Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1444814

Impact of Celebrity Endorsements on Brand Image

Debiprasad Mukherjee* August 2009

* Debiprasad Mukherjee is a Business Process Management Consultant in IT Telecom domain.

He has experience of working with Siemens, IBM, and Tech Mahindra in India and abroad. He

holds Post graduation in Management from Indian Institute of Social Welfare & Business

Management, India and Bachelor in Technology in Electrical Engineering. His areas of interest

are Brand Management, Consumer Behavior, Advertisement, Customer Relationship

Management, Data Warehousing, Business Intelligence, Master Data Management etc.

Email:- debiprasad.mukherjee@techmahindra.com / debiprasad.mukherjee@gmail.com

Contact: - Techno India Building, 6th Floor EM-4/1, Sector V, SaltLake, Kolkata-700091, INDIA

Tel No: +91 334002 8146 / +91 9830318394

This paper can be downloaded from theSocial Science Research Network Electronic Paper Collection:http://ssrn.com/abstract=1444814

Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1444814

Abstract

Celebrity endorsement has been established as one of the most popular tools of advertising in

recent time. It has become a trend and perceived as a winning formula for product marketing and

brand building. It is easy to choose a celebrity but it is tough to establish a strong association

between the product and the endorser. While the magnitude of the impact of celebrity

endorsement remains under the purview of gray spectacles, this paper is an effort to analyze the

impact of celebrity endorsements on brands. Objective of this article is to examine the

relationship between celebrity endorsements and brands, and the impact of celebrity

endorsement on consumer's buying behavior as well as how consumer makes brand

preferences. This paper proposes a 20 point model which can be used as blue-print criteria and

can be used by brand managers for selecting celebrities and capitalizing the celebrity resource

through 360 degree brand communication which, according to this paper, is the foundation of the

impact of celebrity endorsement. Celebrity endorsement is always a two-edged sword and it has

a number of positives— if properly matched it can do wonders for the company, and if not it may

produce a bad image of the company and its brand.

Purpose

To study the impact of the celebrity endorsement on effective brand management and evaluate

associated factors that contribute to the success or failure of the endorsement.

Approach

This work was done mainly as an exploratory research to find out the correlation between

celebrity endorsement and brand image based on structured questionnaire and analysis is done

on the outcome/response with the help of higher order statistical tools.

Findings

Three categories of research findings have been deduced from the study. The first category

dealing with the customer’s perception about celebrity endorsements. The second aspect is the

factors those should be taken into account while endorsing a celebrity. And the last aspect is the

formulation of strategic model that can be used while doing a celebrity endorsement.

Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1444814

Value

This particular work will have a significant impact on the study of celebrity endorsement impact on

brand building process and can be used for further research work on the same area.

Keyword

Celebrity Endorsement, Celebrity Credibility, Controversy Risk, Brand Personality, Brand Image.

Classification

This paper can be classified as a “Research Paper”.

Introduction

Celebrities are people who enjoy public recognition by a large share of a certain group of people.

Whereas attributes like attractiveness, extraordinary lifestyle or special skills are just examples

and specific common characteristics that are observed and celebrities generally differ from the

social norm and enjoy a high degree of public awareness. The term Celebrity refers to an

individual who is known to the public (actor, sports figure, entertainer, etc.) for his or her

achievements in areas other than that of the product class endorsed (Friedman and Friedman,

1979).

Endorsement is a channel of brand communication in which a celebrity acts as the brand’s

spokesperson and certifies the brand’s claim and position by extending his/her personality,

popularity, stature in the society or expertise in the field to the brand. In a market with a very high

proliferation of local, regional and international brands, celebrity endorsement was thought to

provide a distinct differentiation (Martin Roll, 2006).

McCracken's (1989) definition of a celebrity endorser is, "any individual who enjoys public

recognition and who uses this recognition on behalf of a consumer good by appearing with it in an

advertisement (marcoms), is useful, because when celebrities are depicted in marcoms, they

bring their own culturally related meanings, thereto, irrespective of the required promotional role."

Ohanian stresses that to be truly effective, celebrities chosen as endorsers should be

knowledgeable, experienced and qualified in order to be perceived as an expert in the category.

Two models were originally identified to explain the process of celebrity endorsement. As an

endorser, one has to fulfill all the FRED objectives (Rajesh Lalwani, 2006), namely, Familiarity

(target market is aware of him, finds him friendly, likeable and trustworthy); Relevance (which

says that there should be a link between the endorser and the product as well between the

endorser and the audience); Esteem (credibility to the mass); Differentiation (in all his projections,

he is seen to be one among the masses, and yet he towers above them. He is different).

McCracken’s (1989) view also suggests that a symbolic “match” should exist between the

celebrity image and the brand image in order for the celebrity endorsement to be effective.

Consumers with strong self-enhancement goals tend to form self-brand connections to brands

used by aspiration groups, that is, groups for which the consumer wishes to become a member

(Escalas and Bettman 2003). On the other hand, self-enhancers will be more likely to reject brand

associations created by a celebrity endorsement where the celebrity associations are rejected

(i.e., a non-aspirational celebrity), compared to consumers who do not have active self-

enhancement goals. Companies invest large sums of money to align their brands and themselves

with endorsers. Such endorsers are seen as dynamic with both attractive and likeable qualities

(Atkin and Block, 1983), and companies plan that these qualities are transferred to products via

marcom activities (Langmeyer & Walker, 1991a, McCracken, 1989). Furthermore, because of

their fame, celebrities serve not only to create and maintain attention but also to achieve high

recall rates for marcom messages in today's highly cluttered environments (Croft et al, 1996,

Friedman and Friedman, 1979). Some brands can reject celebrity endorsement outright and

emerge in a better off position than their rivals. An example of a brand that has got it right is

Singapore Airlines. Statistically the airline provides no more legroom than any other carrier. Yet in

survey after survey flyers consistently vote Singapore Airlines the best carrier. Could this be in

part due to the branded fragrance that has been subtly infused in all its planes? This smell is

integrated into the hand towels and sprayed in all the cabins before passengers’ board. The

reason is that smell has a direct emotional impact on consumers, bypassing the rational part of

the brain, making consumers feel good. A branded fragrance – now isn’t that cheaper than paying

a celebrity?

The celebrity’s role is the most explicit and profound in incarnating user associations among the

above mentioned points. To comprehend this, let us analyze the multiplier effect formula for a

successful brand:

S=P * D * AV

Where

S is a Successful Brand P is an Effective Product

D is Distinctive Identity AV is Added Values

Celebrity endorsements cannot replace the comprehensive brand building processes. As

branding evolves as a discipline companies must be extra cautious to utilize every possible

channel of communication rather than just a celebrity endorsement. When all other steps in the

branding process is followed and implemented, then channels such as celebrity endorsements

can provide the cutting edge as it did for Nike endorsement romance with Tiger woods. What

Nike did was to use celebrity endorsement as one of the main channels of communicating its

brand to a highly focused set of customers. So, Nike’s association with Tiger Woods was one of

the parts of an entire branding process that Nike has been practicing consistently.

There are hundreds of well known examples of celebrity endorsements, most of which were

hugely successful due to proper endorsement strategy. Italian luxury brand Versace has used

music icon Madonna and Hollywood stars Demi Moore and Halle Berry in its print adverts

between 2005 and 2006. Likewise Julia Roberts appears in Gianfranco Ferres adverts, Sharon

Stone in Dior and Jennifer Lopez, Scarlett Johansson, and Uma Thurman in Vuitton ads. Also,

non-luxury brand Gap has used television star Sarah Jessica Parker to promote its brand in the

recent past. Similarly Catherine Zeta Jones for T-Mobile, Emmitt Smith for Just For Men, Jason

Alexander for KFC. In India, probably the first ad to cash in on star power in a strategic, long-

term, mission statement kind of way was for Lux soap, a brand which has, perhaps as a result of

this, been among the top three in the country for much of its life-time. In recent times, we had the

Indian cine star Shahrukh Khan – Hyundai Santro campaign with the objective of mitigating the

impediment that an unknown Korean brand faced in the Indian market. Think of great cricket star

Sachin Tendulkar. He means Pepsi in soft drinks, Boost in malted beverages, MRF in tyres, Fiat

Palio in cars, TVS Victor in two-wheelers, Colgate Total in toothpastes, Britannia in biscuits, Visa

in credit cards, Airtel in mobile services and Band-aid.

Businesses have long sought to distract and attract the attention of potential customers that live

in a world of ever-increasing commercial bombardment. Everyday consumers are exposed to

thousands of voices and images in magazines, newspapers, and on billboards, websites, radio

and television. About 20% of U.S. ads feature celebrities (Solomon 2009), and the percent of ads

using celebrities in other countries, such as Japan, is thought to be even higher.

Research Objectives

Objective of this study was to reveal and re-establish the positive impact of celebrity endorsement

on brand image and find out the most prominent factors those play the key role in the success of

an endorsement. The research objective was to explore the link between brands and the

consumer psyche and determine a model which can help any brand to identify the critical key

areas to concentrate on while going for any celebrity endorsement. The newly evolved model

should lead any brand towards the success of strategic branding from endorsement aspect.

Literature Survey

This paper uses a wide range of accepted principles of how consumers brand attitudes and

preferences can be influenced, how buyer's behavior can be influenced, how buyer's behavior

can be molded. The principles of credibility of source and attractiveness, the match-up

hypothesis, the consumer decision-making model and the communication model are taken into

account to understand the endorsement impact. Study reveals that the impact of celebrity

endorsement is proportional to the 20 factors discussed in the model. The success of a brand

through celebrity endorsement is a cumulative effect of these attributes. This study reveals and

re-establishes that corporate must always keep in mind that the objective is to build the brand and

not the celebrity. It is also important to appreciate that just because an individual is famous and

considered a celebrity, he/she might not necessarily be an effective endorser.

As companies invest large sums of money in celebrity endorsement contracts, any celebrity

endorsement relationship must contribute to larger marketing strategies (Erdogan and Kitchen

1998). Accordingly, campaigns involving celebrities are believed to bring more positive results if

they are properly integrated than traditional non-integrated campaigns (Bertrand and Todd, 1992;

Rogers, 1997). In order to discover what advertising agency managers think about integrating

campaigns involving celebrities, they were asked to give their opinions on the issue.

Traditional explanations of celebrity endorsement persuasion effects are based on the source

effects literature and find that 1) celebrity endorsement increases the attention paid to an ad

(Buttle, Raymond, and Danziger 2000); 2) celebrities are generally attractive, which helps

persuasion when consumers are worried about social acceptance and others’ opinions (DeBono

and Harnish 1988) or when the product is attractiveness-related (Kahle and Homer 1985, Kamins

1990); 3) celebrities may be credible sources if they have expertise in a particular area, such as

an athlete endorsing shoes (Ratneshwar and Chiaken 1991) or a beautiful model endorsing

make-up (Baker and Churchill 1983); and 4) celebrities are often well-liked, possibly leading to

identification and consumer persuasion in an attempt to seek some type of relationship with the

celebrity (Belch and Belch 2007). In traditional dual process models (e.g. ELM; Petty, Cacioppo,

and Schumann 1983), celebrities are most often considered a peripheral cue: they are important

in persuasion only when consumers are not involved in the product category or in processing the

ad. However, celebrities may provide central information when an aspect of the celebrity matches

the product (as with beauty products and attractiveness; Kahle and Homer1985). Also, as

affective peripheral cues, celebrity endorsements may lead media weight to have an impact on

sales in mature categories (MacInnis, Rao, and Weiss 2002). The company makes use of the

celebrity's characteristics and qualities to establish an analogy with the products specialties with

an aim to position them in the minds of the target consumers. To be successful, brands need to

convince consumers that they carry a different image and value from other competing products

(Sadhu Ramakrishna, Santhosh Reddy, 2005). In other words, brands have to show their true

personality to the potential consumer(s). It was not until the 1920s, however, that advertisers

used famous people for product endorsements. Actresses Joan Crawford, Clara Bow and Janet

Gaynor were among the first celebrities to promote products (Fox, 1984). At that time, the

rationale given by advertising agencies for using celebrities was "the spirit of emulation" (Fox,

1984, p.90). About a decade ago, one in three television commercials used celebrities'

endorsements (Business Week, 1978), and today this advertising approach appeared to be on

the increase across all media types (Sherman, 1985 and Levin, 1988). Friedman et al. (1977)

found that celebrities are featured in 15 percent of the prime-time television commercials. In the

United States, it was reported that about 20% of all television commercials feature a famous

person, and about 10% of the dollars spent on television advertising are used in celebrity

endorsement advertisements (Advertising Age, 1987; Sherman, 1985). Thus, celebrity

endorsement has become a prevalent form of advertising in United States (Agrawal and

Kamakura, 1995) and elsewhere. Today, the use of celebrity advertising for companies has

become a trend and a perceived winning formula of corporate image building and product

marketing (Media, July-August 1997). This phenomenon is reflected by the recent market

research findings that 8 out of 10 TV commercials scoring the highest recall are those with

celebrities' appearances (Media, Nov. 14, 1997). Brands have become embedded in the

consumer psyche and offer consumers the opportunity for self-expression, self-realization and

self-identity. This effect is particularly strong in fashion categories. Barriers including cynicism and

increasing advertising literacy threaten traditional approaches to brand communications, which

have traditionally relied on verbal communications and storytelling. Celebrity endorsement is

recognized as a potentially potent tool in communications, with celebrities viewed as more

powerful than anonymous models and campaigns tending to verbalize the meaning of the

celebrity in relation to the brand (Brian Moeran, 2003). To the manufacturer, brands offer a

means of identification for ease of handling and tracking, legal protection and the ability to be

distinctive. In addition, branding is a sign of quality and can be used to secure competitive

advantage and increased financial returns and high customer loyalty. For the consumer, the

brand functions as a means of identification, reduces search costs, effort and perceived risk,

thereby facilitating a shortcut in decision making, and represents a guarantee of quality and

reliability. Silvera and Austad note that the celebrity system is primarily an American cultural

enterprise and that Americans identify especially strongly with celebrities and are thus more

willing to accept and internalize endorsement messages. Consumers from other cultures may not

show correspondent bias, believing that endorsers like the product less than most people. This

was evident in a sample from Norway, where cultural norms based on Janteloven suggest that an

individual should never try to be different or consider himself more valuable than others. The set

of associations consumers have about a brand is an important component of brand equity (Keller

1993), and we believe that forming a self-brand connection is a psychological manifestation of

such equity at the consumer level. When consumers appropriate or distance themselves from

brand associations based on celebrity endorsement, they do so in a manner that is consistent

with self-related needs, such as self-enhancement (Escalas and Bettman 2003). Recent research

indicates that consumers construct their self-identity and present themselves to others through

their brand choices based on the congruency between brand-user associations and self-image

associations (Escalas and Bettman 2005, 2003). Brands can be symbols whose meaning is used

to create and define a consumer’s self-concept (Levy 1959). McCracken’s (1986) model of

meaning transfer asserts that such meaning originates in the culturally constituted world, moving

into goods via the fashion system, word of mouth, reference groups, sub cultural groups,

celebrities, and the media. The meaning and value of a brand is not just its ability to express the

self, but also its role in helping consumers create and build their self-identities (McCracken 1989).

McCracken, highlighting the limitations of the 'source' models, puts forward a three-stage

Meaning Transfer model, which has been adopted as the model that comes closest to

conceptualizing the process. Dwane Hal Dean (1999) studied the effects of three extrinsic

advertisement cues viz. third party endorsement, event sponsorship and brand popularity on

brand / manufacturer evaluation. It was observed that endorsement significantly affected only

product variables (quality and uniqueness) and one image variable (esteem). The third party

endorsement hence may be perceived as a signal of product quality. Goldsmith et al.(200)

assessed the impact of endorser and corporate credibility on attitude-toward-the-ad, attitude-

toward-the-brand, and purchase intentions. 152 adult consumers were surveyed who viewed a

fictitious advertisement for Mobil Oil Company. They rated the credibility of the ad's endorser, the

credibility of the company, and attitude-toward-the-ad (Aad), attitude-toward-the-brand (AB), and

purchase intentions. It was observed that endorser credibility had its strongest impact on Aad

while corporate credibility had its strongest impact on AB. The findings suggest that corporate

credibility plays an important role in consumers' reactions to advertisements and brands,

independent of the equally important role of endorser credibility.

Most brands start a life without personality. Let's be honest, a brand by itself will never walk, talk

and get photographed. But by tying it with a celebrity, the name of a product or a company can

take on instant glitz, glamour, charm, sex-appeal and aspiration. D. Reeder (Greenlight L.A) said,

"People's fascination with celebrities isn't going away. The use of celebrities is here to stay. But in

what form is the open question." Now to derive some strategic path of the endorsement,

endorsing brand need to assess the impact of the chosen celebrity on the particular brand.

There is no doubt that celebrity advertising has its benefits -- the four Qs:

Quick saliency: It gets cut through because of the star and his attention getting value.

Quick connect: There needs to be no insight but the communication connects because

the star connects.

Quick shorthand for brand values: The right star can actually telegraph a brand

message fast without elaborate story telling.

Quick means of brand differentiation: In a category where no brand is using a

celebrity, the first that picks one up could use it to differentiate itself in the market.

To develop a successful roadmap of brand endorsement, the research suggests to explore the

link between brands and the consumer psyche. Belk (1988) considers the concept of the

extended self, which comprises self (me) and possessions (mine), suggesting that unknowingly,

intentionally or unintentionally we regard our possessions as reflective and as part of ourselves.

O'Shaughnessy (2002) asserts that consumers seek positional products to signify group

membership and to mark their position. Thus, brand consumption has evolved into a process of

self-reference, self-identity and self-articulation. Onkvisit and Shaw (1987) define this as the

outcome of a learned, continuous and active process that consolidates the ideas and feelings we

hold in relation to other people in a socially determined frame of reference. Batra and Homer

(2004) suggested that beliefs and personality assertions of endorsers need not be verbally and

explicitly stated in advertisements, but can be inferred by recipients. After watching an

advertisement the consumers try to find the meaning of the advertisement and associate the

same with the endorser and eventually transfer to the brand. Kamins developed the 'match-up'

hypothesis, which emphasizes the need for celebrities to be evaluated and selected in the context

of the brand values and image. In relation to product categories, Batra and Homer (2004) refer to

the existence of consumer schema for different products, which may influence the degree of

receptivity to messages delivered by celebrities. Products high in psychological or social risk may

provide the strongest evidence for the impact of celebrities on message transmission. McCracken

and Roth (1989) refer to the use of clothing as a code, a form of language that allows a message

to be created and (selectively) understood. While analyzing the major factors that are having

maximum impacts of successful endorsement, the followings are found out:

Consistency and long-term commitment: As with branding, companies should try to

maintain consistency between the endorser and the brand to establish a strong

personality and identity. More importantly, companies should view celebrity

endorsements as long-term strategic decisions affecting the brand. A global brand must

respect local needs, wants, and tastes while endorsing.

Prerequisites to selecting celebrities: Before signing on celebrities to endorse their

brands, companies need to ensure that they meet three basic prerequisites, namely the

endorser should be attractive, have a positive image in the society, and be perceived as

having the necessary knowledge (although it might be difficult for a celebrity to meet all

three prerequisites). Most of the prerequisites are already discussed in the previous

section of the article.

Celebrity–brand match: Consistent with the principles discussed earlier, companies

should ensure a match between the brand being endorsed and the endorser so that the

endorsements are able to strongly influence the thought processes of consumers and

create a positive perception of the brand. Tiger Woods endorsing the Buick brand makes

no sense at all. There is just no believability that Tiger is dying to drive a Buick. And

without believability a celebrity endorsement is worthless. The $40 million General Motors

reportedly paid Tiger for his 5-year contract ending in 2009 is not money well spent.

Kellogg’s opted out of a contract extension with Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps

several weeks ago, the company simultaneously ripped Phelps’ bong-hit photo as being

inconsistent with its image. “Kellogg is a family brand. How does Mom, who does the

family shopping, feel about Phelps?” said David Reeder, vice president of GreenLight

(2009), a brand and entertainment consulting firm.

Constant monitoring: Companies should monitor the behavior, conduct and public

image of the endorser continuously to minimize any potential negative publicity.

Selecting unique endorsers: Great brands represent great ideas. These brands

express the uniqueness of position to all internal and external audiences. Companies

should try to bring on board those celebrities who do not endorse competitors’ products

or other quite different products, so that there is a clear transfer of personality and identity

between the endorser and the brand. The controversy related to the endorser’s personal

or professional life mat hamper the associated brand image. Kobe Bryant's family-friendly

endorsement deals with Nutella and McDonald's came to a quick end after he was

accused of rape. Pepsi shied away from Madonna after her Like a Prayer video aired.

Timing: As celebrities command a high price tag, companies should be on the constant

lookout for emerging celebrities who show some promise and potential and sign them on

in their formative years if possible to ensure a win–win situation.

Myopic endorsement strategy: Most of the endorsement goes wrong due to myopic

vision of endorsement. The real problem is that too many brands have a myopic focus on

short terms sales and ‘awareness’. With this mindset they are logically driven towards ill

conceived celebrity endorsement campaigns. Virgin is a classic example of a brand that

hasn’t thought about its brand personality before matching with a celebrity. Virgin Media,

previously associated with the subtle Uma Thurman, has now opted for “in your face”

(according to Virgin media Chief James Kidd) Ruby Wax. Virgin clearly hasn’t

distinguished between its product sales and brand strategy

Brand over endorser (Vampire Effect): When celebrities are used to endorse brands,

one obvious result could be the potential overshadowing of the brand by the celebrity

(Martin Roll, 2006). Companies should ensure that this does not happen by formulating

advertising collaterals and other communications. Examples are the campaigns of Dawn

French-Cable Association and Leonard Rossiter-Cinzano. Both of these campaigns were

aborted due to celebrities getting in the way of effective communication. So, while

presenting the endorser, this should be kept in mind that Endorser is promoting the brand

not the vice versa. That's why Coca-Cola's idea of having Mean Joe toss his jersey to a

young boy in exchange for a bottle of Coke was brilliant. The commercial made charming

use of Mean Joe's image, but Coke was the star.

Celebrity endorsement is just a channel: Companies must realize that having a

celebrity endorsing a brand is not a goal in itself; rather it is one part of the

communication mix that falls under the broader category of sponsorship marketing.

Over dependency on celebrity: A celebrity is not a replacement for an idea. A brand

without a focus will never find the correct celebrity to match the brand.

The celebrity trap: Once into a celebrity, it is hard to get out of it. If the brand has done

even moderately well after the break of a celebrity campaign, it becomes difficult to

separate the role of message and the role of the celebrity in selling the brand.

Trademark and legal contracts: Companies should ensure that the celebrities they hire

are on proper legal terms so that they don’t endorse competitors’ products in the same

product category, thereby creating confusion in the minds of the consumers.

Overall Management: The organization’s senior leadership must champion the brand,

ideally with the CEO leading the initiative. A leader’s continual articulation of the brand

philosophy and the brand’s view of the world is meant to give the celebrity endorsement

strategy a recognizable face.

Investment: Intangible assets, including brand, now comprise the majority of the value of

a company. These assets require capital investment like any other. Progressive

companies and enlightened management recognize the need for appropriate

communications spending.

The Brand endorsement team: Global brands demand a global brand management

team. This regional and international organization is in place to maintain brand leadership

through efficient and effective use of celebrity endorsement.

Feel Cultural Sensitivity: To go global with a brand, endorsement strategy should make

sure you understand cultural sensitivities.

Celebrity ROI: Even though it is challenging to measure the effects of celebrity

endorsements on companies’ brands, companies should have a system combining

quantitative and qualitative measures to measure the overall effect of celebrity

endorsements on their brands.

Advertising is one of the major factors behind the economic activity of a country as it not only

helps to stimulate consumption but also give models for lifestyles and value orientation (Polly and

Mittal, 1993). Celebrity ads are becoming very common and prominent phenomena in advertising

everywhere. Almost 25% of all American ads have celebrities in them (Stephens and Rice, 1998)

and this percentage is more than double, up to 70% in Japan (Kilburn, 1998).The effectiveness of

a celebrity endorsement strategy may be mediated by variables such as the celebrity/product fit,

the product and usage occasion, societal/cultural conditions and the volume of repetitive

advertisements featuring celebrities. While brand marketers with positive experiences would tend

to believe that celebrity endorsements work and some would disagree, but one would be sure

that the magnitude of its impact is difficult to measure even if sales figures are at our disposal. As

Ajzen and Fishbein (1980, p.5) put it, "Human beings are usually quite rational and make

systematic use of the information available to them... People consider the implications of their

actions before they decide to engage or not to engage in a given behavior." Celebrity

endorsement has a big impact on purchase decision. As per Neha Taleja (2005), Markets in

which advertising coordinates consumer purchases, celebrity endorsements are more likely

chosen for products that have either of the following: -

High price-cost margins

Large potential customer pools

The need to co-ordinate across diverse sets of customers.

This research also includes the endorser viewpoint of signing a contract with a brand. As

suggested by Zafer & Baker (2001), even though building-up a whole marketing communication

campaign around a celebrity(s) makes complete sense, most celebrities are reluctant to sign such

deals for four reasons.

They are very concerned about their exposure. Should they sign a deal for more than the

main media, they know their picture can be stuck all over the place and they would lose

control over their exposure.

They do not want to be too closely associated with a particular product that may cost

them other potential deals.

They are uncomfortable with some media, as they are motionless.

They may be unable to sign for some media as their previous deals prohibit them.

As per Zafer & Baker, Using multiple celebrities or a single celebrity partially depends on the time

scale a campaign is using to have impact. If the campaign has a long-term strategy, agencies

would be more careful because potential downsides are much more than potential upsides. A

Brand endorser would be one who is not only a spokesperson for the brand or is just appearing

as a testimonial for the brand's benefits. He/she is an integral part of the brand persona and helps

to build an emotionale, which goes beyond just appearing on TV commercials. Friedman and

Friedman (1979) found empirical evidence that, in the promotion of products high in psychological

and/or social risk, use of celebrity endorser would lead to greater believability, a more favorable

evaluation of the product and advertisement, and a significantly more positive purchase intention.

Research Methodology

Questionnaire based sample analysis was the base of this study. The sample was believed to be

quite representative of the population, but nonetheless it was a convenience sample which may

be defined as ‘a form of non-probabilistic or purposive sample drawn on a purely opportunistic

basis from a readily accessible subgroup of the population (Baker 1990). A well framed set of

questioned were circulated through email to the target personnel or some interviews were

conducted over telephone, even few of them were face-to-face. Table-1 lists the twelve

participating companies where correspondents from different industries (IT, Telecom, Power,

Paints, Education, Advertisements, and FMCG etc) are interviewed. Interviews took place at

different agencies and at the icebreaking stage of every interview; managers were specifically

informed that this research was concerned with any kind of celebrity utilization (i.e. actors,

endorsements, testimonials, or spokespersons) in marketing communication activities. Interviews

over phone or face to face, were lasting on average over half of an hour.

Table-1 Participating Companies

Tech Mahindra Ltd. CESC Ltd.

Siemens Information Systems Ltd. Berger Paints

IBM India Ltd. ITC India Ltd.

Green Ply Techno India Group

Indian Institute Of Social Welfare & Business Management

Field n focus

DHL Nokia Siemens Network

Managers’ reasons for utilizing celebrity endorsers

Standing out or shorthand

Awareness or attention getting

Celebrity values define, and refresh the brand image

Celebrity add new dimensions to the brand image

Instant credibility or aspiration

PR coverage

Desperate for ideas

Convincing clients

According to managers, factors considered while selecting celebrities vary depending on how celebrities are utilized; celebrity as the central feature, or celebrity for the added interest.

Selection criteria

1. Celebrity-Product Match

2. Celebrity-Target Audience Match

3. Celebrity Popularity

4. Celebrity Credibility

5. Celebrity Values

6. Celebrity Physical Attractiveness

7. Celebrity Regional & international Appeal Factors

8. Celebrity Controversy Risk

9. Multiple Endorsements

10. Costs of Acquiring the Celebrity

11. Fit with the Advertising Idea

12. Celebrity Availability

13. Celebrity should be Brand User

14. Consumer Influencing Advertisement

15. Previous Endorsements

16. Use of promotional Medium

17. Brand Image Formation capability

18. Interest of endorser

19. Endorsement management team

20. Unique Idea of promotion

The research was conducted using a questionnaire designed to understand consumers views on

celebrity endorsement, measuring their attitude toward ad, attitude toward brand and their

intentions to purchase the given product or service. The demographic factors including Gender

and age are taken as independent variables. The perceptual differences were measured with

respect to single celebrity ads and multiple celebrities’ ads. To measure consumer perception,

three variables were studied, attitude toward advertisement, attitude toward brand and purchase

intentions. The sample consists of 88% male while 12% female respondents, 21% were of age

between 18 to 21, 49% were of age between 22 to 26 while 30% were of age between 27 to 30.

72% of respondents had bachelor's degree while 28% had professional degree.

Statistical Tools Used

The non response bias was measured applying two statistical techniques. Firstly, Statistical

measure of higher order like Sample distribution analysis along with required regression

technique for modeling numerical data consisting of values of a dependent variable or response

variable of one or more independent variables are used. Secondly, telephonic conversations were

made with those respondents who either did not respond or provided incomplete response. In

most of these cases the reason for lack of response was low confidence level of participation

(Rajagopal, 2009). A second test for Non response bias examined the differences between early

and late respondents on the same set of factors (Armstrong, Overton 1977) & this assessment

also yielded no significant differences between early and late respondents.

Data Analysis

Through this research, we found that the success of a brand through celebrity endorsement is a

cumulative of the following 20 attributes which were presented in the questionnaire as selection

criteria. While analyzing the major factors that should be kept in mind while selecting an endorser,

the following results came out from the research:

With the increasing complexity of global business, clear and structured decision criteria is

required for managing the celebrity endorsement strategy. The US has a popular index, called the

Q score, that summarises various perceptions and feelings that consumers have in the form of

likeability measurements. The index could be based on a rating that takes into account agreed

parameters/attributes, past-present media coverage/favourability and relevance, ground situation

in terms of successful/unsuccessful seasons/tenures, future prospects, etc. The closest thing to

this that exists today in more advanced manner is the Davie-Brown Index, developed by Davie-

Brown Entertainment and i-think Inc. This index evaluates the worth of celebrities through a

systematic and controlled method that resembles financial brand valuation and forecasting.

The Davie-Brown Index uses eight criteria in its evaluation:

1. Appeal 2. Notice 3. Trend setting 4. Influence 5. Trust

6. Endorsement 7. Aspiration 8. Awareness

The Top Rated New York Celebrities

NameOverall Rank Appeal Influence Trust

Micheal J Fox 4 87.3 76 75.9Tom Brokaw 14 80.3 75 73.5Whoopi Goldberg 21 75.3 66.1 63.7Drew Barrymore 27 78.6 69 63.9Robert De Niro 29 84.3 71.8 68.2Paul Newman 70 84.5 70.9 73.7Donald Trump 103 55.5 65.1 53.5Martha Stewart 118 55.5 60.2 46.7Chris Rock 159 75.1 69.9 60.6

Katie Couric 192 71.4 67.6 63.9(From http://nymag.com/)

ICM Research interviewed a random sample of 1,000 adults aged 18+ by telephone on February

22-24th, 2002. Interviews were conducted across the country and the results have been weighted

to the profile of all adults. A third (32%) of those surveyed by ICM say that celebrity endorsement

makes them feel more positive towards retailers. This rises to 59% among 18-24 year olds while

those aged 65+ are less moved at 9%. However, one in five (22%) say that it makes them feel

less positive (rising to 32% among 65+'s).

% of age groups that watch online/mobile

video once a week or more

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

16-20 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65+

Source:BBC/ICM

According to NPD Group Research, less than 1% of images consumers see daily (30 of 3,156)

reach conscious behavior. Thus celebrity endorsement has become a popular approach in the

branding process both in terms of gaining and keeping attention and in creating favorable

associations leading to positive brand knowledge and distinct brand images.

As statistical proof, Nike golf balls, since the company signed Tiger Woods in 1996, have seen a

$ 50 million revenue growth. Nike's golf line grossed more than $ 250 million in annual sales. In

2000, he re-negotiated a five-year contract estimated at $ 125 million. The Jamie Oliver deal with

Sainsbury was said to have resulted in an extra £1 billion in sales. Gary Lineker and assorted

celebrity chums pushed Walkers Crisps profits up by 105%. Indian Titan Watches used another

leading Bollywood icon Amir Khan to endorse the brand. The campaign helped Titan achieve a

growth of 45% in volume sales and 52% in value. According to Pooja Jain, Director, Luxor Writing

Instruments Ltd. (LWIL), post-Bachchan Parker's sales have increased by about 30 per cent.

Lord Sharman, chairman of Aviva, defended the move arguing that the company's brand

awareness had grown from 35% to 80% as a result of the TV ads, created by Abbott Mead

Vickers, feature celebrities who changed their names before becoming internationally recognized.

Microsoft armed with extensive advertiser and publisher portfolio, BAT conducted a study where

ad campaigns featuring (video and still) images of athletes were tested against the same ads with

no endorsement, the study found:

A 180% increase in unaided brand awareness, highlighting the ability of endorsement

ads to fundamentally "register" with consumers;

A 56% improvement in message association, where participants correctly absorbed the

attributes of tested products and services;

A 39% improvement in brand favorability, demonstrating how positive associations about

an athlete carry over to brands;

A 27% increase in purchase intent, a measure that speaks to brand and behavior goals.

180

56

3927

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

200

BrandAwareness

BrandAssociation

BrandFavourability

Purchase Intent

Impact Area

% of

Increment

"In 2001, 25% of all advertising dollars were spent on ads carrying celebrities. In 2008, that

percentage has gone up to 60% of all ad dollars spent," exclaims Percept's Porwal.

There has been a 49% growth in celebrity endorsement advertising volumes on just TV during the

year 2007 as compared to the previous year. There were in total 745 celebrity endorsements in

2007 as against 499 in 2006. Today, the celebrity endorsement industry is worth INRs.550 crore

and is growing at high double digit growth rate ranging between 60- 80%.

Experts predict the growth rate to touch even triple digits, soon. Sanjeev De, agency head,

Saatchi & Saatchi Delhi, also expresses his need for statistics in this regard as, "There is a great

deal of science involved in picking-up a brand ambassador and it cannot function without that."

A typical super-market in USA displays more than 12000 brands, an American family has at least

one television set and a consumer is exposed to around 1000 ads per day. Likewise, there are

around 130 television channels in India broadcasting over 3 million television commercials each

year in India. The media-explosion can thus be easily demonstrated. More over, people forget

80% of the information in just 24 hours! Just imagine the plight of the marketer to make his brand

shout over the deafening clutter of all the brands! Some where in the 80's, Indian marketers found

the solution, 'Celebrity Endorsement' for the brand! (Sanyukta A. Kulkarni Sahir U. Gaulkar, 2005-

07).

Major Findings

At the theoretical level, the research finds that the celebrity endorsement strategy has become an

important component of marketing communications strategy for firms in today’s competitive

environment. For practitioners, the findings highlight some of ‘dos and don’ts’ of celebrity

endorsement strategy. In a way, these findings provide guidelines for managers planning to utilize

and execute celebrity-based campaigns.

Through analysis and research, the following factors are revealed: -

The celebrities' acceptability, availability, regional appeal factors, popularity,

attractiveness, image, belief system are some other important factors on the impact of

celebrity endorsement on brands.

The customer wants a variety of aspects from the endorsement like the credibility and

acceptability of the endorser.

Multiple endorsements create cluttering the minds of the consumer.

In case of multiple endorsements by a celebrity, the success of celebrity endorsement for

a particular brand depends entirely on the power of the brand.

Apart from financial gains from the endorsements, brand and own image matching is also

vital from celebrity’s point of view.

Professional & planned performance of the endorser is important in deciding the success

of the endorsement.

Association of the celebrity with a controversy or ill-behavior can cause negative impact

to the endorsements.

A celebrity endorsement is useful in the Indian scenario. The amount of impact of the

effect varies with the celebrity and the product profile.

Celebrity endorsements cannot replace the comprehensive brand building processes.

Through research and analysis, this paper emerges with a 20-point model which can be used as

blue-print criteria and can be used by brand managers for selecting celebrities, and capitalizes

the celebrity resource through 360 degree brand communication since our research proposes it

as the foundation brick of the impact of celebrity endorsement. Our study reveals that the impact

of celebrity endorsement is proportional to the 20 factors discussed in the model. This analysis is

based on the model prescribed by Neha Taleja (2005) and Infilmarena.

1. Celebrity-Product Match

The match-up hypothesis proposes positive effects of a congruent association between a

celebrity and a product being promoted (Kahle and Homer 1985) & posits that the level of

celebrity/product congruence will influence celebrity endorsement effectiveness through (1) the

process of consumer attributions of the celebrity's motive for associating him or herself with the

particular product and (2) the subsequent effects of these attributions on the consumer

evaluations of the endorser, the ad and the brand involved in the endorsements. Cyrus Broacha

is the brand ambassador for MTV since both the celebrity and the brand are considered as

friendly, young, mood-boosting, humourous and outspoken. MTV's brand personality overlaps

Cyrus Broacha's image as a brand.

2. Celebrity-Target Audience Match

Celebrity is the mouthpiece for a brand in communicating messages to target audiences rather

more effectively than any other voice (Zafer, Baker, 1999). The personalities of celebrities are

very strong and they can rapidly change perceptions of a brand. Endorsers who have

demographic characteristics similar to those of the target audience are viewed more viable and

20 Attributes of effective celebrity endorsement

Celebrity Endorsement Model

Celebrity-Target

Audience

Celebrity Popularity

Celebrity Credibility

Celebrity Values

Celebrity-Product Match

Celebrity Physical

Attractiveness

Celebrity Regional &

international

Fit with the Advertising

Idea

Celebrity should be

Brand User

Previous Endorsement

s

Celebrity Controversy

Risk

Multiple Endorsement

s

Costs of Acquiring the

Celebrity

Celebrity Availability

Consumer Influencing

Advertisemen

Brand Image Formation capability

Endorsement management

team

Unique Idea of promotion

Interest of endorser

Proper use of promotional

Medium

persuasive (kamins, 1994). Indian TV star Smriti Irani endorsing the WHO recommended ORS

Campaign in India. Indian mothers can associate with Smriti Irani through the facets she projects

on screen or in regular life which helps develop a connect with the target audience since mothers

medicate their children with ORS. The basis for the effectiveness of celebrity-endorsed

advertising can be linked to Kelman's processes of social influence as discussed by Friedman

and Friedman:

Compliance infers that another individual or group of individuals influences an individual cause

he or she hopes to achieve a favorable reaction from this other group.

Identification applies to the situation wherein the individuals emulate the attitudes or behavior of

another person or group, simply because they aspire to be like that person or group.

Internalization as a process of social influence is said to occur when individuals adopt the

attitude or behavior of another person because that behavior is viewed as honest and sincere and

is congruent with their value system. Celebrities are well-liked, but the techniques that can be

used to enhance their credibility as spokespeople, and therefore, tie-in more closely with the

internalization process needs to be looked into.

3. Celebrity Popularity

Empirical finding support the fact that celebrities have positive effect on both attitude toward ad

and brand (Ohanian, 1990). These results are in favor of celebrity endorsers because they are

widely recognized, are perceived to be more credible and produce greater influence on evaluation

of brand and its purchase intentions (Cohoi and Rifon, 2007; Atkin and Blok, 1983; Ohanian,

1990; Ohanian, 1991). The lifecycle of celebrity popularity varies a lot. People tend to

commensurate the personalities of the celebrity with the brand thereby increasing the recall value

Celebrity. Brand association like Garnier endorsed Tara Sharma & Simone Singh, Agni Diamonds

& Riama Sen don't get much brand recall. On the other hand, HPCL has had increased popularity

and share of voice due to the endorsement of the brand through Tennis star Sania Mirza..

4. Celebrity Credibility

The most important aspect of celebrity endorsement is credibility. In a research carried out by

Infilmarena, a brand and advertisement group, among 43 ad agencies and companies, most

experts believed that the most important dimensions of credibility are trustworthiness and

prowess or expertise with regard to the recommended product or service (Miciak and Shanklin,

2002). The credibility components are interconnected with other traits of the celebrity and the

image dimension which reflects good qualities e.g. pleasant, wise, educated etc. produce sincere

and positive perception of the celebrity in consumer minds (Choi & Rifon, 2007). Credibility is the

most important criteria in choosing a celebrity endorser by the firm which is followed by familiarity

and likeability and at last we have gender, and in credibility expertise is the most important piece

which is followed by trustworthiness and than attractiveness (Knott & James, 2004). The

celebrities that were perceived as having constant media coverage are trusted more than the

celebrities who are not in the constant spotlight (Friedman, Santeramo, & Traina, 1978). To site

one of the most successful campaigns in which the celebrity's credibility has had an indelible

impact on the brand and has saved the brand is of Cadbury's. After the worm controversy,

Amitabh Bachchan's credibility infused into the brand through the campaign, helping it to get back

on track. Research conducted by social psychologists over the past 30 years demonstrates that a

source perceived as highly credible is more persuasive than a low credibility sender (Hovland and

Weiss, 1951; McGuire, 1969; Hass, 1981). The sources that companies use to present their

advertising message typically attempt to project a credible image in terms of competence,

trustworthiness or dynamism.

5. Celebrity Values

Celebrity branding is all about the transfer of the value from the person to the product he

endorses or stands for. There are two concerns here. The first is how long this could last. Can the

person maintain his popularity? Another concern is his private life - personal integrity. If he is

implicated in any kind of scandal, that would ruin the brand. "Who would want to use Michael

Jackson to brand their product?" (brandchannel.com). Amitabh Bachchan & Shahrukh Khan

campaigning for Pulse Polio or Aishwarya Rai appearing in the Donate Eyes campaign are few

examples, which reflect the transfer of celebrity values to the brand, creating an impact that

generates recall.

6. Celebrity Physical Attractiveness

Physical attractiveness of the endorser may be central in context with change in attitude of the

customer (Kahle & Homer 1985). The celebrity endorsements based on the attractiveness of the

endorser most of the time produces positive effect on consumers. In general attractive endorsers

are more effective promoters than unattractive endorsers (Till & Busler, 1998). The target

audience is more familiar to the attractive celebrities and these celebrities are more likable

(Miciak & Shanklin, 1994). Most advertisements use attractive celebrities and the consumers are

accustomed to see pretty people in ads that is why the physical attractiveness and

trustworthiness of a celebrity were not significantly related to the purchase intentions but the

expertise is (Ohanian, 1991). Involvement enhances the recall of the product and it also

enhances the recall of the brand (Petty & Cacioppo, 1980). There is a strong effect of celebrity

attractiveness as well as interaction of likeability, involvement, and sex on the recall of the

product.

7. Celebrity Regional & international Appeal Factors

In a market with a very high proliferation of local, regional and international brands, celebrity

endorsement was thought to provide a distinct differentiation. While selecting an endorser its

regional effect always comes into play. Where as while going global, the celebrities should be

chosen in such a way that can create a global overall impact. In this respect, a planning director

believed that celebrities with international recognition were more valuable internationally than

nationally as the need for instant shorthand is greater in the international arena. For example,

Jack Dee and John Smith’s no nonsense straight-talking pint of beer campaign would not make

sense in countries where Jack Dee is not known due to the fact that Jack Dee would be seen as

an ordinary consumer. Developing international campaigns was deemed to be a difficult task

because of cultural differences. An interesting example would be of Steve Waugh campaigning

for Tourism Australia in India since he was one of the popular celebrities from Australia.and could

carry the messge of Australia as a tourist destination. Other celebrities like Kylie Minogue,

8. Celebrity Controversy Risk

Association of the celebrity with a controversy or ill-behavior can cause negative impact to the

endorsements. Any act on the part of the endorser that gives him a negative image among the

audience and goes on to affect the brands endorsed. The brand, in most instances, takes a

bashing. Siyaram Silk Mills Ltd. (Siyaram), one of India's leading textile companies, was also

affected badly by South African Cricket Captain Hansie Cronje match fixing controversy. Ann

Green (2009), senior vice president at Millward Brown, said, "In the past few years, we have seen

a slight decline in the use of celebrity endorsements and that is in part due to the risk associated

as well as the necessary investment."

9. Multiple Endorsements

The case of multiple endorsements, both in terms of a single brand hiring multiple celebrities and

that of a single celebrity endorsing multiple brands, is often debated. At times, consumers do get

confused about the brand endorsed when a single celebrity endorses numerous brands. The

recall then gets reduced and reduces the popularity of the brand. For example, in case of Sachin

Tendulkar people recall Pepsi, TVS Victor and MRF, but might not remember brands like

Britannia and Fiat. Thus, for multiple endorsements where the same celebrity endorses several

brands, it boils down to the strength of the brand and the advertising content. As per Zafer &

Baker, Using multiple celebrities or a single celebrity partially depends on the time scale a

campaign is using to have impact.

10. Costs of Acquiring the Celebrity

Companies must have deep pockets to be able to afford the best available celebrities. Recently, a

newspaper report showed how cola firms had gone beyond their advertising budgets to get the

best celebrities. Small firms that use celebrities' services run greater risks if they invest large

amounts. Although nobody is willing to say exactly how much celebrities get paid, industry

sources say Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar's price is believed to be between Rs. 2.0-2.5 crore

per endorsement, and Oscar winning musician A. R. Rehman, who had signed up with AirTel, is

believed to have picked up Rs. 1.75 crore.

11. Fit with the Advertising Idea

Marketers now seek to adopt 360 degree brand stewardship in which the brand sees no limits on

the number of contact points possible with a target consumer. Advertising ideas, thus, revolve

around this approach, and the celebrity endorsement decisions are made through these strategic

motives. One of the most successful celebrity endorsement campaign which reflects the fit

between the brand and the 360 degree advertising fit is Richard Gere's recent endorsement for

VISA in India has gained acclaim due to its innovativeness and consumer connect. Brand

marketers say that research reveals that Richard Gere was the most popular face across the Asia

Pacific region, and would also fit into the persona of the brand meeting their communication

objective to enhance VISA's brand leadership and consumer preference, and the motive to

continue the "All it Takes" empowerment platform featuring international celebrities. Celebrities do

have some common characteristics which include their recognition, their status or their popularity

but each celebrity may have his or her own unique image or cultural meaning which has been

identified by McCracken (1989).

12. Celebrity Availability

Due to multiple endorsements by certain celebrities, brands refuse to adopt celebrity

endorsement since they fear dilution of the brand image. So, prior to the endorsement, availability

should be judged.

13. Celebrity should be Brand User

To make an endorsement successful, the customer should believe in the endorsement. If the

endorser using a brand and promoting a different brand in the advertisement, may create a

nonsense image to the customer. One of the most successful campaigns has been executed by

PETA in which celebrities like Shilpa Shetty, Amisha Patel, Yana Gupta, Sheetal Malhar, Mahima

claimed to believe in PETA's philosophy, and thereby endorse the brand. On the other hand,

while some would understand that Amitabh Bachchan would have never used Navratan Tel.

Britney Spears who endorsed one cola brand and was repeatedly caught drinking another brand

of cola on tape.

14. Consumer Influencing Advertisement

The advertisement also should be well made and designed to portray the actual image of the

brand and to convey the message intended to transfer to target audience. The director of the ad-

film should be well chosen and the endorser should be a good actor. Generally, workshops are

arranged to train the endorser to act as desired by the director. Sometimes due to poor

performance in the advertisement, the promotion attempt fails although the celebrity was perfect

for the brand.

15. Previous Endorsements

While endorsing a celebrity, his/her prior endorsements should be monitored carefully. This will

help in analyzing celebrity’s dedication, professionalism and credibility as well as will help in

evaluating the impact. Endorser campaigning for the similar line of products should not be

endorsed. Even for an endorsing brand, its prior engagements with same or different celebrities

should be kept in mind.

16. Proper use of promotional Medium

The most preferred medium for celebrity endorsement strategy was television although using

several media was seen as an effective way to get good return on investment since celebrity fees

are usually high. Using multiple celebrities or a single celebrity depends on the time period over

which a campaign is planned to have impact, campaign budget, and variance in target audience

characteristics. Other medium like radio, hoarding, poster, news paper etc can also be used to

promote the advertisement. While using audio medium, the celebrity voice should be well known.

If Indian Cine star Amitabh Bachchan promotes something on air, most of the Indian can identify

where as very few can identify the voice of Indian soccer captain Bhaichung Bhutia if he is

endorsed for the same.

17. Brand Image Formation capability

Both theoretical and empirical research on the subject clearly indicates that celebrity product

endorsement is a form of co-branding, which influences brand image through meaning transfer

from the endorser to the endorsed brand. Celebrity-product congruence has a positive impact on

brand image, which in turn has a positive impact on brand equity. Baran and Blasko (1984)

explained, "Since most products aren't special, most advertising does all that so-called image

stuff... There's no information about the product, there's only information about the kind of people

who might be inclined to use the product." (p.13). This view is echoed by Feldwick (1991) who

has suggested that the subjective experience of using a brand can be different from the

subjective experience of using an identical product without the brand reassurance. In the case of

using celebrity advertising to build brand image, the effects are examined with a social

psychological framework.

18. Interest of endorser

An endorsement became most successful when the endorser is also interested in the association

with the brand not only for financial benefit, but also for his/her own image building also. Several

celebrities have ventured into the fashion and accessories businesses and more are on the way.

Jennifer Lopez, Sean Combs, and Jessica Simpson all have clothing lines; Victoria Beckham

designs jeans; Elizabeth Hurley has launched a swimwear brand while Kylie Minogue already has

a flourishing lingerie brand, called Love Kylie. In addition, the list of celebrities that have launched

perfumes named after them is steadily increasing: Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Paris Hilton,

Celine Dion, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Cindy Crawford, etc. Major stars do not really work for

the endorsement fee, but are motivated by genuine affection for the product (Kamen et al, 1975).

19. Endorsement management team

Global brand endorsements demand a global brand management team. This regional and

international organization is in place to maintain brand leadership through proper effective

celebrity endorsements. Companies with large brand portfolios tend to have separate managers

for each brand and its promotion. Regardless, global brand managers have the authority and

resources necessary to implement key decisions based on performance measurement. The

brand management team reports to a senior executive officer of the company.

20. Unique Idea of promotion

Great brand endorsement represents great ideas at right time. These brands express the

uniqueness of position to all internal and external audiences. They effectively utilize all elements

in the communications mix to position themselves within and across international markets. Apple

has creatively addressed its marketing mix while ensuring its people embody its most ownable

and beneficial brand attribute: innovation. The innovative advertisement planning, promoting,

selection of animation, identification of media – all contribute to the success of the celebrity

endorsements.

Management Value

Businesses have long sought to distract and attract the attention of potential customers that live

in a world of ever-increasing commercial bombardment. Everyday consumers are exposed to

thousands of voices and images in magazines, newspapers, and on billboards, websites, radio

and television. Celebrity endorsements give a brand a touch of glamour and the hope that a

famous face will provide added appeal and name recognition in a crowded market. In the battle

for the mind, you get the customer excited by showing him a known face, and an effective

demand is created. In short it helps increase the recall value of the brand. A piece of research

states that the Indian target audience age group of 15-30 gets influenced first by cricketers, then

Bollywood stars and only then music, festivals and food (Hindu Business Line, 2003). D. Garg,

Vice-President (Marketing), Dabur India Ltd quotes, "A celebrity does help in increasing brand

sales, but only if he/she is selected carefully and used effectively. The personality of the brand

and the celebrity have to complement each other and the selection of the celebrity is, therefore,

very important." As statistical proof, Nike golf balls, since the company signed Tiger Woods in

1996, have seen a $ 50 million revenue growth. Nike's golf line grossed more than $ 250 million

in annual sales. In 2000, he re-negotiated a five-year contract estimated at $ 125 million. So, it

can be concluded that celebrity endorsement is recognized as a potentially potent tool in

business communications, with celebrities viewed as more powerful than anonymous models and

campaigns tending to verbalize the meaning of the celebrity in relation to the brand (Brian

Moeran, 2003).

Limitation of the study

This Study is conducted in India and all the questionnaire based analysis that is done are all from

Indian professionals. This research was exploratory and had a relatively small sample size; there

is a need for confirmatory research with a larger sample testing hypotheses derived from the

findings presented in this paper. Another limitation of research is that our findings for non-

aspirational celebrities are not significant. Another primary limitation is related to the

generalization of the research results. Most important generalization issue is related to sample.

Scope for future work

The study was exploratory in nature and suffered from certain constraints and limitations such as

geographic limitation (mainly Indian scenarios are taken into account), strategic brand

management taken in a limited sense (i.e., limited discussion on financial aspect) and neglecting

e-marketing/branding aspect. Nevertheless, the above study leaves an immense scope for

carrying out further research in the following areas:

To carry out similar study from the advertiser’ perspective and comparing that with the

customers’ perspective

To establish a more definite correlation between celebrity impact on brand equity and

relation with customer's psychology.

To carry out study on other possible aspect of endorsements.

To carry out studies in other geographic areas i.e., in other nations and include all

possible industries to find out whether there is any significant difference in the impact on

the customers who are geographically separated.

To carry out more detailed study and statistical research on the overall brand equity

building mechanism with the help of celebrity endorsement

Conclusion

Advertising is seen as playing a manipulative and merciless role in the emerging brandscape,

seeking to transform customers into the personification of brand identity. Keller emphasizes the

need for a structured approach based on sound research in order to manage brands strategically

and to generate optimum value both in terms of asset valuation and marketing efficiency. To

achieve this effectively, value for the brand has to be created and managers must have the

knowledge and expertise to exploit this value by developing profitable brand strategies. Overall

research points to accumulated positive influence over the audience's recall and purchase

intentions, with celebrities deemed more effective than using a typical consumer or expert.

Successful celebrity/brand partnerships have resulted in significant gains in income for brand

owners. The micro factors such as the need for interactivity, the degree of control exercised by

consumers over messages received and increasing media fragmentation render celebrity

endorsement a valid strategy. Careful management of brand image that impacts on brand

associations stored in consumer memory is critical to a successful strategy. This study shows that

consumers report higher self-brand connections for brands with images that are consistent with

the image of a celebrity that they aspire to be like, particularly in the case when the image of the

celebrity and the brand match. Study also examines how self-brand connections are formed.

Celebrity endorsement effects are moderated by brand symbolism, such that brands that

communicate something about the user yield stronger effects than brands that do not. In the case

of aspirational celebrities, the positive effect of image congruency is stronger for those brands

that are perceived to communicate something symbolic about the brand’s user compared to those

brands that do not. This finding is an important demonstration that consumers are motivated by

their self-needs to utilize brand associations derived from celebrity endorsement in a contingent

fashion to construct and present their self-identities.

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