Elmira Djafarova, Jade Davies
This study compares the impact of TikTok virtual influencers with their human counterparts on purchase intentions of recommended fashion/beauty products. A mixed-method approach combined quantitative and qualitative data, involving a survey investigating influence over purchase decisions, trustworthiness and expertise of human and virtual influencers, and qualitative content analysis of video content across two fashion campaigns exploring expertise/trustworthiness, uncanny valley effect, messaging similarity, appeal, parasocial interactions and content quality. Findings showed that human influencers were superior in terms of influence over purchase intentions, trustworthiness, and expertise. Virtual influencers demonstrated potential for expertise and trustworthiness despite most participants having a negative perception.