• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.1-16
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• 2019

This study explores the effect of hashtag type on consumer response via evaluations of SNS fashion influencer and information in the context of fashion product communication. The moderating effect of perceived fit between hashtag content and fashion product image on information evaluation was also investigated. An online survey was conducted, and responses from 152 Instagram users were collected. The results indicated that hashtag type (informative vs storytelling) affects the evaluations of influencer and information. First, the informative hashtag has a positive effect on influencer's expertise and usefulness of information. Meanwhile, storytelling type has a positive effect on the familiarity of the influencer. This study also verified the mediated paths from hashtag type to consumer response through the evaluations of SNS fashion influencer and information. The influencer's expertise and familiarity mediated the effect of hashtag type on consumer response. In the information evaluation, only the mediating effect of usefulness was significant. Finally, the high condition of the perceived fit between hashtag content and fashion product image was found to highly evaluate the trust of information. This study extends the scope of fashion communication research from various angles by examining the role of the hashtag as a new type of information source.

• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.149-162
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• 2021

Nowadays, the cosmetic and fashion industries are paying attention to influencer marketing on Instagram. In this study, we determined whether electronic word of mouth (e-WOM) communications were affected by the following parameters: the influencer's information source, message sidedness, and consumer's regulatory focus. The experimental design of this study is a three-way mixed ANOVA, which comprises of 2 (influencer information source: expert vs general consumer) × 2 (message sidedness: two-sided message vs one-sided message) × 2 (consumer regulatory focus: promotion focus vs prevention focus) structure. The data for this research study was obtained by distributing a questionnaire to 410 subjects. The participants were aged between 20 and 39 years and lived in Seoul and Gyeonggi areas. In total, the data of 396 subjects was analyzed with the help of SPSS 25.0 statistical program: frequency analysis, reliability analysis, t-test, three-way ANOVA, and simple main effect analysis were performed. The analysis results were as follows: First, influencer information sources and consumer regulatory focus exhibited a significant interaction with consumers' e-WOM intentions. Second, message sidedness and consumer's regulatory focus exhibited a significant interaction with e-WOM intentions. Third, influencer information source and message sidedness exhibited a significant interaction with consumers' e-WOM intentions. Based on these findings, the type of influencer's information source and the consumer's regulatory focus was taken into consideration while marketing cosmetics on Instagram. Moreover, influencer marketing strategies must be used to evaluate message sidedness. This would help us gauge the consumer's attitude towards advertisements.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.200-211
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• 2021

This study examines the effects of fashion influencers' body types (realistic versus ideal body types) on self-expression, self-representation, and recommendation intentions, as mediated by familiarity toward influencers. Although fashion influencers lead to a positive consumer response compared to traditional advertisements, previous research on the effects of fashion influencers on consumers is limited. Thus, this study tests the role of consumers' socio-psychological aspects in understanding how and why fashion influencers affect consumers' behavioral intentions associated with self-expression, self-representation, and influencer recommendation. A total of 180 women in their 20s and 30s participated in the survey. The responses were collected after showing them stimuli featuring fashion influencers with either ideal or realistic body shapes. The data were analyzed using SPSS18.0 for descriptive statistics, and AMOS 18.0 for confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. The results showed that participants who were shown realistic body types perceived familiarity, which generated positive effects on self-expression, self-representation, and recommendation intentions. Hence, the effects of influencers' body types on recommendation intention are mediated by familiarity. Self-expression and self-representation intentions also increase influencer recommendation intention. Comparatively, participants who were shown ideal body types only induced higher self-representation intention, which increased their recommendation intention. The current findings can help fashion marketers select the appropriate influencers who fit their target customers as promotional models, as well as to induce changes in consumers' behavioral intention.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.27-35
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• 2019

Fashion Influencer of Instagram get a lot of attention from the public, and they play a major role in shaping peoples' taste. This study attempts to analyze the fashion design of fashion influencer in Instagram. The data was collected from Apr. 15th to April 30th, 2017, and the pictures were collected from May, 2016 to April, 2017. Total of 460 pictures were collected based on the number of "likes". The method of study was content analysis and the cross tabulation analysis and frequency using SPSS Statics 24 Based on the above results, influencers were mostly models that have many "likes" on their photos. Many of influencers were wearing black, white, or blue dresses that do not have any patterns. Many others were wearing indigo, black, or white jeans with T-shirts. In summary of the above contents, influencer also found out that the materials of their clothes were both hard and soft, and that the casual style was the most popular among influencer, and that influencer also liked elegant, modern, mannish, or sexy looks. Therefore, through this study, it was found that the fashion design of influencer had a unique fashion image. Gigi Hadid, Kendall Jenner, and Blake Lively are the representative influencers of fashion instagram. Gigi Hadid was a casual and manish image, Kendall Jenner was a casual and sexy image, and Blake Lively was an elegant image.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.282-299
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• 2024

This study aimed to examine the impact of virtual influencers' characteristics on purchase intentions through attitudes toward the influencer and the brand, and to identify which factors are important depending on involvement. We used a scenario-based online survey of 320 female consumers in their twenties and thirties, and analyzed their responses through structural equation modeling using AMOS 21.0. Virtual influencers' attractiveness, reliability, familiarity, and virtuality had significant effects on consumers' attitudes toward those influencers, while their attractiveness, familiarity, and virtuality had significant effects on consumers' brand attitudes. Notably, in contrast to the other variables, virtuality had a negative effect. In addition, consumers' attitudes toward the virtual influencer significantly affected their brand attitudes and purchase intentions. We also analyzed which characteristics had significant impacts on high- and low-involvement groups. We found that reliability had the greatest influence on purchase intentions in the high-involvement group and that familiarity had the greatest influence on purchase intentions in the low-involvement group, which confirmed that the variables affecting purchase intentions differ depending on the level of involvement.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.21 no.10
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• pp.127-137
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• 2021

YouTube beauty content channels that utilize various topics and formats are undergoing quantitative and qualitative expansion. This study selected the top five channels represeting major domestic and foreign beauty brands, fashion magazines and beauty influencers through Statista and conducted a case study focusing on them. It will connect to a strategy for increasing beauty-related content by comparing content characteristics according to content producers. Also, it will help to reveal what types of content will be appealing more attractive to consumer. The result has shown that the growth of YouTube platforms has transformed passive consumers into new communicators by diversifying sources of product information. In addition, as content of different type was consumed by different producers, producer-oriented content was produced rather than objective journalistic gaze. Therefore, it was found that the delivery of 'brand values' that can strengthen the relationship between consumers and brands along with various entertainment elements that are effective for millennial in the future.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.777-792
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• 2018

As social media has become a part of daily life, new types of online opinion leaders are emerging, and in turn, changes in traditional fashion leaders and leadership are expected. Considering such changes, this study attempted to reexamine fashion leader types and influence characteristics from the perspective of college students as fashion followers. Students were asked to write an essay identifying their fashion leader and how and why they were influenced by him or her. Sixty essays entitled "My Fashion Leader" were collected and content-analyzed. A total of 78 fashion leaders were identified and categorized into four types including celebrities, social media influencers, friends/family/acquaintances, and people seen on the street in order of frequency. Influence characteristics of the identified fashion leaders included superiority, role model, similarity, and familiarity. Similarity was observed across all types of fashion leaders, while superiority and familiarity were identified for celebrities and friends/family/acquaintances, respectively. The results imply that celebrities, mostly those from the TV, movie, and music industries, are still important as fashion leaders in society regardless of their communication style, while friends/family/acquaintances as opinion leaders within a consumer group are important to provide information, advice, and help. However, social media influencers between the two groups are expanding the influence.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.719-730
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• 2022

This study explored the impact of beauty influencers' characteristics and product characteristics on new product acceptance intentions and studied the mediating effects of consumer trust in this process. A survey was conducted from February 22, 2021, to February 28, 2021, with Gen Y and Gen Z women in China, and 379 questionnaires were analyzed. The conclusions are as follows: First, the characteristics of beauty influencers are authenticity and expertise, similarity, attractiveness, interactivity, familiarity, and trustworthiness; product characteristics are cost, image, product quality, product perception, sales promotion, and sustainability. Second, partial beauty influencers' characteristics and partial product characteristics have a positive impact on consumer confidence and acceptance intention of the new product. Third, the mediating effect of consumer trust in the process by which beauty influencers' characteristics and product characteristics influence the intention of new product acceptance was determined. Therefore, when beauty companies use influencers in marketing, it is necessary to understand their characteristics, consider their professionality and authenticity, examine their reliability, and assess their ability to form connections with images and viewers that match their products. Additionally, to increase the acceptance intention of new products, companies should present the price of high-quality products, product sensibilities, and corporate images of products and establish measures that can positively affect consumers' acceptance intention of new products by combining them with the characteristics of beauty influencers.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.47 no.2
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• pp.295-310
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• 2023

The current virtual fashion influencers are a hyper-real prototype in that it has a higher presence than the virtual humans in the past. Also, they are leading fashion trend with more than tens of thousands of followers on social media. This study investigated the physical and social presence of virtual fashion influencer perceived by consumer and verified effects on evaluation attributes of influencers and the relationship maintenance behavior. A total of 321 Korean women in their 20s and 30s who have Instagram account participated in the online survey. The data was analyzed using AMOS 23.0. The results revealed that the physical presence had a significant impact on attractiveness of virtual fashion influencers. In case of social presence had a positive effect on friendliness and reliability of virtual fashion influencers. In addition, evaluation attributes of virtual fashion influencers' friendliness, attractiveness and reliability in the order of influence on relationship maintenance behavior. This study suggested that the development of social presence of virtual fashion influencers with friendliness and attractiveness is more important than the physical presence that has already reached a high level.

• Journal of the Korea Fashion and Costume Design Association
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.85-96
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• 2022

The MZ Generation likes watching YouTube videos produced by senior influencers despite the big age gap. In addition, the final goal of collaborative YouTube videos between senior influencers and brands is to increase sales. Accordingly, this study examined this interesting phenomenon and aimed to provide useful insights for creating YouTube videos targeting the MZ generation. This study was divided into two parts. Study 1 explored the viewers' perceived benefits by looking at the YouTube video comments of a senior fashion influencer, and then classified the perceived benefits into informational, psychological, and hedonic benefits. Study 2 analyzed the relationships among the viewers' perceived benefits (informational, psychological, hedonic benefits), attitude toward a brand, and behavior intention. Study 2 found that only informational benefits, among the three perceived benefits, enhanced attitudes toward a brand, thereby affecting behavior intention. Based on the results of two sub-studies, this study highlights the importance of informational benefits to maximize the marketing effects employing the collaborative YouTube videos of senior influencers and brands.