Effect of Celebrity Endorsement on Increased Sales Volume of Guinness Malt Market (Distributor)
Chapter One
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
The objectives of the study are;
- To examine the impact of celebrity endorsement on consumer behavior.
- To examine the impact of celebrity endorsement on sales volume of Guinness malt
- To ascertain the relationship between celebrity endorsement on increased sales volume and the popularity of Guinness malt.
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
INTRODUCTION
McCracken’s (1989), in his article “Who is the Celebrity Endorser? Cultural Foundations of the Endorsement Process” states that a celebrity endorser is an individual who enjoys public recognition and who uses this recognition on behalf of a consumer good by appearing with it in an advertisement (marketing communication). Earlier studies evidences that, in general, celebrity endorsement influences the feelings of the consumers and can also influence the attitude consumers have towards the advertisement and attitude towards the brands, which can increase the purchase intentions and, consequently, increase sales. Friedman H.H. and Friedman L. (1979), in their article “Endorser effectiveness by product type” found the categorization of products into low and high involvement is based on the risk perceptions consumers have when purchasing products (which are significantly higher for high involvement products). Risk perceptions can be classified into four categories (1) Psychological risk, the fit between product image and self-image. (2) Financial risk is associated with the price of the brands/products. (3) Social risk, the fear of not belonging or not taking part to/in a reference group as a result of purchasing the ‘wrong’ product/brand. (4) Operational risk, the risk of buying a product that does not operate the way it should do. M. Gayathri Devi and Dr. C. Ramanigopal (2010), in their paper entitled “Impact of celebrity endorsement on Indian market” stated that Whether Celebrity endorsement has a positive or a negative impact on the brand is a debate that is open to interpretation. But till the time the corporate world continues to foot fancy bills of celebrity endorsers and till consumers continue to be in awe of the stars, the party is not likely to break up. Tripp C Jensen T.D and Carlson L. (1994), in their article “Trust worthiness/ Credibility of celebrity endorsers” found that how much consumers trust the celebrity endorser to be credible. When a celebrity endorses one or two products it is significantly more trustworthy than a celebrity who endorses even more products. From the above review of literature, it is found that the most of the earlier studies have focused on the association endorsement and consumers’ intention to purchase, impact of celebrity endorsement on Indian market and endorsement for effectiveness of product type etc. But there is no evidence of study on effects of celebrity endorsement consumer buying behavior on brand especially in India. And, there is a need to through some lights on this area; therefore, this study has been undertaken.
The Concept of Celebrity Endorsement
A celebrity endorser is “any individual who enjoys public recognition and who uses this recognition on behalf of a consumer good by appearing with it in an advertisement” (McCracken, 1989).This definition explicitly encompasses celebrities who appear to have expertise or a long-term association with the manufacturer, but it excludes typical customer endorsements featuring non celebrities. According to Kotler and Armstrong (2000), endorsement is a channel of brand communication in which a celebrity acts as the brand’s spokesperson and certifies the brand’s claim and position by extending his/her personality, popularity, status in the society or expertise in the field to the brand. Because celebrities appear to be gaining increasing influence in society, marketing managers try to exploit the process of meaning transfer from an endorser to products or brands involved (McCracken, 1986).
. Associative learning theory details that, celebrity endorsements influence brand image through a transfer of meaning from the endorser to the brand (Till, 1998). Communication activities establish a pattern of connectivity between the image of the celebrity and the image of the brand. Both entities represent nodes in a cognitive network, whose connectivity can be modified according to experience. An image transfer occurs when an advertisement can establish contingency between the two entities (Till, 2008). Managers pursue such connectivity with the goal of obtaining a favourable brand image outcome (TNS Sport, 2005). Brand image encompasses all perceptions of a brand, stored as brand associations in consumer memory (Keller, 1993). Its importance mainly reflects its ability to provoke unique perceptions of the brand in competitive settings (Aaker, 1996; Kamins, 1989). It also constitutes a meaningful brand value driver and influences the formation of brand equity (Faircloth, 2001). Keller (1993) distinguishes among attitudes, attributes and benefits as types of brand associations, Barich and Kotler (1991) regard brand attitude, belief and impression as ingredients of brand image. Both perspectives imply that improved attitudes toward the brand favourably influences brand image.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research design
The researcher used descriptive research survey design in building up this project work the choice of this research design was considered appropriate because of its advantages of identifying attributes of a large population from a group of individuals. The design was suitable for the study as the study sought to Effects of celebrity endorsement on increased sales volume of Guinness malt, Enugu malt market(Distributors).
Sources of data collection
Data were collected from two main sources namely:
(i)Primary source and
(ii)Secondary source
Primary source:
These are materials of statistical investigation which were collected by the research for a particular purpose. They can be obtained through a survey, observation questionnaire or as experiment; the researcher has adopted the questionnaire method for this study.
Secondary source:
These are data from textbook Journal handset etc. they arise as byproducts of the same other purposes. Example administration, various other unpublished works and write ups were also used.
Population of the study
Population of a study is a group of persons or aggregate items, things the researcher is interested in getting information on Effects of celebrity endorsement on increased sales volume of Guinness malt, Enugu malt market(Distributors). 200 staff of Guinness malt, Enugu state was selected randomly by the researcher as the population of the study.
CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION ANALYSIS INTERPRETATION OF DATA
Introduction
Efforts will be made at this stage to present, analyze and interpret the data collected during the field survey. This presentation will be based on the responses from the completed questionnaires. The result of this exercise will be summarized in tabular forms for easy references and analysis. It will also show answers to questions relating to the research questions for this research study. The researcher employed simple percentage in the analysis.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Introduction
It is important to ascertain that the objective of this study was to ascertain Effects of celebrity endorsement on increased sales volume of Guinness malt, Enugu malt market(Distributors).
In the preceding chapter, the relevant data collected for this study were presented, critically analyzed and appropriate interpretation given. In this chapter, certain recommendations made which in the opinion of the researcher will be of benefits in addressing the challenges of effects of celebrity endorsement on increased sales volume of Guinness malt, Enugu malt market(Distributors).
Summary
This study was on Effects of celebrity endorsement on increased sales volume of Guinness malt, Enugu malt market(Distributors). Three objectives were raised which included: To examine the impact of celebrity endorsement on consumer behavior, to examine the impact of celebrity endorsement on sales volume of Guinness malt, to ascertain the relationship between celebrity endorsement on increased sales volume and the popularity of Guinness malt. In line with these objectives, two research hypotheses were formulated and two null hypotheses were posited. The total population for the study is 200 staff of Guinness malt, Enugu state. The researcher used questionnaires as the instrument for the data collection. Descriptive Survey research design was adopted for this study. A total of 133 respondents made up managers, production managers, senior staff and junior staff was used for the study. The data collected were presented in tables and analyzed using simple percentages and frequencies
Conclusion
Celebrity endorsements has changed the way advertising used to be few decades ago. It is being accepted to be a ubiquitous feature of modern day marketing (McCracken 1989). The use of celebrity endorsers in the promotion and the sales of products have much influence on customers of organizations concerned. However, some respondents are not influenced by celebrities in adverts. Celebrity endorsement is an expensive engagement and must be planned carefully in order for firms adopting it to gain profitability. As a result, a greater understanding of consumers ‘reactions towards celebrity endorsements can help marketers to use it more effectively. It is important that firms that have tarnished images turn to this sort of promotion because celebrities aid advertisement to effectively stand out from the other surrounding clutter. From managerial perspective, the outcomes of this study bring practically important results for marketers to consider when choosing a celebrity for an advertisement
Recommendation
The following recommendations are suggested:
- organizations are encouraged to intensify the use of celebrities to promote their products
- organizations should also critically assess the right personality of celebrities for the promotion of their products
- organizations involved should conduct cost benefit analysis to be sure if the use of a celebrity is worth the amount to be paid for the services of the celebrity
- companies should critically assess to see if the use of celebrities is really necessary so as to avoid misallocation of resources
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