Virtual influencers: Definition and future research directions

Alice Audrezet, Bernadett Koles, Julie Guidry Moulard, Nisreen Ameen and Brad McKenna

Journal of Business Research, 2025, vol. 200, issue C

Abstract: This editorial introduces the special issue ‘Virtual Influencers: A New Frontier in Marketing and Consumer Research,’ providing a comprehensive overview of the emerging role of virtual influencers in shaping contemporary marketing practices. Virtual influencers, digital personas created through AI and computer-generated imagery, are increasingly adopted by brands due to their scalability, adaptability, and perceived safety. The editorial defines virtual influencers, synthesizes insights from 16 contributing papers, and identifies three thematic areas: comparisons between human and virtual influencers, the influence of virtual influencer characteristics on consumer engagement, and the broader societal and ethical implications of virtual influencers. It also highlights future research directions, including the rise of autonomous virtual influencers, cross-media virtual influencer expansion, and their role in promoting inclusivity and social change. By bridging marketing, technology, and society, this editorial positions virtual influencers as critical agents of transformation in the evolving influence economy, calling for continued interdisciplinary research to shape their responsible development.

Keywords: Virtual influencer; Influencer marketing; Virtual humans; AI influencers; Avatars; Computer-generated imagery (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0148296325004709
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:200:y:2025:i:c:s0148296325004709

DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115647

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Business Research is currently edited by A. G. Woodside

More articles in Journal of Business Research from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().