Summary:
Celebrities and influencers have long been used in persuasive communication. But how do celebrities work in persuasion – is it all about popularity? Is there a dilution effect if a celebrity endorses too many social behaviours?
Along with the Yale Centre for Customer Insight (YCCI), we researched the peer-reviewed literature in psychology and marketing to understand how celebrities work. We found that Likeability, credibility and celebrity-audience fit are important factors driving persuasion in the celebrity endorsement context.
The problem to solve
In keeping with our vision to create an institution in India, we plan to address this research gap by testing some of these findings from the peer-reviewed research using Indian celebrities. For example, what is the relative value of attractiveness vs matching? Is there a dilution effect (important in India, given multiple brands and services celebrities endorsed)?
The methodology used to design the solution
As a first step to this end, we did a quick round of testing on Amazon’s mTurk platform with a sample of 1008, where 20 north Indian celebrities were tested on traits such as familiarity, likability, trustworthiness, credibility, attractiveness, and favourability. The objective of this was to gather initial evidence of what qualities of a celebrity are most important for driving purchase intention. Interestingly, as per the results, all celebrities were ranked high on all traits and were seen to have unilaterally positive impact.
Impact and evidence
Given these insights we plan to conduct another round of testing for some specific ideas in the context of family planning and inclusive financial services. Watch this space for more findings and research insights on what works for celebrity engagement in India.
Project facts
- Name: Celebrity Persuasion
- Location: India
- Thematic Area: Communication research
- Implementation Partners: Yale Centre for Customer Insight (YCCI), Amazon mTurk, CSBC
- CSBC team members involve: Kanika Birla, Sanjivini Sawhney