The Power of Celebrity Attributes in Purchase Decision and Brand Loyalty among Indian

Consumers

Dr. Manish Mittal

Professor, Acropolis Faculty of Management & Research, Indore
M 29 Khatiwala tank
1st Floor, Mittal Niwas
Opp. Sangam apartments
Indore 452001
Tel: 0731- 4730069
Mobile: 09893894210
Email: [email protected]

Author’s Profile

Dr. Manish Mittal (Ph.D.,M.M.S.,B.E.)

Dr. Manish Mittal has 6 years of industrial and 16 years of academic experience. He has more than 40
research papers & articles to his credit. His doctoral thesis is titled “ A psychological study of Investment
decision making among Investors of Indore city”.
 The Power of Celebrity Attributes in Purchase Decision and Brand Loyalty among Indian
Consumers

Abstract
Marketers invest significant amounts of money to align the products with big-name celebrities to influence
consumers’ perceptions, attitudes and purchase intentions. Celebrity endorsements have been found to be
effective in positively changing consumers’ attitude toward brands, impacting consumers’ purchase
intentions and increasing brand recall and recognition than a non-celebrity endorsed advertisement. Many
researchers have indicated that attributes like attractiveness, expertise, trustworthiness, likeability,
familiarity etc are important while selecting celebrity endorsers in order to maximize the advantages of
celebrity endorsements. The objective of this paper is to investigate whether these attributes are important
in influencing the purchase decision & brand loyalty positively. From a convenient sample of 244, primary
data collected with the help of a self administered questionnaire. The survey was carried out in the city of
Indore in central India during November –December, 2016. Celebrity endorsement and attributes were
found to have positive influence on both consumer’s purchase decision and brand loyalty. Expertise of
celebrity endorser emerged as is the most influential celebrity attribute affecting the purchase decision and
brand loyalty. Familiarity of celebrity was found to have no significant influence on purchase decision while
Trustworthiness, Similarity and Physical attractiveness were found to be insignificant in impacting
consumer’s brand loyalty.
Key words: Celebrity, Celebrity Endorsement, Celebrity Attributes, Purchase Decision, Brand Loyalty,
Expertise.

INTRODUCTION
A celebrity is a well known personality who enjoys public recognition by a large share of a certain group of
people (Schlecht, 2003). Celebrities (e.g. models, actors, television stars, artists and sport athletes) are
known to the public for their accomplishments in areas other than the product class endorsed (Friedman
and Friedman, 1979). Celebrities are often employed by advertisers to lend their personality to a product or
brand (Kaikati, 1987). Celebrity endorsement advertising has been recognized as a “ubiquitous feature of
modern day marketing” (McCracken, 1989). Marketers invest significant amounts of money to align the
products with big-name celebrities in the belief that such celebrities will (a) draw attention to the endorsed
product/ brand; (b) transfer image values to these products by virtue of their celebrity profile and engaging
attributes (O’Mahony & Meenaghan, 1998); and (c) influence consumers in a positive manner.
Advertisements featuring celebrity endorsers enjoy high popularity not only among consumers but also
among brand managers (Amos, Holmes & Strutton, 2008). As a result, every year, companies spend large
sums to hire celebrities to endorse their products and brands (Lee & Thorson, 2008) to influence
consumers’ perceptions, attitudes and purchase intentions. Kaikati (1987) enumerates five advantages of
employing celebrities to endorse products: drawing attention, crisis management, brand repositioning,
global marketing and boosting sales.
From a theoretical perspective, celebrities are effective endorsers because of their symbolic aspirational
reference group associations (Assael, 1984; Solomon & Assael, 1987). Many people aspire to share values
and lifestyles of celebrities. Often, they try to imitate, emulate, and impersonate celebrities’ behavior to
enhance their self-esteem. They imitate the way celebrities speak, dress, communicate, and most
importantly, the brands they choose. This reflects the power of celebrity endorsement, which is the main
reason celebrities are employed to promote almost all kinds of products (Fraser and Brown, 2002). This
power is viewed in three aspects: attention, which breaks through the advertising clutters and makes the
endorsed brand more noticeable to target audience; credibility, which conveys a sense of trust for endorsed
brands; and persuasion, which sends a persuasive message to target audience to adopt the endorsed brand.
Because of their high popularity, celebrities make advertisements stand out of the clutter and hence
improve their communicative ability (Atkin & Block, 1983; Sherman, 1985) and make receivers to have more
favorable evaluations of the advertisement (Kahle & Homer, 1985; Kamins, 1990). They are believed to
enhance audience attentiveness, add glamour to the advertisements and make them memorable, credible
and desirable (Spielman, 1981). Celebrity endorsements have been found to be effective in positively
changing consumers’ attitude toward brands, influencing the believability and credibility of advertisements,
impacting consumers’ purchase intentions (Amos, Holmes & Strutton, 2008; Atkin & Block, 1983; Erdogan,
1999), and increasing brand recall and recognition (Misra & Beatty, 1990).Celebrities have been found to
produce more positive responses toward advertising and greater purchase intentions than a non-celebrity
endorser (Atkin & Block, 1983; Petty & Cacioppo, 1983). They are also believed to generate actual purchase
behavior and positive impact on sales & returns. (Agrawal & Kamakura, 1995; Mathur, Mathur & Ranjan,
1997). They are also used to introduce new brands, reposition existing brands and improving brand image
(Erdogan, Baker & Tagg, 2001). Celebrities with worldwide recognition also help advertisers to overcome
cultural roadblocks such as time, space, gender, language, power, risk and many others (Hofstede, 1984; De
Mooji, 1994).
The use of celebrities in advertising campaigns, however, is a two-edged sword. There are many risks
involved in using celebrity to endorse a brand. It is expensive. According to Mehta (1994) there is no
significant difference in attitude towards advertisement, brand and purchase intention for brands endorsed
by celebrities than those endorsed by non celebrities. In advertisements endorsed by non celebrities the
consumers significantly concentrate on brand and product characteristics while in celebrity endorsed
advertisements they tend to concentrate more on celebrity and their image in public. Negative information
about the celebrity endorser not only affects celebrity’s image but also harms consumer’s perception about
the endorsed brand (Klebba & Unger, 1982; Till & Shimp, 1998). Another important drawback is
overexposure. It occur when a celebrity endorses multiple products at one time and the relationship
between the celebrity and the brand becomes indistinctive (Mowen & Brown, 1981). This makes consumers
aware that the true nature of endorsements is more to do with the money and less to do with the
attributes of the brand (Cooper, 1984; Tripp, Jensen & Carlson, 1994). This also reduces credibility of the
endorser (Graham, 1989). Celebrities sometimes may lose their popularity and disappear from media
spotlight before the end of contractual term and the endorsement become irrelevant (Ziegal, 1983). There
must be a proper match between the brand & endorser’s personality otherwise using celebrity as
advertisement strategy may backfire (Carrillat, D’astous & Lazure, 2013).
Looking at the potential advantages and hazards associated with the celebrity endorsements selection of
celebrity endorser assumes high importance. Many researchers have indicated that attributes like
attractiveness, expertise, trustworthiness, likeability, familiarity etc are important while selecting celebrity
endorsers in order to maximize the advantages of celebrity endorsements. The objective of this paper is to
investigate whether these attributes are important in influencing the purchase decision & brand loyalty
positively. The remainder of paper is structured as follows. The next section provides a literature review.
The third section explains the study’s research methodology. Data analysis & its results are presented in the
fourth section. The paper ends with a section on conclusions & discussions.

LITERATURE REVIEW
Various theories have been put forward by researchers to understand why celebrity endorsements are
effective like the Source Credibility Model (Hovland & Weiss, 1951; Hovland, Janis & Kelly, 1953), the Source
attractiveness Model (McGuire, 1968), the Product Match Up Hypothesis (Kahle & Homer, 1985; Kamins,
1989,1990) and the Meaning Transfer Model( McCracken, 1989). The Source Credibility Model suggests
that effectiveness of celebrity endorser depends on two attributes: The perceived expertise and
trustworthiness of the endorser (Ohanian, 1991). Information from a credible source can impact the beliefs,
opinion, and behavior through the process of internalization, which occurs when receiver accept a source
influence in terms of their personal attitude and value structures (Kelman, 1961). Freiden (1984) observed
that one attribute of effective celebrity endorser is trustworthiness. Trustworthiness is defined as the
honesty, integrity and believability of an endorser. It refers to the degree of confidence in celebrity
endorser’s intentions to communicate assertions they believe to be valid. A trustworthy endorser
communicates truthful information to the audience (Ohanian, 1991). To be effective and yield desired
results it is important for that the audience believe that the information provided by the endorser regarding
the product is true & believable and free from deception or exaggeration (Wymer & Drollinger, 2014).
Smith (1973) found that customers are not influenced positively if the message is given by someone who is
perceived to be untrustworthy. Friedman, Santeramo & Traina, (1978) found that trustworthiness of
celebrity is a major factor influencing their credibility. However, Ohanian (1991) found that trustworthiness
of celebrity endorsements is not significantly related to purchase intentions.
Expertise is defined as perceived level of knowledge, experience, and skills of an endorser regarding the
advertised brand (Hovland, Janis & Kelly, 1953). It refers to the extent to which the celebrity is perceived to
be a source of valid assertions (Ohanian, 1991). For example, a sport athlete is considered to be an expert
when he/ she endorse sport related products. Brunsberger and Munch (1998) found that the information is
considered to be more authentic and important if it is provided by an endorser who is considered to have
expertise in the given field. Till and Busler (1998, 2000) in their study concluded that expertise of the
endorser increases effectiveness of the advertisement. Ohanian (1991) found that celebrities who are
considered to have expertise are more effective and generate higher purchase intentions than the endorser
with less expertise. Speck, Schumann and Thompson (1988), observed that celebrity who is considered to
be an expert is more persuasive. However some studies have revealed that expertise of celebrity does not
lead to greater persuasion among consumers (Johnson & Steiner, 1968). Studies by McGarry and Hendrich
(1974) and Rhine and Laurence (1970) have indicated that high source credibility does not necessary lead to
greater persuasion.
The source attractiveness model given by McGuire (1969) suggested that effectiveness of an endorser is
dependent on their attractiveness which is composed of three interrelated aspects: familiarity, similarity
and likeability (Biswas, Biswas and Das, 2006). Similarity represents the extent to which an endorser
matches target audience on characteristics related to the endorsement relationship (sex, age, lifestyle etc.).
It is defined as the supposed resemblance between the audience and the endorser. Traditional similarity
studies suggest that sources that are similar to the target audience in terms of lifestyles, product usage, and
demographics are more effective in changing attitudes and opinions (Feick and Higie, 1992). Many studies
have found significant influences of the similarity between the source of information and the message
recipient on the persuasiveness (Cable and Edwards, 2004; Nicholson, Compeau, and Sethi, 2001). Stafford
(1998) proposed that similarity factor can increase the perceived confidence and credibility of endorser.
Familiarity is defined as the knowledge of the source through exposure. When consumers receive message
from a celebrity who is familiar to them and when they find similarities between the endorser and
themselves, the messages become more persuasive (McGuire, 1969). Likeability is defined as affection for
the source of information as the result of its physical appearance and behavior (Erdogan, Baker & Tagg,
2001). The degree to which an endorser is considered to be likeable may influence the customer (Khatri,
2006). A likeable person is can evoke more positive emotive state, acting like a halo effect (Wymer &
Drollinger, 2014) and significantly influence audience responses towards the advertisement (Hendrix, 2008)
resulting in more positive responses (McGuire, 1985).
It is generally observed that a physically attractive person is more effective and persuasive communicator.
This can be explained through a process called ‘identification’. Identification refers to a process where
information provided by an attractive source is accepted as a result of desire to identify with such endorser
(Kelman, 1961). Kamins (1990) also argued that using an attractive celebrity in the advertisement provides
adaptive information because it might make customers to think that the brand endorsed by a celebrity will
enhance their attractiveness as it did for the celebrity. Accordingly, some researchers have focused on the
attractiveness dimension and suggested that attractive celebrities are more effective than non attractive
celebrity (Kahle and Homer 1985). Kamins (1990) also suggested that physically attractive celebrities can
significantly enhance endorser’s credibility and attitude of consumers toward an advertisement, especially
for an attractiveness-related product. Physically attractive endorser is found to be more effective in
changing beliefs (Baker & Churchill, 1977; Chaiken, 1979; Debevec & Kernan, 1984) and causing positive
purchase intentions (Friedman et al., 1979; Petty & Cacioppo, 1983; Petroshius & Crocker, 1989). However
there are some contrary evidences. (Ohanian, 1991) found that physical attractiveness of celebrity may not
be especially significant in influencing intention to purchase. Similarly Caballero and Solomon (1984) and
Caballero, Lumpki and Madden (1984) found that physical attractiveness of human model have no impact
on purchase intention of consumers.
Another aspect researched in conjunction with source attributes is the match-up hypothesis (that is, fit)
between the image of the celebrity and that of the product as a means of persuasive communication and
influencing consumer perceptions. McCraken (1989) postulated that source credibility and attractiveness
model do not fully explain the phenomenon as celebrities who are similar in credibility and attractiveness
attributes can produce different results. According to him the source credibility and source attractiveness
models fail to explain match-up between the celebrity and the product/brand. The Match Up hypothesis
advocates that for an advertisement to be effective there must be match between celebrity image &
product (Kahle & Homer, 1985; Kamins, 1989, 1990; Misra & Beatty, 1990). The level of fit between
celebrity endorser and the endorsed brand influences audience’s perception of endorser’s credibility
improving advertisement’s persuasiveness and increasing purchase intentions (Wymer & Drollinger, 2014).
Increased congruence between the spokesperson and product combination leads to higher perception of
believability and attractiveness of the spokesperson and a more favorable attitude toward the
product/brand being endorsed. If the celebrity image & brand are highly congruent, it makes
advertisements more acceptable & believable (Kamins & Gupta, 1994). This is the probably the reason why
physically attractive endorsers are employed to promote beauty & personal care products. McCracken
(1989) found that some celebrity endorsements work better than the others due inherent match between
the endorsed product and celebrity. Research has demonstrated the fit between celebrity’s image and
endorsed brand influences advertisement attitudes, brand attitudes and purchase intentions. On the
contrary if an inappropriate celebrity is paired with a brand or product, then the pairing could prove
ineffectual and the strategy may backfire (Carrillat, D’astous & Lazure, 2013; Erdogan, 1999; Kaikati, 1987).
However research by Keel and Nataraajan (2012) does not support match up hypothesis. The effect of
celebrity brand match may be influenced by the degree to which the product is viewed as status symbol
(Packard, 2007) and the degree to which the product is cheap, low involvement and undifferentiated
(Callcott & Phillips, 1996).
McCracken (1989) proposed Meaning Transfer theory to explain the phenomenon of celebrity
endorsements. The Model explains the effectiveness of celebrity spokespersons by assessing the meanings
consumers associate with the endorser and which eventually get transferred to the brand. The process
involves three steps: the formation of celebrity image, the transfer of meaning from celebrity to the
product and finally the transfer of the same from product to the consumer. McCracken’s model is based on
the concept of meanings. Celebrities contain a broad range of meanings, involving demographic categories
(e.g. age, gender, status etc), personality and lifestyle types. A celebrity does not represent one single
meaning, but a number and variety of different meanings. After determining the brand’s symbolic features
taking consumers’ needs into consideration, the advertisers need to select the celebrity who contains the
appropriate set of characteristics, who will be best to produce the most favorable response from
consumers. Studies by Langmeyer & Walker (1991 a, b) provided evidences in support of this theory. Their
studies demonstrated that symbolic meanings possessed by celebrity get transferred to the endorsed
brand. Kambitis, Yvonne, Nicholas and Giannis (2002) found the endorser’s personality is an important
factor in influencing “specific target groups”, which easily recognize the endorser and admire them.
Celebrity endorsements are effective, in general, when there is transfer of image from endorsers for their
brands. According to Martin (1996), celebrity spokespersons are effective because they provide a “set of
characteristics” that supports consumers in evaluating the endorsed brand. In comparison to non celebrity
endorsers, celebrities add value to the image transfer process by offering meanings of extra depth and
power, what is complemented by their lifestyles and personalities (McCracken 1989). These findings prove
that it is crucial to select the appropriate celebrity endorser, i.e. a spokesperson who is able to promote the
desired attributes of the brand. However, according to Walker, Langemeyer and Langemeyer (1992) even if
the celebrity endorser is able to transmit image to the brand there are limits to the final impact and it may
not necessarily get translated into purchase intentions.

Methodology
The literature review section demonstrates that the relationship between the celebrity endorser’s
attributes and their effectiveness in influencing purchase intentions and brand loyalty is not very clear. The
present study is undertaken to study and to add to our existing knowledge about their relationship in Indian
context. The objectives of this study are:
1. Does presence of celebrity endorser in advertisement influence consumer’s purchase intention and
brand loyalty.
2. Does celebrity attributes like expertise, trustworthiness, attractiveness, similarity, familiarity etc
affect customer’s purchase.
 3. Do celebrity endorsements have positive influence on consumer’s brand loyalty?
4. Does celebrity attributes like expertise, trustworthiness, attractiveness, similarity, familiarity etc
affect customer’s brand loyalty.
5. Which celebrity attributes are most influential in influencing customer’s purchase intentions and
brand loyalty?
Accordingly the following hypotheses were formulated:
1. H1: Presence of celebrity in advertisement has positive influence on consumer’s purchase decision
(H.1.1) and brand loyalty (H.1.2).
2. H2: Celebrity attribute has positive influence on consumer’s purchase decision (H.2.1) and brand
loyalty (H.2.2).
3. H3: Expertise of celebrity has positive influence on consumer’s purchase decision (H.3.1) and brand
loyalty (H.3.2).
4. H4: Trustworthiness of celebrity has positive influence on consumer’s purchase decision (H.4.1) and
brand loyalty (H.4.2).
5. H5: Familiarity of celebrity has positive influence on consumer’s purchase decision (H.5.1) and brand
loyalty (H.5.2).
6. H6: Similarity of celebrity has positive influence on consumer’s purchase decision (H.6.1) and brand
loyalty (H.6.2).
7. H7: Likeability of celebrity has positive influence on consumer’s purchase decision (H.7.1) and brand
loyalty (H.7.2).
8. H8: Physical attractiveness has positive influence on consumer’s purchase decision (H.8.1) and brand
loyalty (H.8.2).

Presence H.1.1 H.1.2

of Celebrity
H.2.1 H.2.1
Celebrity
Attribute

H.3.1 H.3.2
Expertise
of Celebrity
Source
Credibility H.4.1 H.4.2
Model Trustworthiness
of Celebrity
H.5.1 H.5.2
Familiarity Purchase Brand
of Celebrity Decision Loyalty

Source Similarity H.6.1 H.6.2

Attractiveness of Celebrity
Model
Likeability H.7.1 H.7.2
of Celebrity
 H.8.1 H.8.2
Physical attractiveness
of Celebrity

Figure 1: Hypotheses of the study

The study is based primary data collected from the respondents with the help of a self administered,
structured closed ended questionnaire. The survey was carried out in the city of Indore in central India
during November –December, 2016. Indore is Tier B of Central India and has a population which is generally
homogeneous in terms of gender, education & occupation. Because of its central location its inhabitants
are people from all parts of India. The survey used convenient sample of 350 respondents out of which 280
filled questionnaires were received. Some returned questionnaire had one or two data missing. Such
questionnaires were discarded. A final sample size of 244 was considered for further analysis. The response
rate was thus 80%, which can be considered satisfactory.
The questionnaire (scale) used in the study was self designed based on the inputs gathered during literature
review. The questionnaire included three sections. The first section had 7 items aimed at investigating the
relationship between the celebrity attribute and consumer’s purchase decision. The second part was
designed to measure the effectiveness of celebrity endorsements in influencing brand loyalty. It contained
5 items. Five point Likert scale was used for measurement. The scale consisted of five levels of agreement
to the statements included in the questionnaire from strongly disagree to strongly agree (5- Strongly agree;
1- Strongly disagree). The logic used was higher the mean score the more influential is the attribute/
variable. The third part was aimed at collecting the demographic details of the respondents like age,
education, occupation etc. Before undertaking the survey, pilot survey was undertaken with 40 respondents
and their views/suggestions were incorporated in the final questionnaire.
Several statistical techniques were used for analysis. To assess the reliability of the scale Cronbach’s Alpha
was calculated. Frequency analysis, Descriptive analysis and One sample test of means (t test) was used to
test the hypothesis to understand the relationship between celebrity attributes and purchase decision.
Linear Regression analysis was used to measure the relationship between celebrity’s attributes and brand
loyalty. The analysis of data was carried out using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 20.0 for
Windows.

Data Analysis
Demographic details of the respondents
Demographic characteristics of the respondents are given in table 1. The sample had 133 males & 45.5
female respondents. They were all aged between 16 to 35 years with maximum 130 students in the age
group of 18-24 years. 43.9% of the respondents were graduates and 56.1% post graduates. 127
respondents were students, 36 were salaried, 24 were self employed and 25 were housewives.
Table 1: Demographic details of respondents
Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent
 Male 133 54.5 54.5
Gender Female 111 45.5 100.0
Total 244 100.0
16- 18 years 36 14.8 14.8
18-24 years 130 53.3 68.1
Age 24-30 years 55 22.5 90.6
30-35 years 23 9.4 100.0
Total 244 100.0
HSC 54 22.1 22.1
Graduate 53 21.7 43.8
Education
Post Graduate 137 61.2 100.0
Total 244 100.0
Student 137 56.1 56.1
Service 44 18.0 74.2
Occupation
Business 29 11.9 86.1
Housewife 34 13.9 100.0
Total 244 100.0 56.1

Reliability Analysis
Reliability was examined using Cronbach Alpha values (Cronbach, 1951). Table 2 shows Cronbach Alpha value of the
scale used in the study. The scale had 17 items as explained in the methodology section The Cronbach’s alpha value
was found to be 0.714 which is higher than the threshold level of 0.70 (Walsh, 1995). Hence it can be concluded that
the items included in the scale reliably measure the defined constructs.
Table 2: Reliability Analysis
Scale N of Items Cronbach's Alpha
Celebrity attribute 6 .714
Brand Loyalty 5 .784

Celebrity Endorser & Purchase Decision

The first objective of the study was to assess whether presence of celebrity endorser has positive influence
on purchase decision of the consumers. The research findings, as presented in Table 3, suggest that
presence of celebrity endorser in advertisement influences consumers buying decision positively as more
number of the respondents have shown their agreement with the statement (110, 46.1%) as compared to
those who disagree ( 55, 22.5%). The mean score was 3.1762 which is above the scale midpoint (3) with a
little deviation around the mean (σ = 1.0324). The t score was obtained as 48.010 which is significant at 1%
(Sig. = .000 which is less than 0.01) which means the mean score of respondents who agree with the
statement was significantly different from those who disagree. The results of analysis lead to the conclusion
that presence of celebrity has positive influence on purchase decision and hence Hypothesis H.1.1 is
accepted.
Table 3: Celebrity Endorser & Purchase Decision
Presence of Celebrity f % Mean Std. Dev. t Sig
influences purchase decision
Strongly Agree 11 4.5
Agree 99 40.6
Neither Agree Nor Disagree 79 32.4
Disagree 32 13.1
Strongly Disagree 23 9.4
Total 244 100.0 3.1762 1.03324 48.018 0.00*
*Significant at 1%.

Celebrity Attributes & Purchase Decision

The second objective of the study was to investigate effectiveness of celebrity attributes in influencing
consumer’s purchase decision. The results are given in table 4. The results suggest that overall celebrity
attributes like expertise, trustworthiness, familiarity, similarity, likeability, and attractiveness have positive
influence on consumer’s purchase decision. Overall 39.3% of the respondents agreed as compared to
only29.1% who disagreed with the perception that celebrity attributes influences their purchase decision.
The mean value was found to be 18.832 which is more than the midpoint value of 18. The difference in the
mean value of the respondents who agreed was found to be statistically significant from those who
disagreed at 1% (Sig. = .000 < .01; t value 72.395). Hypothesis H.2.1 thus gets accepted.
Analyzing the influence of each attribute, the results suggest that attributes like expertise, trustworthiness,
similarity, likeability and physical attractiveness all have positive influence on the purchase decision of the
respondents. The percentage of respondents who agreed that expertise, trustworthiness, similarity,
likeability and physical attractiveness influence their purchase decision were found to be 51.2%, 40.2%,
36.9%, 44.7% and 36.1% respectively. All the attributes had mean value greater than the scale mid value of
3 (3.3848, 3.0943, 3.1762, 3.2172 and 3.0533 respectively) which provides another evidence for the positive
influence of these attributes on consumer’s purchase decision. Further the mean score of the respondents
who agreed that these celebrity attributes have an influence on their purchase decision were significantly
different from the respondent who disagreed with them (All t values are very high and all have Sig = .000
which is less than .01), statistically at 1%. The results support hypotheses H.3.1. H.4.1, H.6.1, H.7.1 and
H.8.1, whereby leading to the interpretation that expertise, trustworthiness, similarity, likeability and
physical attractiveness of celebrity endorser affect consumer’s purchase decision in a positive way.
Expertise was found to be most influential followed by likeability, then similarity, then trustworthiness and
then physical attractiveness.
However, according the results of at the analysis, familiarity of celebrity was not found to have positive
influence on the purchase decision of the respondents. The percentage of the respondents who agreed
with it was less than those who disagreed (28.6% as against 35.6%). Also the mean value was found to be
2.9426 which is less than the scale midpoint of 3. The results of t test indicate that the difference in the
mean value of the respondents who agreed was found to be significantly different from the mean value of
those who have shown their disagreement at 1% (Sig. = 0.00). The results provide evidence against
hypothesis H.5.1, and hence it gets rejected.
Table 4: Celebrity Attributes & Purchase Decision
Neither
Strongly Strongly
Agree Agree Nor Disagree Sig. (2-
Statement Agree Disagree Mean Std Dev t
Disagree tail)
F % f % F % F % F %
Expertise of
celebrity
influences 24 9.8 101 41.4 69 28.3 36 14.8 14 5.7 3.3484 1.033 50.6 0.00*
purchase
decision
Trustworthiness
of celebrity
influences 17 7.0 81 33.2 71 29.1 58 23.8 17 7.0 3.0943 1.059 45.6 0.00*
purchase
decision
Similarity
between
yourself &
celebrity 29 11.9 61 25.0 84 34.4 64 26.2 6 2.5 3.1762 1.029 48.2 0.00*
influences
purchase
decision
Familiarity of
celebrity
influences 15 6.1 55 22.5 87 35.7 75 30.7 12 4.9 2.9426 .9879 46.5 0.00*
purchase
decision
Likeability of
celebrity
influences 19 7.8 90 36.9 72 29.5 51 20.9 12 4.9 3.2172 1.021 49.2 0.00*
purchase
decision
Physical
attractiveness
of celebrity
16 6.6 72 29.5 78 32.0 65 26.6 13 5.3 3.0533 1.018 46.8 0.00*
influences
purchase
decision
Overall Dim. :
Celebrity 110 7.7 460 31.6 461 31.6 349 24.0 74 5.1 18.832 4.063 72.3 0.00*
Attribute
*Significant at 1%.

Celebrity endorsement & Brand Loyalty

The third objective of the study was to evaluate the influence of celebrity endorsements on consumer’s
brand loyalty. The results (Tabulated in table 5) indicate that overall celebrity endorsement have a positive
influence on increasing the consumer’s brand loyalty. 39.8% of the respondents agreed that celebrity
endorsements are effective in increasing brand loyalty as against 35.2% 0f the respondents who expressed
their disagreement. The mean value of the dimension as a whole, 15.68 was also found to be more than the
scale midpoint of 15, which provides further evidence in support of effectiveness of celebrity endorsements
in influencing brand loyalty. The t test reveals that the mean score of respondents who agree that celebrity
endorsements have positive influence on brand loyalty was found to be significantly different (at 1%) from
those who think otherwise (t value = 60.93; Sig.=.00) and hence hypothesis H.1.2 is accepted.
Majority of the respondents expressed their agreement with the statements like ‘I will continue to buy
celebrity endorsed brands’ (43.8%), ‘buy product endorsed by my favorite celebrity even if I don't need it’
(43.8%), ‘Celebrity endorsements are effective in increasing brand loyalty’ (50.8%) having mean value of
3.24, 3.10 and 3.58 respectively (all above scale midpoint 3.0). However they have shown their
disagreement with statements ‘I often buy celebrity endorsed products ’ (38.9%), ‘switch to other brand if
my favorite celebrity stops endorsing it ’ (48.4%). Both the statements had means less than scale midpoint
of 3.0 (2.89 and 2.98 respectively). All the statements had Sig. = .000 (less than 0.01), which suggest that
mean scores of the respondents who agreed with the statements differ significantly from the mean scores
of those who disagreed.
Table 5: Celebrity endorsement & Brand Loyalty
Neither
Strongly Strongly
Agree Agree Nor Disagree Std Sig. (2-
Statement Agree Disagree Mean t
Disagree Dev tail)
f % f % f % f % f %
I often buy
celebrity
15 6.1 48 19.7 86 35.2 87 35.7 8 3.2 2.89 .928 45.9 0.00*
endorsed
products
I will continue
to buy
celebrity 36 14.7 71 29.1 57 23.4 76 31.1 4 1.6 3.24 1.09 39.2 0.00*
endorsed
brands
I will switch to
other brand if
my favorite 42 17.2 51 20.9 33 13.5 97 39.8 21 8.6 2.98 1.23 33.4 0.00*
celebrity stops
endorsing it
I will buy
product
endorsed by
my favorite 48 19.7 51 20.9 42 17.2 84 34.4 19 7.7 3.10 1.23 33.2 0.00*
celebrity even
if I don't need
it
Celebrity
endorsements
are effective 30 12.3 94 38.5 86 35.2 26 10.7 8 3.3 3.58 .914 61.1 0.00*
in increasing
brand loyalty
Overall Dim:
171 14.0 315 25.8 304 24.9 370 30.3 60 4.9 15.68 3.85 60.93 0.00*
Brand Loyalty
*Significant at 1%.
Celebrity Attributes & Brand Loyalty
Objective 4 of the study was to find whether celebrity attributes have any impact and objective 5 was to
determine which celebrity attributes are most influential in affecting consumer’s brand loyalty. Linear
multiple regression analysis was performed to achieve both the objectives. The results of regression
analysis are given in table 6. The R2 value of 0.535 indicates that 53.5% of the total variation in dependent
variable (Brand loyalty) is explained by the study model, which is satisfactory. The Anova table gives Sig.
0.00 which means the model is significant at 1%. 6. The beta values in the model represent the change in
dependent variable for a unit change in the independent variable. For example expertise variable has a beta
value of 1.024 which means that a change of 1 unit in the variable has a positive change of 1.024 in Brand
Loyalty (dependent variable). Sign value indicates whether the variable is significant or not. The value for
the variables expertise, familiarity and likeability were less than 0.01 (0.00, 0.00, 0.002) suggesting that all
three variables are significant at 1%. The variables trustworthiness, similarity and physical attractiveness
were not found to have significant impact on brand loyalty. The higher the value of beta, the higher is the
impact of the variable on dependent variable (Beta value 1.024). As per the results celebrity expertise has
the most significant impact on brand loyalty followed by familiarity (0.833) and then likeability (0.726). The
colinearity statistics reveals the absence of multicolinearity. According to Guajarati (2004), the threshold
value of correlation coefficients is 0.8 and that of VIF is 10. Since all correlation coefficients are less than the
threshold value of 0.8 and all VIF values are less than 10, leading to the conclusion of absence of
multicollinearity problem. In summary based on the model the regression equation for Brand Loyalty can
be written as
Brand Loyalty= 3.576 + 1.024 (Expertise) + 0.833 (Familiarity) + 0.726 (likeability) + 0.284 (Trustworthiness)
+ 0.275 (Similarity) + 0.218 (Physical attractiveness)
Table 6: Celebrity Attributes & Brand Loyalty: Regression Analysis
Model Summary
Model R R Square Adjusted R Square Std. Error of the Estimate
1 .732a .535 .505 2.85710

ANOVAa
Model Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig.
Regression 1289.709 6 214.952 26.332 .000*
1 Residual 1934.631 237 8.163
Total 3224.340 243
Dependent Variable: Brand Loyalty
*Significant at 1%

Model Unstandardized Standardized t Sig. Correlations Collinearity Statistics

Coefficients Coefficients
Beta Std. Beta Zero- Partial Part Tolerance VIF
Error order
(Constant) 3.576 .892 4.010 .000*
Expertise 1.024 .196 .290 5.212 .000* .476 .321 .262 .815 1.227
Trustworthiness .284 .199 .083 1.427 .155 .316 .092 .072 .756 1.323
Similarity .275 .212 .078 1.296 .196 .331 .084 .065 .703 1.422
Familiarity .833 .211 .226 3.954 .000* .418 .249 .199 .775 1.291
Physical Attractiveness .218 .241 .061 .901 .368 .408 .058 .045 .555 1.801
Likeability .726 .230 .204 3.153 .002* .445 .201 .159 .608 1.646
*Significant at 1%.

Conclusions & Discussions

The research gives useful insights into the effectiveness of using celebrity endorser to influence consumer’s
purchase decision and brand loyalty. The findings clearly suggest that celebrity endorsers are effective in
influencing consumer’s purchase decisions in a positive way. The findings are consistent with many studies
in the past (Amos, Holmes & Strutton, 2008; Erdogan, 1999; Mathur, Mathur & Ranjan, 1997; Agrawal &
Kamakura, 1995; Atkin & Block, 1983 etc). Similarly celebrity attributes were found to have positive
influence on purchase decision. The results are consistent with earlier studies by Wymer & Drollinger
(2014), Till and Busler (1998, 2000), Speck, Schumann and Thompson (1988), Cable and Edwards, (2004);
Nicholson, Compeau, and Sethi, (2001), Khatri, (2006). Expertise of celebrity endorser emerged as is the
most influential celebrity attribute affecting the purchase decision followed by Likeability, Similarity,
Trustworthiness and Physical attractiveness in that order. However Familiarity of celebrity was found to
have no significant influence on purchase decision. A result which is inconsistent with the findings of the
study undertaken by McGuire (1969). The study also studied the relationship between celebrity attributes
and brand loyalty and concluded that overall celebrity attributes have positive impact on brand loyalty.
Expertise, Familiarity and Likeability of celebrity have significant impact on consumer’s brand loyalty.
Trustworthiness, Similarity and Physical attractiveness were found to be insignificant as far as Consumer’s
brand loyalty is considered. Expertise of celebrity once again emerged as the most influential attribute
affecting brand loyalty followed by Familiarity and then Similarity.
The study has contributed to better understanding the effectiveness of celebrity endorsements. The study
points that expertise of the celebrity is most important attribute impacting purchase decision and brand
loyalty of consumers. If the celebrity is considered to be expert in the field of the endorsed product he will
be more effective in generating positive responses from the consumers. The study indirectly also support
match up hypothesis. It is reasonable to believe that an endorser who is expert in the domain of the
endorsed product the consumer will perceive the endorser as a good fit. It is advised that while selecting
the celebrity endorser the organization, marketers and advertisers should consider Expertise of the
endorser as the most important parameter and not his/her familiarity and physical attractiveness. While
selecting a celebrity endorser corporate can use Expertise as primary attribute and likeability as secondary
attribute.

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