Celebrity Endorsement in Social Media

1. Introduction and Background

Social media platforms, including Facebook and Twitter, account for a significant share of all social media users. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have billions of registered users. In these social media, there is the existence of celebrities who have a huge following (McCracken, 1989). These celebrities include singers, movie stars, sports stars, and writers. Every comment and tweet by the celebrities might be reposted and retweeted respectively by many fans despite the fact they contribute limited content. It is undeniable that they have a huge influence on any topic. Thus, the majority of them are opinion leaders and impact the buying decisions of consumers.

Involvement of a celebrity in an advert improves the probability of the consumer buying the product (McCormick, 2016). Celebrities have a high persuasive ability, particularly to their followers. This illuminates why small and established brands allocate significant amounts of money to sign up celebrities to endorse the products to their followers. Celebrities provide an effective manner to advertise a product owing to their massive following (Djafarova & Rushworth, 2017). The increase in celebrity endorsements is attributed to the fierce competition in numerous industries through an approach to take advantage of the fame, the high number of followers of celebrities, and their persuasive power derived from their public allure (Wang et al., 2017). The research examines the perception of celebrity endorsement in social media from the consumer’s perspective.

There is literature on celebrity endorsement with established firms though little exists on local celebrity endorsements in the United Kingdom. There is a significant gap in knowledge regarding consumer perception of celebrity endorsement in social media. There is a scarcity of literature on the studies that focus on celebrity endorsement in social media and consumer perception.

Since brands have to shift with the technological world, the celebrity endorsements that brands have enforced in the previous decades, their advantages and disadvantages, and their impact of them on consumer purchasing decisions require to be understood in order for improvements to be made and the demographics that have been left behind can get the support they require promptly (Knoll & Matthes, 2017).

The study will contribute to new knowledge because it will show consumer perceptions of celebrity endorsement.

2. Literature Review

Companies using celebrity endorsement strategies under the right strategies can positively influence consumers’ brand attitudes and thoughts. Most consumers perceive that the information portrayed by celebrities may have more similarities to their interests and lifestyle, unlike unfamiliar faces. According to Kamins (1990) and Parmer et al. (2020), different celebrity endorsers impact the endorsed product differently, meaning that the degree of matching the celebrity and product category will determine the advertisement’s effectiveness. Under the match-up hypothesis, a strong match between celebrity and product images should exist for increased advertiser and celebrity credibility (Kamins, 1990). One aspect of this hypothesis is attractiveness, where the impact on both the product and ad-based evaluations gets enhanced if the product’s attributes match the physical attractiveness of a celebrity endorser. Also, Parmer et al. (2020) developed a generic framework that matched celebrity associations with different product categories. They found that different celebrities are considered fit to endorse different product categories.

Ertugan & Mupindu (2019) and Lili et al. (2022) hypothesized that attractiveness, which points to the attributes a consumer finds attractive in celebrities, improves social acceptance and acts as an attention catcher in social media. The Source Attractiveness model developed by McGuire highlights awareness, fondness, and similarities in the celebrity as what consumers consider attractiveness. The consumer imitates or gets easily attached to celebrities that say or do things that resonate with activities in their lives, including things that bring good memories or reflect their self-identity. Thus, physically attractive celebrities have a positive influence on consumers’ beliefs and perceptions. They have more market advantages as consumers appreciate their words and appearance, which increases profits for firms from increased sales of endorsed products. Attractiveness can be in various forms, including being beautiful, intelligent, or inspirational. Higher attractiveness of the celebrity endorsement means the product image receives higher recognition since it will result in consumers being influenced and approving the product or service.

Source credibility focuses on trustworthiness and expertise though there has yet to be a consensus on whether to treat them as separate variables or one combined construct. Expertise relates to what the celebrity knows about the product (McGuire, 1985). It includes the knowledge, skills, and experience they possess about a product, making them more persuasive and equipped with authority and believability. In their study, Lili et al. (2022) indicate that celebrities that are considered credible have professional ethics, are honest, and consumers trust them. Without expertise, the consumers may become sceptical about the product and, therefore, difficult to convince. Trustworthiness depends on what the consumers perceive as the motivations behind the celebrity’s endorsement. It is essential that the consumer does not see the celebrity as one led by self-interest but as an honest endorser, even though the consumers also know that the celebrity receives payment. A celebrity can utilize trust effectively when the endorsed product does not require expertise. If the consumer perceives a celebrity as credible, there are higher chances that there will be a positive impact on the consumer’s attitudes, beliefs, views, and behaviour. Also, a celebrity perceived as credible affects the credibility of the brand, and thus it is essential for companies and marketers to select their endorsers wisely.

Moreover, trustworthy celebrities may not be willing to endorse unreliable products even when offered financial gains because it will impact them negatively. They know they can influence consumers to change their perception and accept a product since higher credibility results in a more persuasive advertisement. Some advertisements, like for charities, require highly reliable celebrity endorsements that are reliable and non-deceptive to help them fundraise or get donations. Tantawi and Sadek (2019) confirm that in cause-related marketing, there is a positive relationship between celebrity trustworthiness and consumers’ purchasing attitude. Also, Wang et al. (2017) state that the credibility of the celebrity enhances brand attitude and credibility, and purchase intention. For example, a company scandal can negatively impact consumers’ purchase decisions and the celebrity’s image. However, a scandal caused by a celebrity, though forgivable, can lessen trustworthiness and result in a negative celebrity and brand image.

For celebrity endorsement to work well, there is a need for congruency where the celebrity fits the message and instigates consumer buying behaviour. Under the celebrity-brand fit model, the celebrity, product attributes and brand should match to enhance the advertisements’ persuasiveness and publicity effectiveness. The brand image should match that of the spokesperson. For example, athletes should become celebrities for sports brand advertisements to ensure the celebrity fits the product. Chan and Fan (2022) states that image congruence between celebrity endorsers and brands makes advertisements impressive and memorable.

Celebrity endorsement effectiveness also involves the celebrity transferring meaning to the brand and product and to the consumer. According to McCracken, the meaning transfer model proposes that consumers associate particular symbolic meanings like values, personality, or feelings with the brands and products that celebrities endorse when they engage in an advertisement with them (McCracken, 1989). Though this model is not used frequently, meaning transfer often happens between celebrities and the brands or products they endorse. Consumers often look for symbolic properties in products to attach to their lives for self-image constructs, such as positive meanings like smartness and intelligence, and negative ones like arrogance and conceitedness.

A study by Shouman (2020) found that celebrity endorsers on social media play a crucial role in inspiring consumers and facilitating the shopping process, though not their purchase decision. According to Shouman (2020), consumers perceive celebrity endorsement on social media as believable and beneficial as it helps them to remember a brand or a product. Though it affects the consumers’ purchase intention, consumers often buy celebrity-endorsed products or services that they need and leave out those they do not need.

Celebrity endorsement in social media can be an effective business marketing strategy. Source attractiveness, source credibility, and celebrity-brand fit model show that celebrity-endorsed advertising impacts consumers’ perceptions. Also, the meaning transfer model highlights that celebrities transfer certain symbolic meanings to brands and consumers. Companies should choose highly credible celebrity endorsers for a positive brand image to improve consumers’ perception and boost sales.

3. Research Aims and Objectives

Aim and Objectives

The aim of the study is to explore the perception of celebrity endorsement in social media from the perspective of consumers

The objectives of the study will be:

1. To evaluate the perceptions of consumers of celebrity endorsements in social media
2. To determine the impact of demographic factors on consumers’ perceptions of celebrity endorsements in social media

• To evaluate the impact of psychological factors on consumers’ perceptions of celebrity endorsements in social media

Propositions/Research Questions/Hypotheses

The proposition for the study will be:

An increase in source trustworthiness causes an increase in consumer perception of celebrity endorsement in social media

The research questions for the study will be:

1. What are the perceptions of consumers of celebrity endorsements in social media?
2. What is the impact of attitudinal factors on consumers’ perceptions of celebrity endorsements in social media?

• How do psychological factors affect consumers’ perceptions of celebrity endorsements in social media?

The research hypothesis for the study will be:

H1.

There is a statistically significant relationship between trustworthiness and celebrity endorsement in social media advertisement effectiveness.

H2.

A statistically significant relationship exists between physical attractiveness and celebrity endorsement in social media advertisement effectiveness.

H3

A statistically significant relationship exists between respect and celebrity endorsement in social media advertisement effectiveness.

4. Methodology

Research Approach

The deductive approach is the most suitable for examining the perception of celebrity endorsement in social media from the perspective of consumers. The reason behind the choice of research approach is that there has been extensive work conducted in the literature about celebrity endorsements in traditional media (Saunders & Lewis, 2012). Therefore, this argument justifies why the deductive approach fits the study.

Sampling Design

The population for the study is the total number of elements that a scholar desires to study. In January 2023, the UK had 57.10 million social media users. Purposive sampling will be the most appropriate sampling technique for the study. The exploration will rely on the judgment of the researcher when choosing the participants. Purposive sampling is a form of non-probability sampling that entails choosing respondents for the exploration with a low likelihood of getting a representative sample. It will be beneficial because it consumes less time and money during data collection (Bell et al., 2022).

The sample size is the number of elements that have been used in a study. To compute the sample size, the subsequent formula was used.

The sample size will be computed using the formula below:

Whereby z= level of confidence is this is 95%; therefore, z is 1.49, n=the minimum sample size required, Ԑ=maximum likely error, which is 5%, and p=prevalence is 10%

Thus,

Where n=sample size, Z=95% Confidence Interval (1.96),

P=Past experience/percentage picking a choice expressed as a decimal (10%)

E=Error margin (5%)

Thus,

Therefore, the sample size for the study will be 170 individuals.

Data Collection Method

The questionnaire is the tool of data collection that will be used in the study. A drop-and-pick technique will be used to administer the questionnaire to the respondents. The questionnaires will involve closed and open questions (Bearden et al., 2011; Bruner II, 2009). The use of questionnaires involves rapid data collection and effective capturing of the data using closed questions, while open questions provide in-depth and specific responses.

Planned Analysis

The data analysis will be a subsequent step when the researcher gathers the data. To achieve proper data analysis, both descriptive and inferential statistics of the respondents will be computed. The descriptive statistics will involve computing the mean, standard deviation, and percentages of demographic information of the respondents (Wallace et al., 2006). The inferential statistics will involve computing regression to understand the influence of one variable over the other and correlation analysis to understand the relationship between variables.

References

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