Does Appearance Matter? Building Digital Brand Image Through Brand Ambassador on Instagram

. The increasingly high demands of modernization make people pay attention to their physical appearance to achieve the applicable beauty standards. Many people are dissatisfied with their physical appearance, even though their beauty standards differ. Various beauty brands are competing fiercely by making a breakthrough, namely using Brand Ambassadors who have unique and different appearances to enhance their image in the eyes of consumers. Instagram is used to build a brand image digitally, so it can more easily reach the public. This study aims to measure how the appearance of a different comedian's Brand Ambassador influences the digital image of a cosmetic brand on Instagram. The research method uses quantitative questionnaires distributed to 110 respondents who are consumers of a beauty brand. The results of this study show that the appearance of a Brand Ambassador has a positive and significant effect on brand image by 71.77%. The test results for the coefficient of determination are only 65.2%, while 34.8% are influenced by other variables. It can be concluded that attractiveness must support another variable to strengthen the effect on brand image, such as visibility, credibility, and power. This research has limitations on the effect of brand ambassador appearance on brand image.


Introduction
The increasingly high demands of modernization make people pay more attention to their physical appearance.They try to find solutions by carrying out various kinds of treatments using skincare and cosmetic products.The high public interest in body and facial care has encouraged various beauty brands to launch quality products that suit their needs.These beauty brands continue to compete with each other to satisfy consumer expectations to meet applicable beauty standards.Indonesians have atypical beauty standards, such as white skin like Caucasians, as well as slim and tall bodies [1].This condition is detrimental to all people who do not meet these standards, where those of color are considered not beautiful.
Various beauty brands are competing fiercely by making breakthroughs, namely using Brand Ambassadors who have different appearances to enhance their image in the eyes of consumers.Being a famous Brand Ambassador is not enough.They are required to look attractive and pleasing to the eye.Physical appearance is an important thing that must be maintained by public figures so that a company is interested in choosing them to become a Brand Ambassador.But at the end of 2021, an interesting phenomenon occurred.Beauty brands that usually used atypical white skin and slim bodies Brand Ambassadors chose a different path.They chose Brand Ambassadors that were opposite from these beauty standards.For instance, Pantene worked with influencer Keanu Agl.Furthermore, MS GLOW also used comedians Babe Chabita and Marshel Widianto as Brand The selection of comedian Marshel Widianto reaped pros and cons.He also received various insults because people thought he was inappropriate to be a Brand Ambassador for a beauty brand like MS GLOW.Even so, MS GLOW still decided to appoint Marshel Widianto as Brand Ambassador because they desired to have an image as a brand that breaks existing beauty standards.MS GLOW tried to encourage everyone to have an equal opportunity to look attractive.This condition follows Lea Greenwood's opinion that companies use Brand Ambassadors as a tool to communicate and build relationships with the public.In addition, Brand Ambassadors can also be a solution to enhance a E3S Web of Conferences 426, 02035 (2023) https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202342602035ICOBAR 2023 company's brand image.It is because the Brand Ambassador will be a reflection of the company.[2].
The goal was realized through a campaign on Instagram by raising the hashtag #everyonecandoit.MS GLOW launched a video with Marshel Widianto as an advertising model in August 2021 and managed to go viral.It became the number 1 trending topic on Twitter.MS GLOW also featured comedian Marshel Widianto's campaign video on the New York Time Square billboard, which caught the attention of many people (Figure 2).This study quoted tweets from Twitter user @renaldypjs.He explained that the Americans were amazed by the MS GLOW campaign video.One of the Americanls said, "Amazing, they are using real people.Wow!I love it.".The Instagram platform is deliberately used because it has visual properties, making it easier to present the appearance desired by beauty brands.In addition, this social media also makes it easier for beauty brands to build their brand image digitally, because it can reach a wider community.Several previous studies are similar to this research.Ligia Stephanie Samosir conducted research with the title "The Influence of Using Brand Ambassador Dewi Sandra on Purchasing Decisions of Consumers of Wardah Cosmetics in the City of Bandung" resulting in an effect of 18.4% [3].The difference is that Samosir's research focuses on the influence on purchasing decisions, while this research chooses brand image.In addition, Cempaka Al Mawaddah also researched "The Influence of Brand Ambassadors on Scarlett Whitening Purchase Intention Among Students in Palembang City, Mediated by Brand Image".The difference is that the Brand Ambassador used an actor from South Korea named Song Joong Ki.He meets the beauty standards with white skin and a slender body, while this research chooses the opposite.[4].This breakthrough is something new among beauty brands in Indonesia, so further research is needed to measure the influence of the unique and different appearance of the Brand Ambassador on MS GLOW's brand image on the Instagram digital platform.

Appearance
Appearance is a form of self-image that emanates from a person.It is also a medium of communication between individuals and other individuals.Everyone wants to look attractive because it can affect other people's assessment of him.If a person's appearance looks pleasing to the eye, others also feel comfortable and happy.An attractive appearance can be one of the keys to success in social life.Society considers that someone with an attractive appearance also has a good personality.Meanwhile, if someone does not pay attention to appearance, they will be judged as a person who has a less attractive personality.An attractive appearance will give a good and positive impression to others.If someone wants to look attractive, several factors need attention.For instance, the procedures for dressing, preening, speaking, listening, sitting, and walking [5].

Brand Ambassador
Brand Ambassador is an icon or someone's identity where they have the duty and obligation to become a representative marketer.According to Doucett, a Brand Ambassador is a person who has a passion for the brand, wants to introduce it, and even voluntarily provides information about the brand [6].Meanwhile, Greenwood said that a Brand Ambassador is a tool used by companies to communicate and relate to the public, with the hope of increasing sales or leading people to choose the products being marketed [2].
Brand Ambassador can be used as a benchmark to build a brand image of a product or service, using the VisCAP model.There are four elements in VisCAP, namely 1) Visibility: How much popularity does the star or celebrity appointed to represent the product or service to be offered?2) Credibility: What expertise and objectivity does the star or celebrity have?3) Attraction: Message reception will depend on the attractiveness of the Brand Ambassador because it can change consumer opinion and behavior through various attributes such as; a. Physical Likability: A person's views or perceptions based on physical appearance that is considered attractive or not, b.Non-physical Likability: A person's views or perceptions of non-physical appearance or personality that is open, natural, and full of fun, c.Similarity: A person's views or perceptions related to the similarities they have, it can be seen through their lifestyle.4) Power: How much power does a star or celebrity have to invite and persuade people to buy the product being offered or marketed [7].

Brand Image
According to Keller, brand image is the perception of a brand that is existed in consumer memory [8].Aaker and Biel defined brand image as a consumer's assessment of the brand in a market [9].Meanwhile, Tjiptono said that brand image means a description of associations and consumer beliefs about certain brands [10].Broadly speaking, it can be said that brand image is a picture that consumers have of a product.
Brand image cannot be formed in a short time, but requires a long process.When a company already has a good brand image, the company cannot just let it go, but efforts need to be made to improve the brand image within a certain period, so that the evaluations held by consumers are increasingly formed.Some efforts that occur to improve brand image are making breakthroughs by highlighting differences in product design, creating unique and attractive advertisements to attract consumers' attention, conducting regular evaluations to continue developing products, and also utilizing social media as a two-way interaction tool between companies and consumers.Based on Schiffman and Kanuk, several factors influence brand image which consist of 1) Quality: It is related to quality that can be seen and assessed by consumers.2) Trust: Opinions held that can shape consumer trust.3) Benefits: The function of a product that can be used by consumers.4) Price: The amount of money that consumers are willing to spend.5) Brand image: Views, perceptions, judgments, and information related to the company's brand [11].
Keller states that the indicators used to measure brand image are as follows: 1) Favorability of Brand Association: When a product has its advantages and characteristics it will attract attention and provide attractiveness to consumers.Consumers will easily remember if the product is superior compared to other products.2) Strength (Familiarity) of Brand Association: Brand association will be stronger when someone keeps thinking about information from a product.Information is firmly embedded in the minds of consumers if consumers also convey information about the products they know to others.3) Uniqueness of Brand Association: Product characteristics must be difficult to imitate by other competing companies so that it becomes a superior comparison when compared to competitors' products.Characteristics are a strong reason consumers why they should buy a product.A company must continue to innovate to create strategies for consumers.One way that can be done is to improve and strengthen the brand image [12].

Digital platforms: Instagram
Digital Platforms are a building block that provides an essential function to a technological system and serves as a foundation upon which complementary products, technologies, or services can be developed [13].Another definition comes from Ye et al, which digital platforms mean value that is created by facilitating the interaction between two or more mutually interdependent groups of customers [14].Instagram is included in the digital platform category because it is an application based on IOS and Android that can be used by its users to share photos and videos.Instagram is also widely used by the public as a medium for marketing promotions.Through the features offered by Instagram, businesses can upload various content related to products or services to attract the attention of other Instagram users to buy these products or services.

The Impression Management Theory
The theory of Impression Management from Erving Goffman is used to explain research phenomena.This theory illustrates that in carrying out social interactions, each individual will try to present a good image of himself in front of others.Consciously, each individual will create the impression or perception that others desire by using communication.
Several conditions must be met if someone wants to have and manage a good impression, namely: a. Paper front: Certain behaviors expressed in such a way that others know the actor's role.The paper front consists of the equipment used to present oneself, according to what has been explained which includes three aspects: 1) Setting: Setting is a series of equipment used.2) Appearance: Appearance uses artifactual clues that will influence a person's initial impression, such as facial expressions, body shape, how to dress, and others.3) Manner: How a person speaks, looks, walks, and so on.b.Involvement in the role: An individual must understand the role he has and be directly involved to believe in and live up to his role [15].
According to Jones & Pittman, there are five types of impression management groups, namely: a) Ingratiation: It is done by praising oneself, praising others, accepting existing opinions, taking a fair share of being able to do various things, and showing the advantages that owned to cover up weaknesses to make it look attractive and will be judged to have no flaws.b) Intimidation: Individuals will take actions that are less liked by others, such as making threats, showing off their power, and venting their anger so that other people will fear them.c) Self Promotion: To look competent and impress others, individuals will try to show their abilities and achievements.d) Exemplary: To be respected and admired by others, individuals must be able to show that they have integrity and can be emulated.Others must understand that the individual is generous, disciplined, selfless, and cares for others.e) Supplication: Showing that he is a weak and helpless person so that other people feel sorry for him and want to provide help [16].

Methods
This study used a quantitative method with a survey research design.Questionnaires were distributed via Google Forms to collect data regarding the influence of the appearance of comedian Marshel Widianto's Brand Ambassador on MS GLOW's digital brand image on Instagram.The population used in this study were all Instagram account users.In this study, the sampling technique used was quota sampling, by determining the characteristics, population, and minimum number of samples to be studied.Data collection was carried out by distributing questionnaires to a total sample of 110 people with characteristics namely Instagram users, male and female, aged 15-35 years, and had purchased MS GLOW products at least once.Meanwhile, secondary data was obtained from reading books, studying previous journals or research, as well as data analytics from MS GLOW's Instagram.This study used inferential data analysis to conclude the sample data.Based on Table 1 and Table 2, the validity test shows that the significance value used in this study is 0,05 or = 5% with degrees of freedom.Df = n-2, for n = 110, then df = 110-2 = 108.Based on the distribution of r.table, the r.table = 0,187.The results above show that the value of r.count > r.table indicates that H is accepted, so the question item scores are considered valid.Furthermore, the results of the reliability test are listed in the following Table 3. Table 3 shows that Cronbach's Alpha value for the brand ambassador variable is 0,897.Meanwhile, the brand image value is 0,913.The reliability results show that Cronbach's Alpha of all research variables is worth more than 0,60.It means that the instrument used in this study is declared reliable or can be trusted.
The hypothesis of this study is as follows: H : Marshel Widianto's appearance as Brand Ambassador significantly influences the brand image of MS GLOW H : Marshel Widianto's appearance as a Brand Ambassador does not significantly affect the brand image of MS GLOW If Sig. > then H is accepted, but if Sig. < then H is rejected.A correlation test is conducted to measure the relationship between two or more variables.Table 4 shows the results of the correlation test as follows.Table 4 shows the value of Sig.(2-Tailed) of 0.000 < 0.05.The Pearson Correlation value is 0.807 or close to 1, so there is a high relationship between variables.It can be seen from Table 5 that the constant values and regression coefficient values obtained by each independent variable from the multiple linear regression equation are as follows: Y = 0.273 + 0.913 X A constant value of 0.273 means that if the brand ambassador variable is omitted, the brand image is worth 0.273.The regression coefficient value of the brand ambassador (X) variable on the brand image (Y) is 0.913, meaning that if the Brand Ambassador (X) increases by one unit, then the brand image (Y) will increase by 0.913.It means that Brand Ambassador (X) and brand image (Y) have a positive influence.
The coefficient of determination analysis (Table 6) is carried out to determine the percentage of the variable under study, namely the independent variable Brand Ambassador on brand image.Based on the calculation above, the contribution of the brand ambassador variable to a brand image is 65.2%, while the remaining 34.8% is influenced by other variables not examined in this study.

Research Findings
After examining data through SPSS, all questions used to test the research hypothesis were declared valid.It is proven from the results of the validity test that the r count is greater than the r table results, namely 0.187.This study also uses a reliability test on variable X (Brand Ambassador) which shows a result of 0.897.Whereas variable Y (brand image) shows a result of 0.913, where both are greater than (0,60).
Furthermore, an autocorrelation test is carried out to test whether in a linear regression model, there is a correlation between confounding errors.Then a correlation test is performed to measure the relationship between two or more variables.The results of the autocorrelation test show 0.444 greater than > 0.05, so it can be concluded that there are no autocorrelation symptoms or problems.While the results of the correlation test show that there is a significant relationship between the two variables, namely Brand Ambassador and brand image of 0.000.The result is less than 0.05, which means there is a correlation, and for a Pearson Correlation value of 0.807 or close to 1, then there is a high relationship between the two variables.Finally, the results of the test for the coefficient of determination show that the contribution of the Brand Ambassador variable to the brand image is 65.2%, while the remaining 34.8% is influenced by other variables not examined in this study.
This study uses the operationalization of the concept with the independent variable (X) Brand Ambassador which consisted of indicators: Visibility, Credibility, Attraction, and Power.Table 7 shows the analysis of respondents' response index to Brand Ambassador variables.By using these indicators, the following is the index number of respondents' answers to variable X (Brand Ambassador): Meanwhile, the dependent variable (Y) brand image consisted of indicators: Favorable of brand association, Strength of brand association, and Uniqueness of brand association.Table 9 shows the analysis of respondents' response index to brand image variables.Whereas the following is the index of respondents' answers to variable Y (brand image): Table 10.Brand ambassador analysis index.
Based on the respondent's answers (Table 8) on the Brand Ambassador variable, the indicator that gets the largest percentage is visibility with 80.05% percentage.Marshel Widianto is considered a popular comedian in the country, he also has an interesting personality and social media active.Popularity also is a key factor that must be owned by brand ambassador.It was mentioned that there was a positive and significant influence between opinion leadership as the source of the message on brand equity [15].While the indicator that gets the lowest percentage is attractiveness with a percentage of 71.77%.Marshel Widianto is liked by MS GLOW consumers and he has a resemblance to MS GLOW consumers.He can also display MS GLOW-compliant images, and attract fans to participate in any promotions held by MS GLOW.
An indicator of a Brand Ambassador that is closely related to appearance is attraction, because of the physical and non-physical appearance that influences one's perception of a Brand Ambassador.Influencer marketing and content marketing are among the strategies implemented to develop awareness [16].The attraction gets the lowest average score of 71.77%, because for some people the physical appearance of Marshel Widianto is considered unattractive and does not match the MS GLOW brand.On the attraction indicator, the statement that Marshel Widianto displays an image following MS GLOW only scored 68.18%.However, on the same indicator, the statement that Marshel Widianto has similarities with MS GLOW consumers gets higher results of 69.09%.In fact, Marshel Widianto can attract consumers to take part in every MS GLOW promotion with the highest score of 74.4%.Kavalam and Joy explain that physical appearance at first impression influences how people process information.A good first impression makes people understand better the message being conveyed.The selection of Marshel Widianto as Brand Ambassador is considered a high risk for MS GLOW, due to its physical appearance.The first impression about physical appearance is the first thing that is embedded in the minds of consumers.Marshel Widianto's physical appearance may make consumers unable to properly understand the brand's messages.Even so, MS GLOW still faces these challenges because it has goals to achieve [17].
Brand Ambassadors have three attributes, namely physical likability, non-physical likability, and similarity.Physical likability is a person's perception of the physical appearance of a Brand Ambassador who is considered attractive, and Marshel Widianto's physical appearance as the MS GLOW Brand Ambassador is considered unattractive.Non-physical likability attributes mean consumers like Brand Ambassadors who have attractive personalities.Even though he has an unattractive appearance, Marshel Widianto has an advantage in his non-physical appearance, because he is a famous comedian with an open, natural, and humorous personality that is liked by many people.The similarity attribute is a person's perception seen from the similarities they have, such as lifestyle [7].Respondents also thought that Marshel Widianto had something in common with them because previously he came from an underprivileged community that was now starting to pay attention to his appearance by using the MS Glow brand.
In addition, this is also supported by the visibility indicator which has the highest average among other indicators of 80.05%, which relates to the ability to see and assess Brand Ambassadors.Marshel Widianto is easy to recognize because he is a comedian who is active in front of the public and social media, who gets a yield of 83.63%.The influence of Brand Ambassador Marshel Widianto's appearance resulted in a perception of the brand image of MS GLOW which was represented by three indicators namely Favorable, Strength, and Uniqueness (Table 10).The Uniqueness indicator obtained the highest result of 78.9% because MS GLOW is considered a unique beauty brand and can adapt to current trends.Then the Favorable indicator states that the use of Brand Ambassador Marshel Widianto makes consumers feel proud to use MS GLOW products which generate a value of 78.54%.On the Strength indicator, the MS GLOW brand is also considered strong because it has a good image in the eyes of consumers by using 'real people' such as Marshel Widianto as Brand Ambassador at 77.09%.In fact, this can influence consumers to buy MS GLOW products by 77.27%.
In the impression management theory, it is said that there are efforts made consciously or unconsciously by Brand Ambassadors to display an impression in the eyes of consumers.Marshel Widianto must be able to manage a paper front and know how involved he is as the MS GLOW Brand Ambassador.On the paper front there are aspects of setting, appearance, and manner.The aspect of manner in this study is Instagram used by MS GLOW as a tool to introduce its Brand Ambassador, Marshel Widianto.Instagram is one of the social media that is widely used by the public, and given that Instagram offers a variety of features, it can attract the attention of its users to buy products.Then Marshel Widianto also has advantages in aspects of behavior because of his personality.Marshel Widianto must also be aware of and understand his role and responsibilities as a Brand Ambassador, so that he can trigger people to have a good perception of MS GLOW [18].Attractiveness is a part of brand ambassador that affect brand image, and brand ambassador has a significant influence on the brand image.Marshel Widianto represented the image of MS GLOW as a skincare product for men as the target market, especially for the B (middle) class.Simplicity is a main characteristic of Marshel Widianto, which is expected to be accepted by the target market of MS Glow for men.
Based on the type of impression management group used, the activities carried out by Marshel Widianto are included in self-promotion.Despite having an unattractive appearance, Marshel Widianto still tries to show his abilities and achievements as the MS GLOW Brand Ambassador to impress the public [19].This is proven by Marshel Widianto's campaign video with MS GLOW, packed with simple comedy and raised the tagline #everyonecandoit also broadcast in Times Square New York and managed to trend number 1 on Twitter.This campaign even managed to get high exposure when compared to other content because it generated more than 1.5 million views, 1,800 comments, and as many as 82,000 likes.
The appearance of the Brand Ambassador represented by the low indicator of attraction has similarities with research from Hasan and Rohaizat.The physical appearance of a Brand Ambassador is not strong enough to create positive customer perceptions and encourage product purchase intention.Skincare and cosmetics are products that require high consumer experience and involvement.Therefore, many things that need to be considered before buying a product other than the appearance of the Brand Ambassador [20].

Conclusions
Based on the processing of the statistical data that has been obtained, it can be concluded that the influence of the appearance of Brand Ambassador Marshel Widianto on the MS GLOW brand image on Instagram is 71.77%, which is represented by the attraction indicator.The other most influential indicator of the Brand Ambassador variable on the brand image variable is visibility with a percentage of 80.05%.Thus, the appearance of a Brand Ambassador is an important factor for brands in choosing Brand Ambassador, regardless of whether their physical appearance is attractive or not.
The selection of a Brand Ambassador with a physical appearance that is considered unattractive can be a breakthrough innovation that surprises the public.Moreover, if the initiator is a beauty brand because it is considered to represent the voice of consumers, this can be used as a potential strategy to build a brand image.However, even though the non-physical appearance of the Brand Ambassador must still be attractive, as possessed by the comedian Marshel Widianto who is open, natural, and full of jokes because this can be a strength to enhance the brand image following the company's vision and mission.The innovation related to the appearance of Brand Ambassadors is expected to change the beauty standards that have been prevailing in society.This innovation can encourage society to accept diversity, that every human being is valuable and unique in their own way.
This research has limitations on the effect of brand ambassador appearance on brand image.The test results for the coefficient of determination were only 65.2%.Meanwhile, the other 34.8% was influenced by other variables.Various variables can affect brand image such as quality, service, and policy of products.In addition, this research has not discussed the reasons why Brand Ambassadors influence the brand image.Qualitative methods can be an option to gain depth about the Brand Ambassador from the consumer's perspective.

Fig. 1 .
Fig. 1.Marshel Widianto's pop up as Brand Ambassador on the MS GLOW for men website.

Fig. 2 .
Fig. 2. Marshel Widianto's billboard in New York Times Square as MS GLOW for men Brand Ambassador.

Table 1 .
To get research results, a normality test, correlation test, autocorrelation test, regression test, t-test and coefficient of determination were carried out.As for the data validity technique, this study used validity and reliability tests, to test the list of questions filled out by respondents, which are listed in the following table.Recapitulation of validity results (Brand Ambassador -X).

Table 3 .
Reliability test results.

Table 6 .
Coefficient of determination test results.

Table 8 .
Brand ambassador analysis index.