Electronic Word of Mouth (eWOM) and Makeup Purchase Intention Among Gen-Z Females: The Serial Mediating Effect of Brand Image and Brand Integrity

Introduction

The growth of the global beauty industry has been astounding, with an estimated market value of almost $805 billion by the year 2023 (Cvetkovska, 2019). This can be attributed to the myriad makeup and cosmetic brands that produce and sell dozens of beauty products to consumers annually, using expert marketing communication and branding tactics. Numerous marketing strategies, including the utilization of sales promotions and brand communication, have been found to influence consumer responses towards brands, particularly in terms of their attitudes, purchase intention and loyalty (Krystallis & Chrysochou, 2014; Grace & O’Cass, 2005). Pasternak, Veloutsou and Morgan-Thomas (2017), identify electronic word of mouth (eWOM), as one of the prime means by which individuals communicate with each other and exchange information and opinions about different brands, products and services. EWOM refers to “any positive or negative statement made by potential, actual, or former customers about a product or company, which is made available to a multitude of people and institutions via the Internet” (Hennig-Thurau, Gwinner, Walsh & Gremler, 2004, p. 39). According to Appel, Grewal, Hadi and Stephen (2020), brand communication by this means is more effective in engaging consumers, since they consider it to be more trustworthy, authentic and helpful. Then again, extant literature suggests that eWOM has a positive relationship with brand-related outcomes such as brand image, brand integrity and purchase intentions or consumption behaviors (Ismagilova, Slade, Rana & Dwivedi, 2019; Baker, Donthu & Kumar, 2016).

Nonetheless, consumer responses to these forms of communication have been postulated in existing research to be significantly influenced by their age (Drolet, Williams & Loraine, 2007). For instance, younger generations of females such as Millennials (Generation Y) and Generation Z (Gen-Z), have been found to be more persuaded by brand communication that appeals to their emotions than those which appeal to their thoughts (Goodman, Morris & Sutherland, 2008). More so, Herrando, Jimenez-Martinez and Martin-De Hoyos (2019), found that Gen-Z consumers transfer trust to brands mainly from the trust that they repose in content posted and shared by other consumers online.

Thus, if a cosmetic brand is targeted at Gen-Z consumers, eWOM from other consumers should be taken into account (Saunter, Shin & WGSN Beauty & Insight, 2019). These findings on Gen-Z consumers are not unexpected. This is because Generation Z, also known as digital natives, centennials and post-millennials, are heavy users of technology, and love impermanence (Ng, Ho, Lim, Chong & Latiff, 2019; Southgate, 2017; Sparks & Honey, 2015). They also tend to be less receptive to digital advertisements on mobile and desktop devices but are drawn to eWOM generated through recommendations and referrals, ratings and reviews, as well as forums and virtual communities (Herrando et al., 2019; Southgate, 2017). However, these effects of eWOM are yet to be sufficiently explored among Gen-Z consumers, and also especially in the beauty industry, where eWOM has become very prominent through the diversity of reviews, forums and virtual communities (Appel et al., 2020; Herrando et al., 2019). Thus, though marketing researchers and practitioners have explored the effectiveness of marketing and advertising strategies among Gen-Z consumers across different sectors (Scholz, 2019; Haddouche & Salomone, 2018; Southgate, 2017), a dearth of literature on the impact of eWOM on their perceptions of brand image, brand trust dimensions and purchase intentions in the beauty industry has been noted (Duffet, 2017). Further, studies focusing on a specific gender of Gen-Z are also few (Michon, Chebat, Yu & Lemarié, 2015; Guthrie & Kim, 2009). Exploring specific generational cohorts in the beauty industry, especially young female consumers, offers marketers an opportunity to understand better the dynamics of brand perceptions in relation to consumer groups and specific cosmetic brands (Guthrie & Kim, 2009). In addition, marketers have been advised to consider the distinct roles of the dimensions of trust in consumer-brand relationships (Li, Xu, Zhou, Miniard & Yang, 2011). The authors established that brand integrity tends to have a more significant effect on consumers who have a low propensity to trust. As Gen-Z consumers love impermanence and primarily tread cautiously in digital waters (Sparks and Honey, 2015), examining how eWOM influences brand integrity, brand image and purchase intentions among them, constitutes a vital knowledge endeavor for marketing researchers.