder, 2009).Referring to research (Mahendra, 2020) (Hari, 2020), customer engagement can be a variable that mediates the relationship between storytelling marketing content and purchase decisions.
H 4 : Storytelling marketing significantly affects purchasing decisions through customer engagement.

Conceptual Framework
Based on the relevant background and previous research, the conceptual framework can be described as follows:

Sample and Data
The scope of this study only included the relationship between storytelling marketing, customer engagement, and purchase decisions.This quantitative research applied a descriptive approach.The population of this study was consumers who actively used Instagram social media.The Lemeshow formula was employed to determine the population sample because the population size was exactly unknown.For estimation (P) of 15% and alpha (sampling error) of 5%, the following formula was utilized: The sampling technique was carried out using the method of purposive sampling, with the research sample criteria being consumers over 17 years old, active users of Instagram, and those who had seen storytelling marketing content on social media Instagram.
Questionnaires were distributed to 200 respondents via Google Forms.

Measurement Variable
This study consisted of storytelling marketing as an independent variable (X), customer engagement as a mediating (intervening) variable (Y), and purchasing decisions as a dependent variable (Z).The research variable construct was measured using the Likert Scale as a quantitative measure.The scale used was 5, consisting of strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree, and strongly agree.

Data Analysis
Data analysis in this study was performed using the Structure Equation Model (SEM) operated through the program Analysis of Moment Structure (AMOS).The data obtained through the questionnaire were then analyzed to obtain answers to the hypotheses in this study.The measurement model used validity and reliability tests on research questionnaires.At the same time, the structural model was employed to test the hypothesis in this study.The research hypothesis was tested using the direct and indirect relationship models (for measuring the intervening model).

Characteristics of Respondents
Questionnaires were distributed to 200 respondents via Google Forms.The characteristics of the respondents who filled out the questionnaire can be described in Table 1 as follows: In addition, more than half of respondents (79%), or 158 respondents, stated that the most exciting marketing content to promote and market a product was dominated by marketing content in the form of stories packaged in a video story on social media Instagram.In comparison, 39% or as many as 77 respondents admitted that the ideal duration for presenting marketing content as a video story was 1 -2 minutes.

Instrument Model Test
The model test was carried out using three models of suitability.They are:

Measurement model fit
There are two fit measurement models: construct validity and construct reliability.
Contract reliability was calculated based on standardized factor loading with the following CR formula: Meanwhile, construct validity was determined based on the P-value and Average variance extracted (AVE) value, with the following AVE formula: The results of measuring validity and reliability can be seen in Table 2.   2, the P-value for each indicator was less than 0.05, and AVE values for each indicator of a standardized factor greater than 0.50 showed that all the constructs obtained good results and that the measurement model had been valid.In addition, from the calculation results, all CR values were obtained > 0.70, so it can be concluded that the measurement results of the SEM model were reliable.

Structural Model Fit
Structural model fit was done by looking at the value of the coefficient path.In addition, determining the indirect effect of a constructed variable could be done by looking at the decomposition effect between the constructed variables.Suppose the total value of the direct and indirect effects is more significant (not close to zero) than the immediate effect.
In that case, it can be said that the constructed variable has an indirect effect.The analysis for the path coefficient can be seen in Tables 3 and 4. Source: Amos Output Note: * denotes significance because the value is not close to zero.
On the structural equation and decomposition effect, the test results and conclusions are as follows: 1.The test results obtained a significant influence of storytelling marketing (X) on customer engagement (Y) of 0.790.The higher the value of storytelling marketing (X), the higher the value of customer engagement (Y); on the contrary, the lower the value of storytelling marketing (X), the lower the value of customer engagement (Y). 2. The findings attained an insignificant effect of storytelling marketing (X) on purchase decision (FROM) of 0.091.In other words, a higher/lower value of storytelling marketing (X) will not affect the value of the purchase decision (FROM).

The test demonstrated a significant influence of customer engagement (Y) on
purchase decision (FROM) of 0.636.The higher the value of customer engagement (Y), the higher the value of purchase decision (FROM); conversely, the lower the value of storytelling marketing (X), the lower the value of purchase decision (FROM).4. The results revealed a significant indirect influence of storytelling marketing (X) on purchase decision (Z) of 0.502.It happens because the value of the direct effect of storytelling marketing (X) on customer engagement (Y) was significant, and the direct effect of customer engagement (Y) on purchase decisions (Z) was also significant.5.The test disclosed a total significant direct influence of storytelling marketing (X) on purchase decision (Z)of 0.593.It occurs since the value of the indirect effect of storytelling marketing (X) on purchase decision (Z) was significant, even though the direct effect of storytelling marketing (X) on purchase decision (Z) was not significant.

Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) Test of Each Variable Analysis CFA on Storytelling Marketing (X)
The first-order CFA analysis on storytelling marketing as latent variables composed of 13 indicators that can be seen in Figure 2.

Good fit
Source: Amos Output From the result of the overall model fit test presented in Figure 2 and Table 5, it can be concluded that the CFA model was good.

Analysis CFA on Customer Engagement (Y)
The first-order CFA analysis on customer engagement as latent variables consisted of six indicators that can be observed in Figure 3.   3 and Table 6, it can be concluded that the CFA model was good.

Analysis CFA on Purchase Decision (Z)
The first-order CFA analysis on purchase decisions as latent variables encompassed eight indicators, as seen in Figure 4.

Good fit
Source: Amos Output From the result of the overall model fit test displayed in Figure 4 and Table 7, it can be concluded that the CFA model was good.

The Overall Fit Size of the Model
The measurement of the overall suitability of the model can be observed in Figure 5 and Table 8 as follows:

Close fit
Source: Amos Output From the results of the overall model fit test in Figure 1 and Table 5, it can be said that all test results on the SEM model were reasonable.

Hypothesis 1 Test Results
Based on Table 3, in the hypothesis 1 test, a positive value of 0.790 was obtained, and the P-value was smaller than 0.05, which was 0.001, so it could be concluded that the variable direct storytelling marketing had a significant effect on variables of customer engagement.It denotes that Hypothesis 1 could be accepted.The score of estimate value also revealed a positive number of 0.790, indicating that storytelling marketing positively influenced customer engagement.
The results of hypothesis testing 1 demonstrate that storytelling marketing is a factor that could affect customer engagement for a product; the results of this study align with previous research conducted (Robiady et al., 2021) (Harmeling et al., 2016) (van Laer et al., 2019), which stated that storytelling is an effective marketing strategy in building and creating customer engagement in various marketing domains.In addition, the power of narrated stories conveyed to consumers through video stories can create emotional and cognitive consumer involvement in the story and shape consumer behavior as a reaction to the information conveyed in story storytelling marketing (Hari, 2020).Further, content storytelling packaged attractively can make customers directly involved in the storyline presented, attract customer attention, and persuade customers to act.
Previous research (ZA et al., 2021) stated that storytelling marketing is a powerful approach to higher customer engagement.Besides, storytelling marketing is a basic form of business communication because it can make the relationship between companies and consumers closer (Noussel, 2018).Some indicators from storytelling marketing, such as titles, characters or story characters and exciting story ideas, clarity of messages or information and storylines, convenience for consumers to understand story content, appropriate duration of time, and presentation of stories appropriately packaged, can touch the emotional and cognitive aspects of consumers to stimulate consumer involvement of a brand or product.Research (Pera, 2014) also points out that storytelling is one of the elements that companies can use to stimulate customer engagement behavior, such as co-creation and interaction between customers and service providers.
Additionally, visual communication in the form of storytelling marketing can strengthen consumer involvement in the Instagram social media platform through the various features offered as a form of consumer response to what has been conveyed.It can encourage consumer decision-making so that storytelling, in this case, is a touchpoint (Aripradono, 2020).Features on the Instagram social media platform that consumers can use include liking, sharing, commenting, visiting Instagram, and reposting.These features are consumer involvement's reaction to marketing content shared on the Instagram social media platform via video, Instagram, or reel stories (Alfajri et al., 2019).The questionnaire results regarding the respondents' profiles showed that the marketing content considered the most interesting for promoting products through Instagram social media, according to consumers, was a video story.Consumer interest in content storytelling in offering a product through Instagram media would make them involved to share, like, and comment on that content.
The results of output regression weights revealed that the most significant indicator in reflecting the variable storytelling marketing was the information conveyed in the storyline that made consumers enthusiastic, with a value estimate of 1,032.Enthusiastic consumers of uploaded video stories reflect that the content has been able to touch consumers' emotional and cognitive aspects of consumers, positively impacting consumers' engagement.It is reflected in the likes, comments, and viewers, where the more likes, comments, and viewers, the more significant the response from consumers and the more popular the upload of the video story.Many reactions from uploads of video stories a company delivers will positively impact the interaction between companies and consumers.They can open up opportunities for a brand to be more widely known by target audiences (Mahendra, 2020).

Hypothesis 2 Test Results
The second hypothesis test obtained a positive value of 0.091 and a P-value greater than 0.05, namely 0.108, so it can be concluded that the storytelling marketing variable did not have a direct and significant effect on the purchase decision variable; it is significant that hypothesis 2 was rejected.The estimated value showed a positive number of 0.091, indicating that storytelling marketing did not positively affect purchasing decisions.Based on the hypothesis testing 2 results, there was an inconsistency between the results of this study and previous research.Research (Rizkia & Oktafani, 2020) and (Pravitaswari et al., 2018) reported that storytelling marketing positively and significantly influenced consumer purchasing decisions for a product.It is also consistent with the results of research conducted (Nurhayati, 2021) that the strength of storytelling communicated to promote a product has been proven to influence consumer purchasing decisions.
However, in the results of this study, storytelling marketing could not influence consumer purchasing decisions directly on the products offered through the Instagram social media platform.It could happen because, at the stage of making a purchase decision, consumers undergo an evaluation process before finally deciding to buy or not buy a product (Kotler, 2016).In addition, the number of product references and offers on Instagram makes consumers more critical in purchasing products, so the product's strength does not determine the alternative evaluation process storytelling but other factors, such as trust in the brand and consumer involvement in the brand (Lee & Jeong, 2017).Moreover, storytelling marketing content packaged as a video story could not directly influence consumer purchasing decisions.Consumers must first be emotionally and cognitively involved in shared uploads, determining consumer behavior to like or dislike and making consumers decide to purchase a product (Hari, 2020).

Hypothesis 3 Test Results
The third hypothesis test result had a positive value of 0.636 and a P-value smaller than 0.05, equal to 0.001, so it can be concluded that the customer engagement variable directly and significantly influenced the purchase decision variable.In other words, Hypothesis 3 was acceptable.The estimated value uncovered a positive number of 0.636, indicating that customer engagement positively influenced purchasing decisions.The results of the third hypothesis testing also demonstrated that customer engagement is a factor that could influence consumer purchasing decisions for a product.The results of this study corroborate a study (Robiady et al., 2021), where the results stated that customer involvement (customer engagement) could influence consumer purchasing decisions.The results of this study are also supported by research (Xiang et al., 2019), stating that consumer involvement creates an emotional appeal that can have a persuasive impact on a person's decision to purchase a product.Based on the indicators used for measuring customer engagement, consumers who are emotionally involved in a story shared by a brand or product and enjoy uploading marketing content in video stories will be encouraged to act, which can ultimately influence the consumer buying decision process.
In the context of digital platforms, features, such as likes, comments, and reposting a story, are activating examples of consumer involvement in uploaded information submitted by a company via a digital platform (Robiady et al., 2021).Consumer involvement in marketing content offered from a product is reflected by consumer responses in giving likes and comments on uploaded marketing content, which will influence consumer purchasing decisions (Mahendra, 2020).In addition, consumer involvement can build personal relationships between consumers and companies, so consumer involvement can be a factor that influences purchasing decisions and impacts consumer loyalty to these companies (Vivek et al., 2012).Since the current research focused on the Instagram social media platform, based on the results of output regression weights, the most significant indicator in reflecting the variable of customer engagement is that uploads in the form of stories on the Instagram social media platform could encourage consumers to take actions, such as providing reviews or comments, giving likes, and visiting the Instagram page of the online store, with an estimated value of 1.019.It denotes that consumer involvement in marketing content uploaded on the Instagram social media platform could be a stimulus that will influence consumer purchasing decisions for a product offered by the company through the social media platform.Further, the concept of emotional and cognitive consumer involvement has combined elements of consumer experience and feelings for marketing content posted via social media.It can create interaction and participation between consumers towards a brand or product so that it becomes a factor that can contribute to stimulating consumer purchasing decisions (Vivek et al., 2012).

Hypothesis 4 Test Results
Hypothesis test 4 exposed an indirect effect of storytelling marketing, which was significant to the purchase decision of 0.502, with a total direct and indirect effect of 0.593.Thus, it could be concluded that storytelling marketing indirectly influenced purchasing decisions through customer engagement.It indicates that the customer engagement variable was an intervening variable that mediated the relationship between storytelling marketing and purchase decisions.Therefore, based on the research results, Hypothesis 4 could be accepted.
The hypothesis 4 testing results demonstrated that the strength of storytelling marketing could make consumers emotionally and cognitively involved, ultimately shaping consumer behavior to like or dislike storytelling marketing content and influencing consumer purchasing decisions for a brand or product (Hari, 2020).Consumer interest in uploaded storytelling marketing content on the Instagram social media platform will be responded to in the form of actions to like, comment, repost, and visit Instagram, where storytelling marketing is said to be effective if it can touch the emotional and cognitive aspects of consumers, which can then create consumer involvement in a brand or product and influence consumer purchasing decisions.According to research results (Mahendra, 2020), (Hari, 2020), customer engagement could be a variable that mediated the relationship between storytelling marketing content and purchase decisions.Storytelling marketing content presented interestingly, such as an easy-to-understand storyline, an atmosphere and setting built in an exciting story, interesting characters in the story, appropriate duration of broadcast time, and information conveyed clearly, can make consumers emotionally and cognitively involved in the storyline so that it will attract the attention, interest, and desire of consumers to act and make purchases.It was confirmed in a study conducted (ZA et al., 2021) that storytelling marketing content makes consumers involved and feel the experience with the products used.The results are in persuasion and action to buy these products.

Conclusion
Based on the research results, while the storytelling marketing variable directly and significantly affected customer engagement, it had no considerable effect on purchasing decisions.In addition, customer engagement positively and significantly affected purchasing decisions and variables.Customer engagement also mediated the relationship between storytelling marketing and purchase decisions.
Marketing strategy, through storytelling marketing content, is an effective marketing strategy in building and creating customer engagement and interaction with a brand or product that can influence consumer purchasing decisions.The Instagram social media platform is utilized to share storytelling marketing content.Through the various features offered by Instagram, it is considered capable of increasing the interaction between companies and customers and being a factor that can encourage consumer purchasing decisions.
In a competitive global business environment, an effective storytelling marketing strategy can help companies differentiate themselves from competitors.Through a story-based marketing approach, companies can also create valuable customer experiences and build stronger emotional connections, ultimately increasing brand loyalty and preference.
Information from this research helps executives and corporate management make better strategic decisions.They can use insights from research to design more effective marketing campaigns through storytelling marketing and achieve more positive results in achieving global business goals.By understanding how storytelling marketing impacts customer engagement and purchasing decisions, companies can more effectively tap into global markets and overcome potential challenges.
Therefore, practical advice for businesspeople and marketers is that they are expected to create and improve marketing strategies through content creation of storytelling marketing of interest to encourage consumer involvement in a brand or product that can lead to follow-up action and influence consumer purchasing decisions.The selection of titles, storylines, characters or story characters, clarity of message content, and how to present the story can be things that need to be considered for businesspeople and marketers to create content.In other words, storytelling marketing is interesting.In addition, the Instagram social media platform can be an effective communication medium for delivering storytelling marketing content to build and improve consumer interaction.
For further research, it is suggested to examine and analyze other variables that can influence consumer purchasing decisions in the context of social media platforms that are not discussed in this study.In addition, future research should focus on the elements of customer engagement from a customer perspective, not from an organization's perspective, and analyze the most effective dimensions for increasing customer engagement from a customer perspective.

Figure
Figure 1 Conceptual Framework n = 195.9216(rounded to 200 respondents) Information: N= The number of the research sample Z= Z-score at 95%, with confidence level at 1.96 d= Alpha

Figure 2
Figure 2 CFA Test on Storytelling Marketing

Figure 3
Figure 3 CFA Test on Customer Engagement

Figure 4
Figure 4 CFA Test on Purchase Decision

Figure 5
Figure 5 Goodness and Fit Model

Table 1
Characteristics of Respondent 51% of 102 respondents, whereas as many as 73% of respondents, or 146 respondents, chose the time most often used to access Instagram at night, 19.00 -22.00 WIB.
status of respondents by 62% or 123 respondents.In this study, the sampled respondents were active users of Instagram social media.Based on the respondent's data, the product category most frequently searched by respondents on Instagram was fashion products, namely

Table 2
Validity and Reliability Constructs

Table 3
Summary of Path Coefficient Results Between Constructs

Table 4
Decomposition Effects Between Constructs

Table 5
Summary of Goodness of Fit Model on Storytelling Marketing (X)

Table 6
SummaryFrom the overall model fit test result in Figure of Goodness of Fit Model on Customer Engagement (Y) Fit Model Result Model Requirements Test Decision Chi-Square or CMIN 16.346 Good fit if CMIN < Chi-Square table with α = 5% and DF = 9 Chi-Square table = 16.919Good fit Significance Probability of CMIN (p-value) 0.060 A good fit if P-value ≥ α with α = 5%

Table 7
Summary of Goodness of Fit Model on Purchase Decision (Z) (cont')

Table 8
Summary of Goodness of Fit Model