Examining the Role of Trust between Beauty Influencers & Followers and its Impact on Sponsored Content in the Indian Landscape

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Rao, Malvika (2018) Examining the Role of Trust between Beauty Influencers & Followers and its Impact on Sponsored Content in the Indian Landscape. [Dissertation (University of Nottingham only)]

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Abstract

This research study investigates the key factors that lead to trust between beauty influencers and their followers. Alternatively, this study attempts to understand whether trust levels have any impact on how followers view sponsored content. With the beauty industry evolving rapidly due to the impact of digital channels, the role of social media influencers has significantly changed and the demand for authenticity and trustworthiness amongst consumers is on the rise. Therefore, this research study explores the role of trust in beauty influencers from the followers’ perspective. In order to answer the research questions, this study employed semi-structured interviews with ten women who actively follow beauty influencers on Instagram or YouTube or both. The study found that ultimately there were four key drivers that formed trust – expertise, shared attributes, insight into influencers’ personal lives and influencers’ overall personality. This study also suggests that deeper trust levels between influencers and followers do lead to higher acceptance of sponsored content posted by trusted influencers. In fact, the study also showed that some participants even gain interest in products or brands that are endorsed by influencers they trust. The findings of this study contribute to the literature on the Source Credibility Model, Parasocial Interactions, Persuasion Knowledge Model with reference to Sponsored content to name a few. The outcomes of this study can be leveraged by brand managers who are looking to collaborate with beauty influencers and want to create content that is accepted and has an impact on their customers.

Item Type: Dissertation (University of Nottingham only)
Depositing User: Rao, Malvika
Date Deposited: 28 Nov 2022 14:44
Last Modified: 28 Nov 2022 14:44
URI: https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/id/eprint/55146

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