What is Beautiful is Good : An Evaluation of Effectiveness of Attractiveness in Celebrity Endorsements

The studies in the field of marketing have shown that characteristics of the source will influence persuasiveness of an advertisement. Attractiveness is one such celebrity characteristic that is widely studied by researchers in the field of marketing. However, still, literature failed to explain how attractiveness of celebrity endorsers influenced purchase intentions. This study tried to fill this gap by modelling the influence of celebrity attractiveness on purchase intention. It also evaluated the effect of respondents' gender on the model. The data collection for the study were carried out during March - June 2017. The study found that the effect of celebrity attractiveness on purchase intention was mediated by celebrity brand fit, attitude towards the advertisement, and attitude towards the brand. The study also evaluated the moderating effect of respondents' gender using chi- square analysis, which found no significant model difference among male and female respondents. These findings indicated that celebrity attractiveness created purchase intention in a mediated manner among the respondents, irrespective of their gender.