• Smart Media Journal
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• v.12 no.11
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• pp.86-94
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• 2023

In recent years, advertisements and brand promotions using virtual influencer have been actively conducted, and this study focused on the characteristics of virtual influencer, including Attractiveness, to examine the Attractiveness of virtual influencer through previous studies and to test the hypothesis that Attractiveness has an effect on Brand attitude and Advertising attitude when mediated by Immersion. For this purpose, data were collected from university students who experienced marketing contents using virtual influencer, and Process macro was conducted to analyse the mediating effect. The results showed that virtual influencer Attractiveness partially mediated the relationship between Brand attitude and Advertising attitude. These results suggest that virtual influencer Attractiveness not only affects Brand attitude and Advertising attitude, but also positively increases consumer attitude when mediated by Immersion. This study has both academic and practical implications by examining the mediating effect of Immersion on the effect of virtual influencer Attractiveness on consumer attitudes.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.309-314
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to examine how the characteristics of virtual influencer, which are rapidly emerging in recent years, affect consumers. To this end, the change in information accecptance intention was examined using the perceived attractiveness and social distance of consumers toward virtual influencers as independent variables. I found the more attractive consumers feel about virtual influencer and the closer they perceive social distance, the higher the intention to accept information. However, when virtual influencer was perceived as attractive, there was no difference in information acceptance intention according to social distance. On the other side, even if the virtual influencer was perceived as less attractive, the information acceptance intention was higher when the social distance was perceived as close than when it was not. Based on these results, I provided implications for the marketing strategy of virtual influencers.

• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.59-70
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• 2022

Recently, in platforms such as YouTube and Instagram, virtual characters resembling human life become the main characters, produce various contents, breathe with the public, and create the era of virtual humans. For example, existing game characters appear as virtual characters with unique AUs, or AI characters created by reflecting the public's preferences are actively communicating with the public through advertisements and SNS activities. As the consumption of video content through smart devices increases significantly in the post-corona era, virtual influencers are being used as all-round entertainers because there is little risk of personality controversy or production cost. there is a trend In this study, we investigated the characteristics of the case of being active as an influencer among the activities of a virtual character, and how the interactive aspect of the influencer appears by identifying the current situation through major cases. Combining this, based on the analysis of the influence of virtual influencers, the parts that producers should recognize are derived, and the differentiated characteristics of interactive virtual influencers are summarized. In addition, the difficulties of virtual influencers were investigated and problems were identified, and for the development of the content industry, a more favorable method for interaction was presented and suggestions were made to secure inner sincerity.

• 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.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.141-152
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• 2022

Purpose - This study attempts to explore the factors that affect the consumer's response to the influencer's "backdoor advertisement" which has been a social media controversy recently. Accordingly, this study focuses on the importance of the information source's characteristics in influencer marketing, and demonstrates the impact of influencer credibility, attractiveness, and expertise on consumer responses after the influencer's sponsorship controversy. Design/methodology/approach - To this end, a study was conducted on adults who subscribed to one or more channels of influencers, and a virtual newspaper article was used in the survey. 196 sample data were collected and SPSS PROCESS Macro was used for data analysis. Findings - As a result, there was a negative impact on the credibility of the influencer which carried over to a negative reception of their shared content, while the attractiveness of the influencer had a positive impact on the reception of their shared content, even after the controversy over the influencer's backdoor advertisement. Research implications or Originality - This study contributes to the expansion of research on influencer marketing. Also, it provides insight into understanding and interpreting the phenomenon of influencers' backdoor advertisements and consumer reactions.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.1-14
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• 2024

Virtual influencers, who are emerging as new players in digital marketing, impact consumers' purchase intentions. They promote positive perceptions and mimetic consumption of specific brands or products through interactions with followers. Therefore, this study aims to examine the effect of the characteristics of virtual influencers on the purchase intention for fashion products through the consumers' mimetic desire. As characteristics of virtual influencers, five factors were set: reality, attractiveness, professionalism, trustworthiness, and curiosity. Data for analysis were collected through an online questionnaire from the 8th to the 15th of August 2023, and 268 data points in total were analyzed using SPSS and Process Macro 4.3. The results of the study showed that the characteristics of virtual influencers all positively affected mimetic desire and purchase intention for fashion products. Moreover, it was found that mimetic desire has a mediating effect between the five characteristics of virtual influencers and the purchase intention for fashion products. Mimetic desire fully mediates the relationship between reality and the intention to purchase fashion products, and partially mediates the relationship between attractiveness, professionalism, trustworthiness, and curiosity and the purchase intention for fashion products. These findings further enhance the understanding of the relationship between virtual influencers and consumer behavior and identify the relationship between virtual influencers, mimetic desire, and fashion product purchase intentions. Consequently, leveraging virtual influencers strategically in digital marketing, the fashion industry can amplify positive brand perceptions, drive consumer engagement, and ultimately foster increased purchase intent.

• The Journal of Information Systems
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.75-100
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• 2022

Purpose Recently, hyper-realistic virtual influencers have received much attention in the field of corporate marketing. However, there is a lack of research that suggests specific processes affecting behavioral intentions through trust and attachment between virtual influencers and consumers. In addition, previous studies have failed to consider the characteristics of hyper-realistic virtual influencers. Therefore, this study investigates the effects of trust and attachment to hyper-realistic virtual influencers on consumers' behavioral intentions based on the trust-building model. Design/methodology/approach Based on the previous research, seven antecedent factors for trust-building were derived: Reality, Attractiveness, Awareness, Interactivity, Professionalism, Social Presence, and Predictability. Next, the survey was conducted on Chinese people who had experienced interacting with hyper-realistic virtual influencers on social network services within the last 3 months at the time of data collection. A total of 326 respondents were used for the final analysis and hypotheses were tested using a structural equation model technique. Findings The results of this study are as follows. First, this study confirmed that reality, attractiveness, awareness, social presence, and predictability as antecedent factors for trust-building of hyper-realistic virtual influencers have a positive effect on trust. Second, this study confirmed that trust in hyper-realistic virtual influencers has a significant positive effect on attachment. Lastly, this study confirmed that trust and attachment to the hyper-realistic virtual influencer significantly and positively affect relationship retention and purchase intentions.

• The Journal of Information Systems
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.23-51
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• 2023

Purpose: Live commerce is a new type of electronic commerce in combination with live streaming services. It is expected to increase virtual presence in the context of online shopping by overcoming a lack of social interactions between sellers and buyers which have been raised as a limitation in electronic commerce. Drawing on the studies of communication media, this study examines how live commerce contributes to the increase of virtual presence which consists of telepresence and social presence. Telepresence refers to a buyer's perception that he or she is present at the physical shopping mall during live shopping streaming whereas social presence refers to a buyer's perception of social interaction with a seller which is human warm, social, sensitive, and personal. In this study, we verify key determinants of virtual presence and its consequences. More specifically, this study proposes virtual presence contributes to the increase of buyers' trust in products and further purchase intentions. Furthermore, we verify influential factors of virtual presence from the technical and influencer perspectives of live commerce. Design/methodology/approach: To test the proposed hypotheses, the partial least squares (PLS) analysis is conducted with a total of 250 data collected on users with experience in the TaoBao live streaming shopping platform. Findings: The results show that first, telepresence and social presence are increased by visibility, media richness and attractiveness in the context of live shopping streaming. Second, buyers' trust in product trust and purchase intentions are positively influenced by telepresence and social presence. Finally, buyers' trust in product has a direct, positve effect on their purchase intentions. Overall, the findings offer new insights into the studies of electronic commerce by introducting the concepts of virtual presence and media richness from the literature of communication media in the field of live commerce.

• International Journal of Advanced Culture Technology
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.152-161
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• 2023

Modern people live a life connected with the real world and the virtual world by relying on the new media of enterprises and social consumption led by innovative technologies. In this environment, virtual influencers actively communicate with consumers and build relationships through social media, which is a new marketing tool that has attracted widespread attention. From a business perspective, it is necessary to have a solid understanding of this phenomenon, and then explore communication strategies to effectively develop virtual influencers. To investigate followers' preference for virtual influencers, this study employs the Q-method, which studies human subjective attributes, an empirical research effort to uncover complex issues in human subjectivity. To determine the factors that trigger people's voluntary and active practice and the preference degree of virtual influencers, the Q method is implemented to examine human subjectivity, thoughts and attitudes. According to the results of this study, virtual influencers are a new group of idols full of vitality. The interviews found that there are still many virtual influencers who do not know about followers, but each type can be clearly understood through the intuitive understanding of the interviewees. Divided out, type 1 one egoideal virtual influencers aim to represent an idealized version of the creator or target audience. Embodies ideal physical characteristics, personality or lifestyle desired by the audience. Type 2 is charismatic and attractive, and has the characteristics of most virtual influencers. It is suggested that it can be developed into a potential type, doing brand cooperation, and content production on social media platforms. Type 3: Game animation, derived from the image of characters in games or comics, with stylized features and energetic personalities, which can be integrated into games or entertainment experiences. Type 4 development potential type is the most successful type among virtual imagers, and it is also the purpose of marketing virtual influencers. It is essential that brand endorsement on social media platforms, integrated marketing, and driving advertising traffic. It is recommended to improve production technology to reduce investment costs.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.873-890
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• 2023

This study analyzed users' emotional responses to VI character design through YouTube comments. The researchers applied text-mining to analyze 116,375 comments, focusing on terms related to character design and characteristics of VI. Using the BERT model in sentiment analysis, we classified comments into extremely negative, negative, neutral, positive, or extremely positive sentiments. Next, we conducted a co-occurrence frequency analysis on comments with extremely negative and extremely positive responses to examine the semantic relationships between character design and emotional characteristic terms. We also performed a content analysis of comments about Miquela and Shudu to analyze the perception differences regarding the two character designs. The results indicate that form elements (e.g., voice, face, and skin) and behavioral elements (e.g., speaking, interviewing, and reacting) are vital in eliciting users' emotional responses. Notably, in the negative responses, users focused on the humanization aspect of voice and the authenticity aspect of behavior in speaking, interviewing, and reacting. Furthermore, we found differences in the character design elements and characteristics that users expect based on the VI's field of activity. As a result, this study suggests applications to character design to accommodate these variations.