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Parasocial Interaction and Virtual Influencers: Building Connections in a Digital World
Abstract
In today's digitally driven world, human interaction has transformed significantly, particularly with the emergence of parasocial relationships and virtual influencers. This chapter applies Horton and Wohl (1956) parasocial interaction (PSI) framework to critically analyze how audiences connect with virtual influencers. It examines their appeal to younger demographics like Generation Z, who are more receptive to AI-driven figures, and explores how brands employ these influencers as marketing agents. Ethical concerns are highlighted, including transparency, manipulation, and the promotion of unrealistic standards. The chapter also questions the authenticity of virtual influencers, given their entirely orchestrated personas. Further, the chapter provides a comprehensive exploration of these developments, emphasizing the need for ethical responsibility as technology continues to blur the lines between the virtual and real worlds.
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This article critically examines the paradigm shift from the attention economy to the intimacy economy—a market system where personal and emotional data are exchanged for customized experiences that cater to individual emotional and psychological needs. It explores how AI transforms these personal and emotional inputs into services, thereby raising essential questions about the authenticity of digital interactions and the potential commodification of intimate experiences. The study delineates the roles of human–computer interaction and AI in deepening personal connections, significantly impacting emotional dynamics, and underscores AI’s role in various applications, from healthcare to grief tech, highlighting both enhancements in emotional connections and potential disruptions to genuine human interactions. An AI-mediated framework (AMIE) is introduced to assess how AI reshapes these connections and the overall digital society through personalized interactions. This framework explores the interplay between human emotions and AI-generated responses within the new Avatar Sphere, emphasizing the necessity for regulatory measures to safeguard digital identities, recognize emotional data as intellectual property, and maintain system transparency. It highlights the critical need for maintaining genuine human interactions and advocates for context-aware consent, continuous monitoring, and cross-cultural considerations to foster ethical AI practices. Leveraging blockchain technology and decentralized autonomous organizations, the framework proposes methods to enhance individual control over emotional data, mitigating the commodification risks. The findings contribute to ongoing discussions on AI ethics, digital privacy, and the future of human-AI interactions, providing valuable insights for cultivating a responsible intimacy economy.
Human social media influencers are facing a challenge due to the advent of the following line of influencers: computer-generated imagery, known as “Virtual influencers.” This study aims to capture initial insights about the emergence of virtual influencers and their influence on tourists’ destination visit intentions. Data collected through a quantitative online survey-based study from 400 tourism consumers in India, who are also Instagram users, is analyzed using Smart PLS 4.0. Using the Uncanny Valley theory, this study demonstrates that the presence of a virtual influencer in social media posts negatively affects tourists’ destination visit intentions, perceived content originality, and perceived brand-influencer congruence and positively effects perceived content uniqueness. Furthermore, perceived content uniqueness positively mediates the relationship between virtual influencer presence and destination visit intention, whereas perceived content originality and perceived brand-influencer congruence negatively mediate the relationship. Therefore, brand managers should make virtual influencers’ content more relatable and authentic to generate favorable consumer evaluations.
Influencer marketing has become a transformative force in modern marketing, altering brand engagement with consumers and redefining media consumption. The chapter examines the evolution from traditional celebrity endorsements to the emergence of digital influencers, facilitated through social media platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. Key insights include the classification of influencers into micro-, macro-, and mega influencers, each serving distinct roles and engagement levels. Micro-influencers, with niche followings, often achieve higher engagement rates and closer connections with their audience. Macro-influencers extend their reach to broader audiences, while mega influencers, similar to traditional celebrities, command significant social media presence. Influencers act as trendsetters and cultural icons, shaping public discourse and societal norms through authentic content that builds trust and loyalty among followers. A crucial aspect discussed is the importance of authenticity in influencer marketing. As consumers become more skeptical of traditional advertising, they value genuine, relatable content from influencers. The role of social media algorithms in determining content visibility and engagement emphasizes the strategic importance for influencers and brands to understand these mechanisms. Readers will gain comprehensive understanding about influencer marketing, the strategic categorization of influencers, and the significance of authenticity in building consumer trust.
This study explores the cultural presentation and attitudes towards using English among Thai TikTokers, focusing on how they create and present cultural content. Utilizing detailed content analysis of video titles, descriptions, and comments, alongside semi-structured interviews with 20 selected TikTokers, the research reveals the diverse motivations and challenges faced by these creators. The findings highlight a wide range of cultural content, including ethnic, lifestyle, national, subcultures, and youth cultures, which serve to engage audiences and promote cultural exchange. The study also identifies the overlapping nature of cultural presentation strategies, such as visual storytelling, educational content, user engagement, and the strategic use of hashtags and multilingual content. These strategies are designed to increase the visibility and impact of their content, enhancing a sense of global community and cultural understanding. The study categorizes attitudes towards using English into positive, negative, and mixed. While some TikTokers embrace English to broaden their international reach and facilitate intercultural communication, others express concerns about language proficiency, such as accents and grammatical accuracy, which may lead to negative feedback. This complexity underscores the challenges of multilingual content creation, balancing cultural authenticity with global engagement. By linking these findings with existing theories and studies, the research offers a comprehensive understanding of digital cultural representation on social media platforms. The insights contribute to the broader field of social media studies, providing implications for future research on content strategies, cultural communication, and the role of language in digital media.
Virtual influencers in various forms are capturing a growing share of ad spend from human influencers. Followers respond to virtual influencers much as if they were human, with engagement rates and measures of trust and source credibility that rival their human counterparts. However, there is an acute need for more nuanced understanding of the differential characteristics of user engagement with human influencers and the many emerging forms, types and interactional characteristics of virtual influencers. We conduct an exploratory study of three parts. First, through an indepth review of the existing literature, we delineate the implications of unsettled taxonomies of virtual influencers by function and form, and we outline a revised typology. Second, our secondary review of virtual influencer literature, trade, and industry sources conceptualizes divergent factors influencing the persuasive capability of human and virtual influencers while identifying intersecting research themes. From this synthesis we induce suggestions for future research and practice. Finally, we assess, refine and adjust our framework through depth interviews with leading expert practitioners to generate six key findings to guide future researched‐backed virtual influencer practice and research.
This research explores influencer trustworthiness and stimulus novelty as important paths for the effectiveness of virtual influencers. We compare human-like virtual influencers (HVIs) and anime-like virtual influencers (AVIs) operating either with sponsorship disclosure or non-disclosure. In two experiments, we found that HVI (vs. AVIs) produced higher content engagement and purchase intent via greater influencer trustworthiness only when sponsorship was not disclosed. Upon disclosure, the advantage of HVIs over AVIs disappeared. We also found that the influencer’s status, whether mega or micro, significantly moderated the influence of sponsorship disclosure. Perceived novelty of AVIs are consistently higher than HVIs, and perceived novelty mediates the effect of the AVIs (vs. HVIs) on content engagement, but only when sponsorship was disclosed. These findings offer important insights into how virtual influencers may influence consumer engagement and purchase decisions.
Purpose
Based on the computers as social actors (CASA) theory, this study aims to explore the impact of three characteristics of virtual influencers (conversational tone, autonomy and responsiveness) on social presence, telepresence and customer engagement.
Design/methodology/approach
Using the purposive sampling technique, online survey was administered to Chinese Gen-Z consumers engaging with virtual influencers. Subsequently, 357 respondents were sampled. SPSS 29.0 and Smart PLS 4.0 were used to perform the analyses.
Findings
The results show that conversational tone and responsiveness have significant positive effects on both social presence and telepresence. Autonomy has a positive effect on telepresence, but not social presence. Social presence and telepresence have a positive impact on customer engagement.
Originality/value
As a burgeoning field, there is still uncertainty among both practitioners and researchers about the methods that virtual influencers engage their users in the context of social media. Limited research has focused on presence (social presence and telepresence) due to virtual influencers. Therefore, the CASA theory offers valuable insights into how virtual influencers’ characteristics contribute to the presence and customer engagement and provides practical guidance for the design of virtual influencers.
A virtual influencer (VI) is a computer-generated, imagery-based digital character. It has become one of the hottest marketing trends, motivating researchers to investigate how consumers perceive VIs. However, con-sumers' emotional attachment and benefit seeking behaviour to different types of VIs has remained under-investigated. Therefore, considering the level of perceived humanness and appearance realism, this research examines how consumers' emotional attachment and benefit seeking differs across the three types of VI (i.e., mimic-human VI, animated-human VI, and non-human VI). We further propose that VIs may influence consumer emotional attachment and different benefit seeking behaviour through social presence because, specifically, when a VI shows a higher level of social presence, a higher level of emotional attachment and stronger benefit seeking behaviour will result. The experimental studies lend support to our theorization. This research provides insights into the different types of VIs in marketing literature and extends the context of social presence theory.
Recently, there has been a lot of interest in industry and academia in virtual influencers (VIs). This study aimed to augment the understanding of VI marketing by exploring the relationship between VI’s characteristics (i.e., their humanlikeness level and operator type), their social media post characteristics (i.e., emotional expression, use of pronouns, use of punctuation marks), and consumer engagement. The analysis of three popular VIs’ Instagram profiles and posts revealed that VIs with less humanlike appearances tend to exhibit stronger positive emotional expressions. Interestingly, the level of humanlikeness in appearance was not associated with VI's other post characteristics, suggesting other intrinsic factors (e.g., the VI’s character and virtual universe) may play a pivotal role. Whether a brand operates the VI or not made a statistically significant difference in the VI’s post characteristics. Assessment of user engagement metrics (i.e., number of likes and comments) showed that users prefer hyper-realistic VIs and VIs operated by non-brand agencies, underscoring the importance of perceived authenticity in the digital realm. The emotions expressed by VIs, along with their use of punctuation, were positively related to user engagement.
More and more brands adopt virtual influencers in the metaverse. Evidence from business practice suggests that coming closer to consumers through deploying virtual influencers can backfire, putting increased pressure on brand managers to understand their potential advantages and disadvantages. This study aims to gain a comprehensive understanding of how virtual influencers affect brand experiences in the metaverse. Based on 15 semi-structured interviews we introduce the concept of a virtual influencer's social proximity capturing its ability to enter a user's personal space in virtual environments. We identify facilitating and restricting technological factors of a virtual influencer and argue that their impact on brand experiences operates via altering social proximity. We contribute to theory by postulating social proximity to provide entry points for future research and guide the design of experience-centric virtual influencers.
Influencer marketing is a dynamic digital strategy that leverages social media influencers to promote products or brands to a targeted audience. It has evolved with the rise of platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, providing individuals a stage to build substantial followings. Brands now collaborate with influencers to connect authentically with their demographics. Over time, influencer marketing has progressed from endorsements to include sponsored content, product placements, and influencer-generated material, emphasizing authenticity and trust in influencer selection. The objective of this review is to explore the dynamics of influencer marketing, from its evolution to its ethical considerations, effective campaign crafting, risk mitigation, and future trends, emphasizing its significance in the digital age. In the influencer marketing landscape, there are various influencer types, including celebrities, micro-influencers, and nano-influencers. Celebrities offer broad reach but may lack personal connection, while micro-influencers engage specific niche audiences, and nano-influencers have hyper-local, engaged communities. Crafting effective influencer campaigns entails defining clear objectives, selecting the right influencers, creating engaging content, implementing a multi-channel approach, and fostering audience engagement. Measuring success beyond vanity metrics focuses on quantifiable outcomes for a more accurate evaluation. Mitigating risks involves addressing authenticity, regulatory compliance, audience relevance, content quality, metrics, scalability, and potential negative publicity, ensuring successful influencer partnerships. Future trends include virtual influencers and AI-driven campaigns, with influencer marketing evolving toward authenticity and long-term partnerships.
This paper explores the social media presence of selected female virtual
influencers, offering an exploratory argument of how their identities are constructed as authentic influencers and the ethical concerns associated with this fabricated identity formation.
Focusing on the application of artificial intelligence, this study investigates the impact of emotional display on user engagement with computer-generated imagery influencers through the lens of the computers are social actors (CASA) framework. It breaks down emotions into individual muscle movements (i.e., facial action units). By using facial recognition based on 1,028 pictures shared by Lil Miquela, the findings disclose the significance of happiness, sadness, disgust, and surprise in triggering user engagement when promoting diverse products with visually captivating content. The findings highlight the importance of balancing the intensity of muscle movement to streamline the interplay between technology, human behaviour, and digital communication.
Drawing on the theory of sociology of trust and risk, this study proposes and empirically tests a conceptual model of tourists’ new destination visit intentions. The model links tourists’ subjective knowledge to trust and risk perceptions and explores the moderating effects of social media influencers (human vs. virtual) and tourists’ psychographic factors in this context. Data were collected from two studies: Study 1, through a survey distributed to participants in Malaysia (n = 493 valid responses); and Study 2, through a between-subjects design experiment with another sample of participants in Malaysia (n = 470 valid responses). The findings expand knowledge in tourism research by showing that destination trust mediates how subjective knowledge influences perceived risk. Optimism and life satisfaction have significant moderating effects in this context. Furthermore, the relationship between destination trust and visit intention is moderated by human and virtual influencers, according to whether their message is positive or negative.
Purpose
This study aims to gain insights into the rise of virtual social media influencers and identify the significant theories governing virtual influencers’ (VIs) interaction with followers on social media platforms. Studies on VI being scarce in marketing literature, the authors attempt to propose a theoretical model to understand the acceptance of VIs by social media users (SMUs).
Design/methodology/approach
Using a structured literature review and a case study approach, a conceptual model is developed and propositions are offered.
Findings
Parasocial interaction (PSI) between the SMU and VIs builds up source credibility, thereby leading to the acceptance of VIs. Thus, the authors establish that PSI and source credibility theory combine to explain the acceptance of VIs by SMUs. Furthermore, similarity with the VI is another added dimension of source credibility, as suggested by this study. A comparative analysis of the growth of five major VIs elucidates that the fashion, electronic, tourism and health-care industries can use them for promotions and as influencers, especially for luxury products.
Research limitations/implications
VIs are a potent tool to achieve improved brand awareness and to target young consumers (especially Gen Y and Gen Z – millennials).
Originality/value
The emergence of VIs being recent; little is comprehended about their interaction with SMUs. Hence, it becomes important to delineate the foundations of VI–SMU interaction. Thus, this study addresses the gap in identifying the theoretical background and proposes a conceptual model elucidating VI acceptance by SMUs.
Virtual influencers engage in emotional sharing to gain and keep followers. However, given that many people use social media for diversion purposes, this emotional sharing may hinder users‘ ability to escape from everyday emotional experiences, particularly for highly empathetic individuals. Using a between subjects, randomised experimental design, we explore how empathy affects reactions to virtual vs. human influencers, showing that those
highest on empathy are more likely to follow a virtual influencer, and rate her as more socially attractive, than a comparable human influencer; these results disappear when the influencers‘ true nature is unknown to participants. We postulate that these results represent an ―escapism effectǁ , where the virtual influencer is expected to provide greater diversionary benefits from everyday human emotional experiences and require fewer cognitive resources in the form of emotional sense making. We present practical implications and future research opportunities arising from this effect.
Artificially created characters – virtual influencers – amass millions of followers on social media and affect digital natives’ engagement and decisionmaking in remarkable ways. Guided by the Uses and Gratification (U&G) approach and the Uncanny Valley Theory, this study seeks to understand this phenomenon. By looking into followers’ engagement with virtual influencers, this study identifies and conceptualizes six primary motivations – namely, novelty, information, entertainment, surveillance, esthetics, and integration and social interaction. Furthermore, we found that most followers perceive virtual influencers as uncanny and authentically fake. However, followers also express acceptance of their staged fabrication where curated flaws and self-justification have been found to mitigate the effect of the uncanny valley. Virtual influencers are considered effective in building brand image and boosting brand awareness, but lack the persuasive ability to incite purchase intention due to a lack of authenticity, a low similarity to followers, and their weak parasocial relations with followers. These findings advance the extant literature on U&G, influencer advertising, and virtual influencers in the era of artificial intelligence; provide insights into the mitigating factors of the uncanny valley; and yield theoretical and practical implications for the efficacy of virtual influencers in advertising campaigns.
Metaverse promises new frontiers in mobility, collaboration, and connectedness in a digital
universe poised to digitize our world of workplace and marketplace. The current study aims
to explore the effect of consumer neuroticism, parasocial relationships, social media
influencers' credibility, and openness to Metaverse experience on the intention to use the
Metaverse digital marketplace. Prominent theories, including elaboration likelihood model
and personality traits notion, supported the development of a multi-path model for the
intention to use Metaverse digital marketplace. Drawing on extensive data of social media
active users (N=1861) and covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM), the
novel findings revealed that parasocial relationships and social media influencers'
credibility positively trigger intentions to use the Metaverse digital marketplace. Moreover,
a higher tendency of openness to Metaverse experience intensifies the effect of parasocial
relationships on the intentions to use the Metaverse digital marketplace. Interestingly,
openness to Metaverse experience is negatively associated with consumers' neuroticism.
The study implications offer new insights into parasocial relationships and the credibility
of social media influencers in determining followers' intention to use the Metaverse digital
marketplace. Transition to the digital marketplace can be accelerated if consumers (prone
to neuroticism) are offered professional support to overcome negative emotions (e.g., fear
and helplessness) toward emerging digital technologies such as the Metaverse.
The article highlights new communication and advertising phenomenon – virtual influencers (VI) or virtual models employed by different brands to promote their collections and goods. Influencer marketing became an effective marketing strategy and profitable trend within the last twenty years. Influencers can be categorized in line with the content they generate, number of followers they have, their specialization, the impact they produce. Influencer marketing flourishes in social media. Celebrities who earned their fame offline are mega-influencers. Virtual influencers are transmedia 3D models created by high-caliber professionals via computer-generated imagery (CGI), animation, computer graphics, multimodality, copywriting with their bio, tastes, hobbies, lifestyle, even political preferences and social values. They are fond of social networking and have accounts in the most popular social media – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok. Brands collaborate with social media influencers for narrowcasting young customers, mostly millennials who prefer social media to mass media and perceive virtual reality as a natural component of current civilization and everyday life. Experts believe virtual influencers’ rating is based on wow effect and they won’t be able to outperform celebrities despite high annual income as they are fictional and not emotional. Celebrities as mega-influencers and models fear virtual models will squeeze them out of marketing and advertising, other social media users have Uncanny Valley syndrome. Psychologists claim VI might trigger psychological problems for teenagers as they cannot attain glamorous lifestyle VI promote. Verbal behavior of virtual influencers is molded by copywriters and mirrors characteristics of English used in social media by teenagers and millennials – short simple sentences with acronyms visibly peppered with emoji and hashtags. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter accounts of the most popular influencers Lil Miquela, Bermuda, Shudu were analyzed. The future of virtual influencers lies in synthesis of CGI and artificial intelligence (AI) to generate posts automatically and communicate with followers. Then virtual influencers can be used outside advertising and marketing to make impact on global audience
Avatar marketing gained momentum as a brand endorsement strategy. However, there is a lack of studies encompassing the benefits, risks, and operational mechanisms regarding avatar-based influencer marketing. Thus, we aim to understand the influencer marketing strategy exerted by avatars with anthropomorphic appearance. To this end, this paper is grounded on a mixed, exploratory and case study research approach. Data were collected from the HypeAuditor platform and from avatars Instagram profiles through the online non-participant observation technique. They are analyzed through descriptive statistics and semiotic analysis of still image. In short, we concluded the main element to generating a connection between avatars and followers, conferring credibility and authenticity, is the congruence of their posts (with and without endorsement) with their lifestyle, personality, and narrative of their personal stories. Moreover, we reveal that avatars are effective endorsers who generate engagement through a spectrum of strategies ranging from humanization to robotization/metaverse. From our results, we delineated several theoretical contributions, such as the typology to identify avatars according to their creation purpose and the risks, benefits, and operational mechanisms of avatar marketing. Thus, the present research offers novel insights into the influencer marketing literature and provides managerial guidelines for decision-makers and avatar developers.
Influencer marketing has become a dominant and targeted means for brands to connect with consumers, but it also brings risks associated with influencer transgression and reputation damage. In recent years, virtual influencers have gained popularity and given rise to falsity, or artificially created and manipulated influencers that are revolutionizing the field of influencer marketing. A virtual influencer is an entity—humanlike or not—that is autonomously controlled by artificial intelligence and visually presented as an interactive, real-time rendered being in a digital environment. As brands increasingly seek to engage virtual influencers to connect with and sell to audiences, we take a step back and discuss the opportunities and challenges they present for firms and managers. To help marketers understand this emerging field, we first document the rise of virtual influencers. Next, we discuss consumer reactions to virtual influencers before unpacking their associated opportunities and challenges for brands and marketers. Finally, we conclude with an overview of implications and future considerations.
Purpose
Influencer marketing has emerged as a key strategy for brands to promote green products. The effectiveness of virtual influencers – a newer type of endorser – for these products remains unclear. This study aims to compare the effectiveness of virtual and human influencers in promoting green products and to uncover the key mechanisms that drive their influence.
Design/methodology/approach
In this research, the hypotheses were examined across three experimental studies. Study 1 initially investigated the effectiveness of virtual influencers in endorsing green products. Study 2 identified perceived altruistic motivation and perceived congruence of product and influencer as key mechanisms. Study 3 explored the moderating effect of language type (rational vs emotional).
Findings
The findings indicate that virtual influencers are generally less effective than human influencers in promoting green products, largely due to lower perceived altruistic motivation and congruence. Yet, using rational language in promotional posts can enhance the effectiveness of virtual influencers in endorsing these products.
Originality/value
This study combines the mind perception theory with the match-up hypothesis to explore the intrinsic mechanisms of perceived altruistic motivation and congruence, specifically from an emotional perspective, based on the unique attributes of virtual influencers and green products. These insights guide brands in selecting suitable endorsers for green products in the context of increasing environmental awareness and digitalization.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) influencers, also known as virtual influencers, are revolutionizing marketing communication by leveraging AI technologies like machine learning and natural language processing. These digital personas simulate human characteristics and behaviors, allowing them to create content, interact with followers, and promote brands consistently and without the unpredictability associated with human influencers. AI influencers have the advantage of scalability and 24/7 engagement, reaching diverse audiences across multiple platforms. They offer cost-efficiency in the long run despite the initial investment and maintenance costs. However, they also present challenges related to authenticity, transparency, and ethical considerations. The use of AI influencers raises questions about the genuineness of their interactions, the potential for perpetuating biases, and the need for clear disclosure of their artificial nature.
The paper delves into the new phenomenon of virtual influencers, investigating their rise, impact, and implications for contemporary society. The study aims to determine whether computer-generated influencers can effectively advertise products through social media accounts. The paper describes the concept of influencer marketing in the context of digital marketing. It aims to explain the phenomenon of virtual influencers, i.e., computer-generated characters and their profiles presented on social media. Finally, the results of quantitative and qualitative analyses are presented.
Purpose
This paper aims to the intricate relationship between digital influencers (DIs) and their followers, aiming to develop a comprehensive framework that explains how influence works in the digital world. It focuses on understanding the cultural aspects that shape these relationships in today’s global and digital marketplace.
Design/methodology/approach
This study employs a holistic methodology, intertwining historical, cultural and theoretical insights to decode the DI phenomenon. Applying a Grounded Theory approach, this paper coded articles into categories, developed abstract concepts and refined them through cycles of literature collection and analysis that allowed identifing gaps in the Influencer Marketing field. This comprehensive review and inductive analysis of globalization, mediated communication and digital interactions aim to unravel the intricacies of digital and virtual influence. This paper’s theoretical development advances propositions that dissect the facets influencing digital adoption, usage, interest and value perception, leading to a detailed model of digital influence grounded in both theory and real-world examples.
Findings
This research uncovers the significant impact DIs have, driven by global connections and the way we communicate in the digital age. Historical context situates DIs within the broader narrative of mediated persuasive communication. A preliminary typology of DIs and influence contexts forms the foundation for further exploration.
Research limitations/implications
This study enhances the discussion around DIs by considering the influence of technology and culture together. It draws from the thoughts of leading thinkers on how technology connects us, providing a strong foundation for future studies.
Practical implications
As digital influence and the surrounding technology continue to change, it’s important to think critically about these trends. This research offers valuable insights for businesses looking to navigate the digital landscape effectively, helping them make better strategic decisions about their online presence.
Originality/value
This study breaks new ground by offering a detailed categorization of DIs and proposing a fresh way to understand their role. It links important ideas from the past about persuasion through media to the current state of digital influence, offering insights into how digital trends might affect communication strategies.
The growth of the influencer marketing industry warrants an empirical examination of the effect of posting sponsored videos on influencers’ reputations. We collected a novel data set of user-generated YouTube videos created by prominent English-speaking influencers in the beauty and style category. We extracted a rich set of theory-driven video features and used DiNardo-Fortin-Lemieux reweighting to construct comparable treatment and control groups matched at the influencer-video level. The empirical analysis of the matched sample revealed a reputation-burning effect; that is, posting a sponsored video, compared with posting an equivalent organic video, cost the influencers 0.19% of their reputation (operationalized as the number of subscribers). The reputation-burning effect was stronger among the influencers with larger audiences. An analysis of likes, comments, and comment texts revealed a larger gap in audience response between sponsored and organic videos among the influencers with larger (versus smaller) audiences. The reputation-burning effect was mitigated when a high fit existed between the sponsored content and the influencer’s “usual” content and when the promoted brand was less well known. Our study empirically tested the assumption of several theoretical works. Moreover, it contributes to the literature on influencer marketing and celebrity endorsements and provides managerial implications for influencers, brands, and social media platforms.
This paper was accepted by D. J. Wu, information systems.
Funding: This research was supported by funding provided by Harvard Business School.
Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.00193 .
As the use of AI-powered virtual influencers flourishes in the marketing world, it is unclear how effective these influencers are as advocates for social causes. Through four pre-registered experiments, this study compares the impacts of human and virtual influencers in social advocacy, delineating the mechanisms driving their effectiveness and identifying potential boundary conditions that might influence their relative impact. Specifically, it investigates the perceived authenticity of human versus virtual influencers and how it affects digital activism and altruistic motives. In addition, the study assesses whether the unique characteristics of virtual influencers, such as novelty and autonomy, can counterbalance their perceived deficits in authenticity and egoistic motives to potentially amplify their advocacy effectiveness. The findings suggest that the advantages of virtual influencers in commercial marketing do not necessarily translate to, or enhance their role in, advocacy for social causes. By considering the impact of egoistic motives, this study takes a novel perspective to expand the conceptualization of authenticity in influencer social advocacy. It thus calls for a strategic reevaluation of how virtual influencers are utilized in cause advocacy initiatives. The study makes a significant contribution to the ongoing dialogue on the role of influencers in catalyzing digital activism, offering insights for optimizing influencer engagement in social causes.
The existing literature examines VIs' utilitarian, personal, and relational traits, but a gap exists in interface design understanding. This study employs avatar marketing and ambivalence theories to explore how VIs' design elements (VI's varying form realism and behavioral realism design) induce ambivalent emotions (eeriness and coolness) and impact VI marketing performance (follow and purchase intentions). Two experimental studies were conducted, using ANCOVA, multiple regression, and PROCESS macro analyses. In Study 1, utilizing contemporary VIs from the market, it was revealed that a VI exhibiting mid (vs. low) form realism triggered heightened perceptions of both eeriness and coolness, with these effects being magnified under the condition of high (vs. low) behavioral realism. In Study 2, using VIs generated through the StyleGAN AI technique, it was validated that those with high (vs. low) form realism were associated with decreased perceptions of eeriness and increased coolness, particularly when combined with high (vs. low) behavioral realism. Additionally, our findings emphasized the negative impact of eeriness and the positive influence of coolness on VI performance outcomes. In summary, our study reveals the significant role of VI interface designs in VI marketing performance, highlighting consumers' mixed emotions as crucial mediators in this context. Additionally, our findings highlight the negative impact of eeriness and the positive influence of coolness on VI performance. Its primary contribution is uncovering VIs' interface designs as significant factors in VI marketing performance, while recognizing con-sumers' ambivalent emotions as vital mediators in this relationship.
Using Influencer Marketing as a Digital Business Strategy presents a comprehensive exploration of the burgeoning world of digital influencers, whose impact on consumer behavior and brand promotion is rapidly transforming the marketing landscape. This book delves into the most relevant topics in the field, providing a valuable contribution to both management and academia alike.
The book delves into the essence of influencer marketing by examining the different types of influencers and their crucial role in reaching a brand's target audience. The strategic partnership between influencers and brands is analyzed, highlighting how these influential content creators act as powerful intermediaries between companies and potential consumers. By examining the intricate relationship between influencers, brands, and consumers, the book sheds light on the purchase intention process and consumer habits in the digital age.
Furthermore, Using Influencer Marketing as a Digital Business Strategy examines the diverse range of content that resonates with the public, as different influencers adopt unique styles to engage their followers. It analyzes the metrics of influencer marketing, offering valuable insights into measuring the impact and effectiveness of influencer-driven campaigns. It also explores the roles of both organic and paid influencers, delving into the nuances of collaborating with influencers across various sectors of the economy.
Given the recent emergence of influencer marketing as a prominent force, this book serves as a critical reference source for researchers, business executives, marketing professionals, influencer marketing agencies, and graduate students seeking to expand their understanding of this dynamic field. By presenting a compilation of studies on this topic, the book lays the groundwork for future in-depth and specific scientific research in the realm of influencer marketing.
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the rising trend of virtual influencers – digitally created characters with human-like attributes. It aims to evaluate and compare their effectiveness with human influencers in terms of brand attitudes and purchase intentions. It uncovers the mechanisms underlying the differences in effectiveness observed between virtual influencers and their human counterparts.
Design/methodology/approach
The research uses a 2 (influencer type: human vs virtual) × 3 (product type: functional vs symbolic vs experiential) between-subjects design. Through a pilot study ( n = 334) and a main study ( n = 352), the research examines the interactive effects of influencer and product type on brand attitude and purchase intentions. Hypotheses were developed and tested using moderating mediation models centered on authenticity and product–endorser fit.
Findings
Virtual influencers are perceived as less authentic than human influencers across all product types, negatively influencing brand attitude and purchase intention. However, the extent to which influencer type affects brand attitudes and purchase intentions, mediated by product–endorser fit, varies based on the product type.
Originality/value
This research emphasizes two key mechanisms – authenticity and product–endorser fit – influencing the effectiveness of virtual influencers. It suggests that aligning virtual influencers with suitable product types can offset their perceived authenticity deficit, significantly affecting their endorsement effectiveness.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to identify the process of virtual influencer stickiness in the age of influencer marketing, which has received little attention in the literature. This is essential because the research creates a theoretical model of follower loyalty/stickiness to virtual influencer techniques from the standpoint of influencer marketing, which has a substantial effect on the evolution of the global marketing world.
Design/methodology/approach
In 2022, 302 people who currently follow an Instafamous virtual influencer took part in an Instagram self-administered online survey.
Findings
The findings show that both expertise and trustworthiness have a positive and significant influence on parasocial interaction, which in turn has a significant influence on virtual engagement and stickiness.
Originality/value
This research will specifically assist international readers in understanding how to harness and increase the efficiency and efficacy of interactive marketing strategies and methods to engage and retain followers of Instafamous virtual influencer. Moreover, the findings will be beneficial to opinion leaders, brand managers, company investors, entrepreneurs and service designers.
Highlights
The study pioneers a holistic virtual follower stickiness mechanism that comprises the role of source credibility, parasocial interaction, informational influence and virtual follower’s engagement and their interrelationship to each other.
This study is based on parasocial interaction theory and source credibility theory to understand the relationship between virtual followers and influencers stickiness process at social media platforms.
In addition, the study examined the subsequent effects of sources of credibility components on parasocial interaction; as well as, on virtual follower engagement and stickiness.
This study also categorized and examined the moderating effects exerted by the genres of informative influence of virtual influencer.
Over the last two decades, the rise of social media platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok has sparked a global shift in commercial practices worldwide. People are exposed to and influenced by massive amounts of commercial content carefully and strategically integrated into these platforms’ social content. In addition, due to network structures, people’s engagement in the form of likes, comments, and simply viewing content results in the influence of people within and outside their network. In this study, we adopt a sociotechnical perspective and study the interplay between social and technical components in how influence is exercised on social media. Specifically, we identify the actors involved in the influence of commercial content and analyse how they exercise their influence for commercial purposes. Based on our findings and analysis, we present three contributions to Information systems literature: (1) how people have become unconsciously influential in spreading commercial content, which is the premise for social media commercial success, (2) how people’s social and commercial lives and contents are increasingly intertwined and (3) how this interweaving effect removes peoples’ ability to reflect on the content they engage with critically. Our study draws attention to the societal outcomes caused by technologies in practice.
In today's technology-driven landscape, the internet and social media have seamlessly woven themselves into the fabric of both brands and consumers' lives. Among the arsenal of modern marketing strategies, influencer marketing has emerged as a formidable force. It bestows organisations the privilege of accessing extensive and dedicated online influencers and co-creation as a technique, making it one of the most potent tools in their marketing toolkit. This chapter focuses on the intricate art of how brands strategically harness the power of social media platforms and influencers to extend their reach far and wide, aiming to connect with as many consumers as possible. By forging these connections, brands aspire to cultivate a devoted and unwavering fan base, fostering long-term customer loyalty.
Virtual influencers (VI) are fictional entities operated by third parties (freelance creators, digital agencies, or brands). Despite their increasing popularity, the way people approach these often human-looking yet entirely fictitious creations, and whether they view them as 'authentic', remains unclear. Existing conceptualizations of authenticity in the VI literature do not offer sufficient depth and richness to understand this complex phenomenon. Building on the Entity-Referent Correspondence Framework of Authenticity, this paper aims to explore different manifestations of authenticity in the context of VIs. We draw on interviews with consumers (64) and industry experts (11) to unveil different perspectives. Our findings demonstrate how the three types of authenticity-true-to-ideal (TTI), true-to-fact (TTF) and true-to-self (TTS)-apply to and manifest in a virtual influencer context. We conclude with theoretical contributions, with particular attention to the uncanny valley theory, managerial recommendations, and areas for future research.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize virtual influencer marketing, outlining the opportunities and dangers associated with using virtual influencers in social media marketing communications.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on the literature addressing influencer marketing and interactions between consumers and technologies, this paper introduces the landscape of virtual influencer marketing.
Findings
This paper distinguishes virtual influencers from real-life influencers and related digital characters. It further defines four unique elements attributed to virtual influencers: customization, flexibility, ownership and automation. Finally, it introduces a taxonomy for virtual influencers.
Research limitations/implications
The conceptualization of virtual influencer marketing contributes to advancing the understanding of the (virtual) influencer marketing landscape.
Practical implications
This paper suggests that brands need to carefully evaluate the different characteristics of virtual influencers, when deciding to leverage them in social media marketing communications. It also provides guidelines for working with virtual influencers in marketing campaigns targeted at consumers.
Social implications
This paper discusses ethical and social implications for brands and consumers that interact with virtual influencers in the encounter between reality and virtuality.
Originality/value
This paper makes three contributions. First, it conceptualizes virtual influencer marketing by defining and critically evaluating the key characteristics attributed to virtual influencers. Second, it offers a 2 × 2 taxonomy of virtual influencers, grounded in research on anthropomorphism and reality–virtuality. Third, this paper reflects on the opportunities and dangers associated with virtual influencer marketing, outlining avenues for future research.
Social media advertising strategies, including using traditional celebrity endorsers and micro-celebrity influencers, are prevalent marketing tools. However, the trend of using virtual influencers to endorse products is a novel potential way to attract young consumers. This present study aims to analyze the influence of the three types of endorsers (traditional celebrity, micro-celebrity, and virtual influencers) source credibility (i.e., physical attractiveness, expertise, and trustworthiness) on the purchase intention of the Chinese Generation Z, under varying levels of product involvement, through the mediating effect of emotional attachment. The Hayes Process Macro was used as a statistical analysis tool for our research propositions. Overall, our findings highlight the effectiveness of attachment theory in social media endorsement advertisements. Furthermore, these findings can guide marketers, who desire to respond to the purchase trends of Generation Z, to adjust their marketing strategies accordingly.
The fourth industrial revolution has fundamentally altered the way we live, and social media has become a crucial channel for the promotion of brands through influencers. This study explored the relationship between a virtual influencer's attractiveness and a consumer's purchase intention, the mediating effect of mimetic desire and brand attachment, as well as the moderating effect of the product–endorser fit with the brand. An online survey of 364 female Instagram users was developed using confirmatory factor analysis and PROCESS macro models 4 and 59. The findings revealed that virtual influencers' attractiveness was not directly associated with purchase intention; however, mimetic desire and brand attachment mediated this relationship. Additionally, the conditional direct effect of virtual influencers' attractiveness on purchase intention was partially supported while indirect effects via mimetic desire and brand attachment were moderated by the product–endorser fit. This study makes important contributions to source attractiveness model literature through emphasis on the role of virtual influencers in enhancing customers' favorable perceptions toward advertisements, which in turn leads to greater purchase intention. It also suggests managerial implications for marketers, including the finding that a good product–endorser match is a crucial factor in determining the effectiveness of advertisements.
In the current age of emerging technologies and big data, transparency has become an important issue for technology users and online consumers. However, there is a lack of consensus on what constitutes transparency across domains of research, not to mention transparency guidelines for designers and marketers. In this review, we explored the question of what transparency means in current research and practices by reviewing the literature in three domains: persuasive technology, immersive technology and online marketing. Literature reviewed, including both empirical research and position articles, covered multidisciplinary areas including computer science and information technology, psychology, healthcare, human computer interaction, business and management, law and public health. In this paper, we summarized our findings through a framework of transparency and provided insights into the different aspects of transparency, categorized into ten themes (i.e., Organizational Transparency, Information Transparency, Transparency of System Design, Data Privacy and Informed Consent, Transparency of Online Advertising, Potential Risks, User Autonomy, Informed Decision Making, Information Visualization, Personalization and User-centered design) along three dimensions (i.e., Types of transparency, Impact on User and Potential Solutions). Addressing aspects of transparency will facilitate users’ autonomy and contribute to their informed decision making.