Virtual influencers have become an increasingly important element of contemporary social media marketing strategies. A recent large-scale experimental online study (n = 3,200) conducted by the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions and Aalen University provides new insights into their effectiveness, highlighting the critical role of influencer design in shaping consumer behavior.The study examined the differential impact of humanlike versus avatar-like virtual influencers across functional and prosocial advertising contexts. Results indicate a remarkable interaction between the influencer type and the advertising context. Thus, in prosocial campaigns, avatar-like virtual influencers elicit significantly higher purchase intentions than in functional campaigns as well as than humanlike counterparts in either advertising context. A key mechanism underlying this effect is perceived trustworthiness, which is a central predictor of purchase intention. Notably, design elements that evoke “cuteness”—such as features asso- ciated with the baby schema—could be identified as an explaining factor for more trustworthiness of the avatar-like character. Although the observed effects on purchase intent were small in magnitude, their practical relevance should not be underestimated. In marketing contexts where campaigns reach large audiences, even small improvements in effectiveness can lead to substantial commercial impact. Moreover, these findings challenge prior assumptions favoring more humanlike virtual influ- encers in terms of credibility and suggest that visual stylization toward cuteness can be particularly advantageous in prosocial communications.