Influencing The Influenced: How Trustworthiness, Expertise, And Attractiveness Shape Consumer Behavior In The Cosmetic Industry

Abstract

Social media revolutionized the way brands and consumers engage, and influencer marketing is a major aspect of how cosmetic firms market their products. This research examines how the credibility of influencers—such as how believable, competent, and attractive they are—influences what consumers purchase. The study uses purchase intent, or a person's probability of buying something, as the main intervening step between exposure to an influencer and purchase. The researchers invited 327 people in Indonesia who were exposed to social media influencer beauty content to take part in a survey. The researchers used a method known as Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) in data analysis. The findings reveal that influencer trustworthiness, expertise, and attractiveness all have considerable impacts on purchase intention, and further, purchase intention has considerable impact on actual buying behavior. Moreover, purchase intention plays a pivotal role in connecting how trustworthy and expert an influencer is with how much a consumer buys. These findings demonstrate how important it is.