Abstract
Although much research has been devoted to the study of the impact of celebrity endorsements on the effectiveness of advertising in the literature on consumer behavior, few scholars pay attention to applying this concept to explain consumer behavior in the tourism field. This research tested celebrities’ expertise, trustworthiness, and attractiveness as the antecedents of consumer trust and engagement in the tourism and hospitality context. Specifically, through the analysis of 406 valid responses collected by online questionnaire, this study makes the following conclusions. First, it provides a new perspective on the influence of celebrity effects by focusing on the live-streaming behavior of CEOs on China’s largest online travel agency (OTA) platform. Secondly, it confirms that the three dimensions of the celebrity effect (expertise, trustworthiness, and attractiveness) positively affect the three dimensions of consumer trust (ability, benevolence, and integrity). At the same time, consumer trust can also predict the three dimensions of consumer engagement (cognitive processing, affection, and activation). In addition, the three dimensions of consumer trust also play a positive mediating role between the relationship of celebrity effects and consumer engagement. That is, the celebrity effects have a positive and indirect influence on consumer engagement. Therefore, by suggesting that celebrity endorsements can create consumer trust and engagement in the OTA platform, this research expands the research framework of celebrity endorsement credibility theory.
Highlights
Consumer trust is the core of the consumer relationship that directly promotes consumer engagement [1] and purchase behavior [2]
Studies have demonstrated that celebrity effects enhance brandconsumer trust [7] or help in achieving a positive brand image [3], which have been identified as playing essential roles in tourism marketing
The results proved that the mediating of consumer trust is established, and the three-dimensional of the celebrity endorsement effects can indirectly impact this engagement through consumer trust
Summary
Consumer trust is the core of the consumer relationship that directly promotes consumer engagement [1] and purchase behavior [2]. Consumer trust reflects their expectations of the behavior of the trading platform [5]. Studies have demonstrated that celebrity effects enhance brandconsumer trust [7] or help in achieving a positive brand image [3], which have been identified as playing essential roles in tourism marketing. This can be explained by the trust transfer theory [8]. Consumers initially lack trust in a trading platform
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