PENGARUH VIRTUAL INFLUENCER DAN PARASOCIAL RELATIONSHIP TERHADAP LOYALITAS KONSUMEN PRODUK FASHION ZAHRA
Keywords:
virtual influencer, parasocial relationship, loyalitas konsumen, fashion, pemasaran digital.Abstract
Perkembangan pemasaran digital telah mendorong merek fashion untuk menggunakan figur digital, avatar, atau karakter berbasis kecerdasan buatan sebagai virtual influencer dalam membangun komunikasi yang lebih kreatif dengan konsumen. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis pengaruh virtual influencer dan parasocial relationship terhadap loyalitas konsumen Produk Fashion Zahra. Virtual influencer dipahami sebagai figur digital yang memiliki identitas, gaya komunikasi, daya tarik visual, kredibilitas, serta konsistensi konten yang mampu memengaruhi persepsi konsumen terhadap merek. Parasocial relationship merujuk pada ikatan psikologis satu arah yang dirasakan konsumen ketika mereka merasa dekat, akrab, dan terhubung secara emosional dengan figur digital yang mewakili merek. Loyalitas konsumen diukur melalui niat pembelian ulang, kesediaan merekomendasikan merek, preferensi terhadap merek, dan resistensi terhadap tawaran pesaing. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah kuantitatif dengan pendekatan asosiatif. Populasi penelitian adalah konsumen atau calon konsumen Fashion Zahra yang pernah melihat konten promosi Fashion Zahra melalui media sosial. Teknik pengambilan sampel menggunakan purposive sampling dengan contoh ukuran sampel 120 responden. Data dikumpulkan melalui kuesioner skala Likert dan dianalisis menggunakan uji validitas, reliabilitas, statistik deskriptif, uji asumsi klasik, regresi linear berganda, uji t, uji F, dan koefisien determinasi. Hasil analisis ilustratif menunjukkan bahwa virtual influencer berpengaruh positif dan signifikan terhadap loyalitas konsumen. Parasocial relationship juga berpengaruh positif dan signifikan terhadap loyalitas konsumen, bahkan memiliki koefisien pengaruh yang lebih besar. Secara simultan, kedua variabel mampu menjelaskan sebagian besar variasi loyalitas konsumen. Temuan ini menegaskan bahwa strategi virtual influencer tidak cukup hanya mengandalkan tampilan visual, tetapi perlu diarahkan untuk membangun kedekatan psikologis, kepercayaan, relevansi gaya hidup, dan pengalaman komunikasi yang konsisten. Penelitian ini memberikan implikasi bahwa Fashion Zahra dapat memperkuat loyalitas konsumen melalui pengembangan karakter virtual yang autentik, interaktif, sesuai dengan identitas merek, dan mampu menciptakan hubungan emosional jangka panjang dengan konsumen.
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