Celebrity Entrepreneur Endorsement and Advertising Effectiveness

Abstract

Celebrity endorsement in advertising is a popular strategy worldwide. Celebrities are hired because they are perceived to be more credible endorser of products compared to non-celebrities. Increasingly, celebrities start to engage in business not just as endorsers but also with a financial stake and decision-making role in the business. Despite being extensively reported in popular media, the role of celebrity entrepreneur-cum-endorser in advertising effectiveness literature is almost ignored. To address this gap, this study is undertaken to develop, test and validate a model that could explain the effects of celebrity entrepreneur endorsement on advertising effectiveness. The research hypothesizes that celebrity credibility (comprising of attractiveness, trustworthiness and expertise) and advertisement credibility will positively affect three traditional measures of advertising effectiveness –attitude toward the advertisement, attitude toward the brand and purchase intention. A self-administered questionnaire with a stimulus advertisement featuring Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza as the endorser of her own skincare label, SimplySiti, was filled up by 542 female respondents. Data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling. The findings revealed that both, celebrity credibility and advertisement credibility had positive impact on attitude toward the advertisement and attitude toward the brand. Moreover, the impact of consumers’ perceived credibility on purchase intention was mediated by their attitudes Theoretical and managerial implications, as well as future research directions are suggested.