Examining Celebrity Expertise and Advertising Effectiveness in India

Although celebrity endorsement has emerged as a popular advertising practice, not much research has been done to evaluate the effectiveness of such endorsements in India. Using the product match-up hypothesis, the study examines how using an expert versus a non-expert celebrity impacts the ad and brand evaluation and purchase intention for an expertise related product. Hypotheses of the study were tested through an experiment using between-subjects design. The sample size for the experiment consisted of 114 male and female postgraduate management students. Two pretests were conducted to finalize the stimuli for the main experiment. Results of the study showed that an expert celebrity was effective in creating more favorable responses on attitude towards the ad for an expertise related product but had no effect on attitude towards the brand and purchase intention. The impact of the expert celebrity on ad attitude was mediated by the perceived expertise of the endorser. Results of the study provide support for the product match up hypothesis developed in the West.