Beauty by influence: how micro- and celebrity influencers shape brand trust and purchase intention for K-Beauty products in the U.S.
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2025-11-06
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Lourenço, Carlos Eduardo
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This study investigates how different types of influencers affect brand trust and purchase intention among U.S. consumers toward Korean beauty (K-Beauty) brands. Grounded in the Source Credibility Theory (Hovland, Janis & Kelley, 1953) and the Parasocial Interaction Theory (Horton & Wohl, 1956), the research observes how consumers’ perception of credibility and closeness to influencers shape their attitudes and decisions. In order to do that, a quantitative experiment was conducted with 154 U.S. participants, who were exposed to three stimuli: content by micro-influencers, by celebrity influencers, and product only (control group). The findings reveal that micro-influencers generate significantly higher levels of brand trust and purchase intention compared to celebrities and the control group. These results emphasize the importance of authenticity and perceived expertise in shaping consumer attitudes toward foreign brands. The study highlights that marketing strategies based on micro-influencers are more effective for the internationalization of K-Beauty brands and contributes to the understanding of how source credibility and parasocial relationships influence consumer behavior in cross-cultural contexts, offering practical implications for both marketing professionals and scholars in global influencer marketing.