Navigating Digital Marketing and Its Effect on Consumer Purchase Behaviour of Beauty Brand Products: The Role of Trust

Authors

  • Antoine Roestorf Author
  • Tatenda T. Chabata University of South Africa image/svg+xml Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51137/wrp.ijarbm.616

Keywords:

Beauty Brand, Beauty Products, Digital Marketing, Luxury Marketing, South Africa, Trust

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of digital marketing on consumer trust, attitude and purchase intention of online beauty products. The research aimed to determine which digital strategies most effectively foster trust and drive purchasing behaviour. A quantitative research approach was applied, using a 5-point Likert-scale self-administered online questionnaire. Data was collected from 109 respondents and analysed using SPSS version 28. Statistical tests, including normality, correlation and ordinal regression analyses, were conducted to examine relationships among key variables derived from the Trust Theory (TT), the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), and the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) Model. Findings reveal that significance of trust, attitude and purchase intention exists, confirming that consumer trust significantly influences purchase intention. Social media and affiliate marketing emerged as the most influential channels on attitudes towards purchase intention, while e-mail marketing showed a weaker but still significant effect. Emotional engagement, authenticity and interactivity are central to digital trust formation and conversion in the current context. A beauty brand’s success in digital environments depends on its ability to integrate trust-based communication strategies across its digital platforms. Insights from this research contribute to both theoretical understanding and managerial practice. While future research avenues are provided.

Author Biographies

  • Antoine Roestorf

    Antoine is an Alumni of STADIO Higher Education with a distinction in her qualification and focuses on research related to fashion, sustainability and marketing. 

  • Tatenda T. Chabata, University of South Africa

    Tatenda Chabata* is currently a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the University of South Africa. He is an emerging researcher with a keen research interest that focuses on digital marketing, consumer behaviour, and sustainability. A digital marketing consultant expert with the zeal to increase his research capacity and contribute to practice and academic research discourse. He has supervised over 30 Honors research projects, 2 Master's research projects, currently supervising 2 PhD students. He looks forward to increasing his overall research output.

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Published

2026-05-04

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Original Research Paper

How to Cite

Roestorf, A., & Chabata, T. T. (2026). Navigating Digital Marketing and Its Effect on Consumer Purchase Behaviour of Beauty Brand Products: The Role of Trust. International Journal of Applied Research in Business and Management, 7(5). https://doi.org/10.51137/wrp.ijarbm.616