Love it or hate it, celebrity is one of the dominant features of modern life--and one of the least understood. Fred Inglis sets out to correct this problem in this entertaining and enlightening ...social history of modern celebrity, from eighteenth-century London to today's Hollywood. Vividly written and brimming with fascinating stories of figures whose lives mark important moments in the history of celebrity, this book explains how fame has changed over the past two-and-a-half centuries.
The present study provides and tests a conceptual framework aimed at comparing the relative effectiveness of celebrity-user, brand-celebrity, and user-brand personality congruence on brand attitude ...and brand purchase intention (BPI) thereafter. The data collection was done via an online survey of a representative group of consumers (n = 431) located across India. Hypotheses were tested using regression analysis with mediation approach. The results indicate that while user-brand and brand-celebrity personality congruence have a significant impact on brand attitude and purchase intention, celebrity-user congruence does not. Further, brand attitude is found to be a partial mediator on the relationship between the pair-wise personality congruence on BPI. The findings have major implications for marketers in understanding the significance of personality congruence among celebrity-brand-user in the formation of brand attitude and purchase intention that can be used in positioning and in increasing the advertising effectiveness of brands using celebrity endorsement. The present study is a pioneer in contributing to the celebrity endorsement literature by investigating the relative impact of three pairs of personality congruence: celebrity-brand, brand-user, and celebrity-user, on brand attitude and BPI, thereby supporting the applicability of McCracken's Meaning Transfer Model McCracken (1989), The Journal of Consumer Research, 16 (3) 310-321) and the Hierarchy-of-effects model (Lavidge and Steiner (1961), Journal of Marketing, 25 (6) 59-62.
The present research delves into the concept of celebrity co‐creation from the consumer behavior perspective. It explores the impact of the degree of a celebrity's involvement with a brand (celebrity ...as an endorser vs. celebrity as a co‐creator) on consumers' advertisement and brand‐based evaluations (Study 1) and purchase behavior (Study 2). The research subsequently incorporates the mediating effects of consumers' perceived risk (Study 3) and the moderating effect of celebrity expertise (Study 4) in the relationships. Three of the four studies were controlled experiments among nonstudent samples (combined n = 486), while one was a field study. Major findings indicate that a celebrity co‐creator is more effective than a celebrity endorser, but both cases of celebrity presence are more effective than the control (Studies 1 and 2). This effect is observed to be mediated by the consumers' perceived risk (Study 3) and moderated by the celebrity's expertise (Study 4). The present research provides a new direction to value co‐creation research from the communications perspective and adds to the literature on celebrity endorsements.
Influencer marketing actions are mostly carried out on social platforms, e.g., Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. However, despite its increasing use, studies on this subject are still scarce. In this ...research, we focus on four essential factors related to an influencer marketing programme, analyzed in two separate experimental studies for theoretical reasons and methodological operability: brand control over the shared message and its commercial orientation; and, the celebrity level of the influencer and his/her congruence with the product/service they comment on in the post. We are also interested in the effects of these factors on a set of key responses by the follower with regard to the elements that form part of an influencer marketing action: the influencer, the post, and the product/service.
Throughout human history, people have expressed admiration for heroes who possessed extraordinary abilities and achieved superhuman goals. For many, modern-day celebrities fulfil this role and are ...prominent in various marketing communications activities. This paper addresses the literature review gaps and provides an in-depth review of the psychological and social psychological perspectives which are relevant to the celebrity endorsement literature. The contributions of this paper consist of a detailed analysis of important types of consumer-celebrity relationships, key emotional drivers (e.g. envy and admiration) of celebrity influence and the development of an original conceptual model. The conceptual model pulls together the past research and identifies new research gaps, which synthesises different research perspectives and provides a sound theoretical basis guiding future researchers and marketing managers.
Purpose
As celebrity endorsements have extended from traditional media to social media, the role of celebrities has been amplified and celebrities have been able to establish unprecedentedly close ...relationships through interacting with consumers. This study, grounded in the theory of parasocial interactions and celebrity endorsement, aims to propose a framework of antecedents and outcomes of parasocial interactions with celebrities on social media.
Design/methodology/approach
Using an experimental survey-based approach, this study collected 270 usable responses, and data were analyzed using partial least square structural equation modeling.
Findings
The study found that parasocial interactions fully mediate the relationship between social media interaction and celebrity attachment, celebrity attachment influences purchase intention directly and indirectly through both cognitive (brand credibility) and affective (brand attractiveness) elements, the need to belong moderates the relationship between social media interaction and parasocial interactions and the need to belong moderates the relationship between celebrity attachment and brand attractiveness. An exploratory analysis uncovers whether different types of social platforms may be more conducive to establishing parasocial interactions.
Originality/value
This study explores the mechanisms by which celebrity interactions on social media can impact the brands they endorse and the role that parasocial interactions and the need to belong play in these interactions and outcomes.
The growth of Instagram continues, with the majority of its users being young women. This study investigates the impact of Instagram upon source credibility, consumer buying intention and social ...identification with different types of celebrities. In-depth interviews were conducted with 18 female Instagram users aged 18–30 to determine the extent to which Instagram influences their buying behaviour. The research findings show that celebrities on Instagram are influential in the purchase behaviour of young female users. However, non-traditional celebrities such as bloggers, YouTube personalities and ‘Instafamous’ profiles are more powerful, as participants regard them as more credible and are able to relate to these, rather than more traditional, celebrities. Female users are perceptively aware and prefer to follow Instagram profiles that intentionally portray positive images and provide encouraging reviews.
•Online celebrity endorsements are perceived to be credible and trustworthy when communicating marketing messages.•Personal experience of online celebrities enhances the credibility of their communication.•Female online celebrities are most influential, as these categories are more credible and relevant to young women.•No negative reviews regarding products are posted by users in order to maintain a positive online self-presentation.
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the importance of celebrity brands in influencing consumer perceptions of celebrity authenticity, which drives positive consumer attitudes and intentions. In ...addition, the notion of low-celebrity investment is investigated as a factor that diminishes the positive outcomes associated with celebrity brands.
Design/methodology/approach
Study 1 examines the effect of brand situation (endorsement versus celebrity brand) on consumer attitudes and intentions. Studies 2 and 3 investigate the role of celebrity authenticity in explaining the effects observed in Study 1. Study 4 examines celebrity investment as a bound of the phenomenon.
Findings
Study 1 demonstrates that consumers report heightened attitudes and intentions towards celebrity brands when compared to endorsements. Studies 2 and 3 provide evidence that authenticity explains the effects observed in Study 1. Results of Study 4 show that when consumers are aware of low-celebrity investment, the celebrity is viewed as inauthentic regardless of brand situation.
Research limitations/implications
This research is limited as it focuses only on known celebrity endorsers who were matched with products that had a high level of fit. In addition, purchase intentions were measured as opposed to the study of actual purchase behaviour.
Practical implications
This research has important implications for the development of endorsements and celebrity brands by demonstrating that consumers view celebrities as authentic when they are involved with brands for reasons other than monetary compensation.
Originality/value
This research shows that consumers have heightened attitudes and intentions towards celebrity brands compared to endorsements. This research identifies celebrity authenticity as the process underlying the observed phenomenon. However, celebrity investment is identified as a boundary condition demonstrating that knowledge of low investment results in a celebrity being viewed as inauthentic.
Celebrity credibility constitutes a significant portion of the celebrity brand endorsement literature. While this field of research is mature with a rich history of 45 years, it lacks a bibliometric ...analysis that traces its evolution. We address this gap by conducting a structured and bibliometric review of the literature. Through this hybrid review, we highlight the most cited articles, authors, journals, theories, methodologies, and sub-research themes in this body of knowledge. Our findings demonstrate that this research area is inter-disciplinary and significantly influences research within and beyond the business context. We identify a shift in credibility literature towards the digital media context. Further, this review indicates that a comprehensive sub-discipline of celebrity endorsement underlies the evolved literature of brand communication. Finally, we present an antecedent-consequence framework of source credibility. We conclude with theoretical contributions, managerial implications, and future research propositions using the Theory, Method, and Context (TMC) framework.
Recently, an increasing number of celebrities have launched their own businesses. Although celebrity entrepreneurs may expect their credibility to enhance customers’ purchase intentions, this study ...does not find this effect. Instead, it finds that customers’ purchase intentions rely mainly on customers’ attitudes toward the celebrity's venture brand. Customers’ perceived congruence between a celebrity and the celebrity's business significantly affects their brand attitudes. Additionally, this study finds that a celebrity's credibility can only increase fans’ positive attitudes toward the celebrity's venture brand; therefore, being a celebrity entrepreneur is riskier than being a brand endorser in terms of consumer attitude.
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