Article Review: Impact of Celebrity Endorsement on Consumer Behavior

This report is a comprehensive review of an article that investigates the impact of celebrity endorsements on consumer behavior. The original research, conducted by Ahmed et al., examines how celebrity endorsements influence customer buying decisions and brand perception. The study highlights the role of celebrity attributes such as attractiveness, credibility, and meaning transfer in shaping consumer attitudes. Key findings indicate that celebrity-endorsed advertisements are more attractive to consumers than non-endorsed ads, and that there is a significant correlation between celebrity attributes and consumer buying behavior. The research involved a survey of 200 university students, revealing that television is the most effective medium for advertisements. The report also includes a critique of the original article, discussing strengths and weaknesses in the methodology and analysis. The conclusion emphasizes the significant impact of celebrity endorsements on consumer purchasing intentions and the importance of considering celebrity attributes in marketing strategies.

LUCY COLLEGE
DIRE DAWA CAMPUS
COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS
MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
POST GRADUATE PROGRAM
ARTICLE REVIEW ON THE IMPACT OF CELEBRITY
ENDORSEMENT ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
BY: RIZWAN RAHEEM AHMED
SUMEET KUMAR SEEDANI
MANOJ KUMAR AHUJA AND
SAGAR KUMAR PARYANI
Course title: consumer behavior
Reviewed by
FATIYA YASIN
ID NO - PGP/223/11
Dec. 2018
Submitted to: Dereje A. (Ass. prof.)

IMPACT OF CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENT
ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
RIZWAN RAHEEM AHMED
Indus University, Karachi, PAKISTAN
SUMEET KUMAR SEEDANI
Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology
(SZABIST, Karachi, PAKISTAN)
MANOJ KUMAR AHUJA
Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology
(SZABIST, Karachi, PAKISTAN)
SAGAR KUMAR PARYANI
Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology
(SZABIST, Karachi, PAKISTAN)
September 27, 2015

INTRODUCTION
In today’s world celebrities are being treated as a role model. People are changing their living
style related with their favorite celebrity. This thing creates a great impact on the buying
behavior of the persons. This attracts the customers and ultimately increases the company
productivity.
Celebrities are not always creating any kind of effect on persons mind in terms of buying. But
mostly it gives a great impact on perception of choosing any product. We are always thinking
that if our favorite celebrity is using them. Then we should use that to be like them (Khatri2006).
From last 150 years advertising is changing in different phases from the classical to modern.
Now a day it’s the best strategy used by marketers to influence customers by showing celebrities
with their products, it includes different appeals lie, exciting, absurdity, sexual etc. Belch, G. and
Belch, M. (2008) acknowledged that the main aim of formulating such strategies is to get high
brand revelation, longing, concentration and curiosity. To do so, marketers attach famous
personalities’ with their products.
McCracken (1989) stated that these famous personalities’ had great influence on the consumer’s
buying behavior that’s why it becomes the most attractive tool of advertising now a day. The
major aim to do advertising and adopt this strategy is to influence customers towards the
products (Ohanian 1990).
Erdogan (1999) concludes that celebrities are those people who have well known by the large
number of people. They have special uniqueness and features like magnetism, unusual standard
of living or special skills that are commonly experiential in common people.
Khatri (2006) studied that the celebrity endorsement is the Promotion strategy to attract the
customers. Zafar (2009) suggested that the celebrities’ endorsements are being used to get the
attention of the customers, by involving the best models in the advertisement and motivate
people to get attention towards the product because this will ultimately raise the customer toward
that company’s product. In this process the message of the main motive of the product is
explained by the well-known personalities. So they are more preferable by the companies for
developing the awareness.

SUMMARY
Today celebrity endorsement becomes the multi-million industries in the world. Marketers
endorsed celebrities with their products and brands in the advertisement to increase their sales
and change the perception of the viewer’s regarding their brand, which positively impacts on
their buying behavior. This research focuses on the celebrity endorsement and its impact on the
customer’s buying behavior and their perception regarding the product or brand of the company.
The study found that celebrities endorsed advertisements are more attractive than the non-
endorsed advertisements. Moreover the tested attributes of celebrity show positive relationship
with the buying behavior and brand perception as well. It also proved that there is a significant
impact of celebrity endorsement on the buying behavior. Finally, the results of the study further
proved that there is a significant impact of celebrity endorsement on the buying behavior of
customers.
McCracken (1989) found that celebrities endorses characterized an effectives way of transferring
meaning to brands. The common conviction of the marketers is that there is a significant and
huge impact of those advertisements, which are endorsed by the famous celebrities comparably
with the non-endorsed celebrities.
CONTRIBUTION/ STUDY PURPOSE
The study significantly contribute to the body knowledge by in sighting the impact of celebrity
endorsement on consumer buying behavior.
Furthermore, the study also contributes as a reference or literature review for other researcher
who want to study in the area or the results of this study will be useful for academicians; they
can gain insights and suggestions for future research.
The purpose of this paper is to establish the effectiveness or lack thereof of celebrity
endorsements. In addition the research study sought to determine which attributes consumers pay
attention to when evaluating and selecting a brand and which factors brought about by celebrity
endorsements contribute to building brand loyalty in the context of the Company’s
advertisements.

RESULTS
Theoretical framework describes the overall topic of the study, as its shows that there are several
attributes of celebrity, here the main three attributes: attractiveness which includes the beauty,
charm, looks, pleasant appearance, magnetism etc., the other attribute is credibility which
includes trustworthiness, reliability, authority, standing and sincerity of the celebrity and the
third one is meaning transfer which, includes that how he/she change the meaning of the brand or
product. So when the image of the product is improved in consumer mind he or she wants to
purchase that product which suggests that there is a relationship amongst three attributes of
celebrity, and these have the direct relationship and impact on overall buying behavior (Ahmed
et al. 2014).
Total population is 200 university students taken in account, in which 116 are male respondents
and 84 are female respondents, if the study look around to the age factor, most of the respondents
are between the age of 18-24, which are 121, 68 are in the age of 25-30 and there are only 11
respondents above 30, because this research focused on the students only.
The social status analysis suggested that there are 56 respondents who belong to Middle class, 49
from upper middle class and 95 respondents are from upper class families. So the investigator
conduct the research from different students related from different social classes in universities.
The questionnaire asked respondents that which medium is important to watch celebrity
advertisements, most of the respondents i.e. 100 go for the TV advertisements, so we can say that
TV is the effective source of conveying advertisements, next high frequency is Internet i.e. 48
respondents went for and 45 have chosen magazines.
The question that provided to respondents entails which advertisements attracts them more,
celebrity endorsed or non-celebrity endorsed, 162 respondents 200 said that celebrity endorsed
advertisement, only 38 respondents voted to non-celebrity advertisements. So we can say that
celebrity-endorsed advertisements are more attractive in the perception of the viewers.

The investigator asked respondents that how frequently they come across advertising using
celebrity endorsement, most of the people said occasionally and often it shows that celebrity
endorsed advertisement are very popular and mostly watched by the viewers.
Correlation Analysis
The highest relationship is among the perception and buying behavior, which is .920, this show
that there is a significant relationship between perception and the buying behavior. The second
highest relationship of perception is with the credibility that is .691 followed by the credibility
and then attractiveness.
Secondly Credibility has the highest relationship with the buying behavior, which is .733, and
then with the credibility and attractiveness followed by the meaning transfer. Thirdly,
attractiveness is the highest relationship with the credibility .565, followed by the meaning
transfer and buying behavior. Meaning transform has the high relationship with the buying
behavior .751 and .634 with the credibility.
Hence all sub-variables have significant relationship on buying behavior, where perception,
which stimulates “variable”, has highest impact with value of 0.920; while low relationship is
attractiveness .469. So we can conclude that all the variables have significant relationship with
each other and they also have high relationship with the buying behavior.
Coefficients Analysis
The result of coefficient in this model; where Beta is .694 of the perception and t value is 18.781
& p<0.05, which propose that perception has a significant impact on buying behavior. Moreover,
Credibility has t=4.638 & p<0.05, and Meaning transform has t=4.750 & p<0.05, therefore, it is
further concluded that both Credibility & Meaning transform has a significant impact on buying
behavior as well.
Since the attractiveness has the negative result (B), it shows that the increase in attractiveness
decreases the impact on the buying behavior. Finally it could be concluded that Celebrity
endorsement has the impact and even a huge impact on buying behavior.

Therefore, hence it is proved that there is a notable and worthy impact of celebrity endorsement
over the buying behavior and it is also accepted that there is a significant relationship between
celebrity endorsement and buying behavior.
This research also suggested that there is a relationship between all the attributes of celebrities.
DISCUSION
CONCLUSION
This research concluded that the Celebrity endorsed advertisements are more attractive than the
non-celebrity endorsed advertisements. Respondents also voted that the best medium for
watching the advertisements is TV and then Internet. It is further concluded that the highest
relationship existed between the perception and the buying behavior. The lowest relationship is,
between celebrity attractiveness and the perception. There is a significant relationship among all
attributes of the celebrity. It is finally concluded that there is a significant relationship between
celebrity endorsement and buying behavior. Respondents clearly conveyed that they do purchase
those products and services, which are endorsed by the celebrities.
Results show that the celebrity endorsement has reasonable impact on customers as per their
attitude and buying intention. Physical attractiveness, credibility and congruence of the celebrity
with the reference to endorsed advertisement all have impact on customer perception about the
advertised product. It has also been highlighted that celebrity endorsement advertisements
boosting up the sales and purchase of product, people like to buy the products more if endorsed
by the celebrity and it shows that today’s customer is aware and influenced by media.

GENERAL CRITIQUE
In my opinion, the main aim of the study is admirable and it can pave a way to find out the
Impact of Celebrity Endorsement on Consumer Buying Behavior. The study frame work holds
dependent variable i.e. the buying behavior and the independent variable which is celebrity
endorsement are described well. The study also operationalize the celebrity in its three main
attributes namely, attractiveness, credibility and meaning transfer.
Nevertheless, the research problem is not stated precisely and it is not indicated as in a way that
enables the reader to easily understand it. In addition to this, the study preferred to identify the
impact of celebrity endorsement trough unlimited study area with a minimum sample size rather
than investigating in specific company advertisement. This may lead the investigator to roughly
assess the study problem.
In some instance a review of literature attempts to cover critical concepts to provide some
background towards the study. However, I personally believe that, it was more adequate if other
related issues as well as current researches were included to help and situate the author’s own
research.
Thereon, the methodology portion efforts to comprise the research design, sample size,
instrument selection and plan of analysis. The study attempts to describe the participants
including the method of sample selection as the same time it tries to explain the instrument
reliability. Nonetheless, it excludes the validity and appropriateness.
The study tried to show three attributes of celebrity like attractiveness which includes the beauty,
charm, looks, pleasant appearance and magnetism etc., the other attribute the researcher taken in
account is credibility which includes trustworthiness, reliability, authority, standing and sincerity
of the celebrity and the third one is meaning transfer which, includes that how he/she change the
meaning of the brand or product.
However, the above attributes are not enough to formulate the overall objective of the study.
There are also attributes like personality of the endorser or it is called the celebrity person Para
social identification scale (CPI) is designed to measure how media consumers develop
identification with celebrities or popular fictional characters. Thus, it was about more powerful if
the researcher were admit and comprise further attributes.

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