YouTube vloggers' popularity and influence: The roles of homophily, emotional attachment, and expertise

This study examines how homophily, emotional attachment, and credibility influence the popularity of a video blogger (hereinafter referred to as vlogger) and his/her viewers' purchase decision in the context of the beauty product industry. More specifically, the research investigates the effects of four dimensions of the homophily construct (i.e., attitude, value, background, and appearance), vlogger's expertise, and emotional attachment to the vlogger on his/her popularity. In turn, the vlogger's popularity influences viewers' purchase of recommended products. Data were collected online among a sample of 501 US women about beauty product vloggers. The results show that three dimensions of homophily (attitude, values, and appearance) have a significant effect on the vlogger's popularity. Emotional attachment has a significant effect whereas expertise has no significant effect. Vloggers' popularity has a significant effect on viewers' purchase of recommended beauty products. Overall, our findings highlight the role of homophily and emotional attachment for the study of vloggers' popularity.