Celebrity Fans in China: Motives, Characteristics, and Marketing Impacts

Home , Angelababy, Leon Lai, TFBoys, Wallace Chung, Wu Jing (actor)

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Chapter 6 Celebrity Fans in China: Motives, Characteristics, and Marketing Impacts

Xinming Jia Zhejiang International Studies University, China

Kineta Hung Hong Kong Baptist University, China

Ke Zhang Soochow University, China

ABSTRACT This chapter examines the motives, characteristics, and marketing impacts of celebrity fans in China, and illustrates these points using the fans of Wallace Chung. Based on a grounded theoretical approach, the analysis reveals five fan segments with different motives and marketing impacts: casual fans (playful, limited marketing impacts); fascinated fans (aspirational, fervent purchasers); devoted fans (sense of belonging, voluntary marketer-promoters and fervent purchasers); dysfunctional fans (identification with celebrity, rally pro); and reflective fans (solid self-identity, celebrity image-shapers). The analysis shows that in addition to buying celebrity-related products, fans undertake essential marketing activities (celebrity image-shapers, voluntary marketer-promoter) that in the past were the domains of agency management and marketers of endorsed products. These changes elevate fans to become marketing partners. Implications are discussed.

INTRODUCTION

A celebrity is a human brand (Thomson, 2006) who, in the age of social media, has a robust network of fans that comprise the major group of purchasers, consumers, and ardent promoters of the celebrity. Celebrity fans are now connected by social media to form a virtual community across regions. On the one hand, they exert influence on popular culture (i.e. celebrity fan culture), the economy (i.e. fan economy),

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-1048-3.ch006

and marketing practices (Huang, 2015). On the other hand, they provide dedicated support to the celebrity. Through individual and organized activities, the community of loyal and enthusiastic fans supports a celebrity directly through its consumption activities, such as attending a concert, watching a movie, and buying mementos; and indirectly through its consumption of celebrity-endorsed products. Further, fans create and share user-generated content (UGC) in the form of text, images and videos on social media (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010), thus providing free publicity to the celebrity. Given the importance of the fans’ roles in the promotion and consumption of the celebrity and related products, researchers and practitioners alike are interested in understanding who the fans are and their motives and impacts in a consumerist culture and society. Although an individual may attain celebrity status by pursuing a successful career in a variety of areas, including sports, entertainment, business and politics, in China they are the entertainers such as actors, actresses, singers and musicians who are the most popular. Baidu and Weibo, which index the popularity of celebrities in the country, consistently rank entertainment celebrities among the top. Further, according to the 2017 Forbes China Celebrity List (Flannery, 2017) that ranks celebrities by income, all of the top 50 celebrities came from the entertainment industry. Therefore, this chapter focuses on the fans of entertainment celebrities, given their importance in the consumerist economy and in popular culture. The chapter aims to enrich the literature on fandom and celebrity endorsement by examining the characteristics and motives of fans in China, as well as their marketing impacts on the celebrity and related works. The chapter begins with an examination of organized fandom and fan segments on different dimensions, followed by an illustrative study of the fans of Wallace Chung. Based on an in-depth analysis of UGC, the chapter identifies five segments of fans with different motives and marketing impacts. Of particular interests are fan activities such as (re-)shaping the celebrity’s image and being voluntary marketer-promoters for the celebrity, his/her works and endorsed products, activities that were formerly conducted solely by the celebrity’s agency and marketers of endorsed products. The chapter ends by discussing the marketing impacts of organized fandom. As shown in the many examples included in the chapter, celebrity fans are now a marketing partner involved in co-creating the celebrity and promoting his/her related products.

THE RISE OF ORGANIZED FANDOM

Celebrities have always had fans; yet, prior to the social-media era, the fans were scattered. Fan communities were small and unconnected, situated in different cities, townships and universities. During this time, a fan’s knowledge about a celebrity was based by-and-large on the celebrity’s works (e.g. TV series, movies, interviews and variety shows) and reports on mass media (e.g. newspapers and periodicals). This one-way, controllable path allowed the management agency and the media industry to plan and create the image of each celebrity. The fans at the receiving end were generally passive in this regard. This situation changed with the emergence of Weibo, the largest social-networking site in China. Weibo has 261 million active monthly users and 120 million active daily users. It allows fans not only to follow celebrity news but also to take an active role in engaging the celebrity. Further, it provides a platform for fans to connect with and follow one another. It is also a convenient platform for fans to retrieve, like, and share one another’s public statements about their idol. Currently, social media connect celebrity fans all across the country in China. Aside from the celebrity’s official Web pages, fans also create webpages (fan pages) that often come up as suggested Web

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pages in an Internet search of a celebrity. Also, the fan pages are often linked to one another, providing easy access to people who share similar interests in a celebrity. Together, these webpages function as a virtual “brand community” for a celebrity (Muniz & O’Guinn, 2001), connecting fans with the celebrity and with other fans with similar interests, attitudes, and behaviour. While a fan community is a loosely organized entity, it allows fans to take initiatives to care for and think more deeply about their collective idol and intervene should need arise.

Characteristics of a Fan Community

Since the main function of a fan community is to strengthen the attachment between fans and their idols, the fans of a particular celebrity are united in their external front. They spare no efforts in voting, ranking, “protecting” their idol, and declaring their idol’s supremacy and their love for the idol. Also, fans comfort and encourage one another in critical moments, such as when a celebrity is affected by negative publicity. At these moments, the fan community provides the strength and the much-needed support to fellow fans. New fans who are “shaken” by the event rely especially on the fan community to renew their devotion and commitments to the celebrity. Fan communities are huge, complex, and have no centralized leadership. Their loose structure and organization allow opinion leaders to play a significant role in driving the community. Fans who gather together for fellowship in a fan community often lack their own independent judgement about the celebrity but would buy into the group’s opinions as their own and act accordingly. In turn, the group’s opinions are often the opinions of influential opinion leaders, who have excellent people skills. They can inspire, motivate, and mobilize, and they do so with persistence and enthusiasm. These influential opinion leaders become the initiators of group norms and direct the fans’ collective behaviours. Some high-quality opinion leaders have the ability to comment on an event immediately and, with a readership of over 100,000 per comment, guide the fans’ opinions in a positive way. Unfortunately, not all opinion leaders have positive energy. Some are narrow-minded, extreme and vain, and they emanate negative energy in the community. It is the nature of a fan community to allow each fan a free voice. Thus, even with the presence of opinion leaders, it is very difficult to form a consistent and unanimous voice. Although the fans are united on the external front, they have considerable disagreements on internal affairs and argue over what team the celebrity should hire, whether he/she should take on a certain show, and what the celebrity really means when he/she says something. Fans can argue with one another for an extended period of time and allow the disagreements to fester. It is not uncommon to have a fan community break up into different factions that denounce one another. Interestingly, faction memberships are fluid, as the same person can take various stands on different events and issues. They switch faction affiliations and, as new events take place, new factions appear. In sum, this is all part of the fun of being a member of a fan community. It also illustrates how fan behaviours are unpredictable and difficult to control.

DIVERSITY OF FANS

Celebrity fans in China, as celebrity fans elsewhere, are known for their drastic and sometimes irrational behaviours as they interact with the celebrity or attempt to protect or defend him/her. More often than not, celebrity fans conjure in the popular mind the image of mostly young women screaming and raving

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as their idol appears. This can be contrasted with the image of mostly young men who become disruptive during fan events. However, are these pictures reflective of a myth or are they representative of fans across the board? In the following section, the authors will examine the profiles of celebrity fans. As the Baidu index on entertainment stars (2016) shows, each celebrity attracts a diversity of fans (i.e., male/ female, different age group, different educational background), though the proportion varies from one celebrity to another. The differential attraction is attributable to the celebrity’s gender, age, character and the works in which he/she performs.

Male vs. Female Fans

Generally, the fans of male stars are mostly female, while the fans of female stars are slightly more likely to be male. With that said, an exceptionally beautiful female star, such as Gao Yuanyuan, attracts more male fans, while a sexy female star, such as Ada Liu, attracts mainly male fans. The proportion of male and female fans is also related to the types of works the celebrity performs. For example, the proportion of male fans of Andy Lau is very high. This is likely a result of the ‘hero’ roles he plays in movies. The same goes for Wallace Chung and Aloys Chen, who have also performed highly masculine roles. Thus, more than half of their fans are male (Table 1). While both male and female fans are active on the Internet, female fans comprise the main constitu- ents of fan clubs. They often set the agenda for discourse on social media and are the main participants in offline activities, showing up in press conferences and meet-and-greets with the celebrity. Perhaps because they are so involved, they are highly sensitive to their idol’s personal lives. Thus, every time Leon Lai falls in love, his (mostly female) fans scold his lover. Other celebrities, such as Andy Lau, do not reveal their married status until many years later. Female fans are also quite critical of the staff and other actors/actresses who work with the celebrity. Also, a higher proportion of female than male fans become dysfunctional fans who undertake drastic and irrational fan behaviours. Male fans show up mostly at concerts and movie theatres and some fan activities, and they appear to be more rational. Their lower visibility both online and offline reflects their concern with their personal image, when mainstream society considers idol worshipping an immature and unprofessional activity. Nevertheless, it is usually the male fans who become disruptive in public. Ada Liu, who took the sexy route, was suddenly grabbed and hugged by male fans when attending an event. Crystal Liu was pushed to the floor when male fans rushed onstage at a press conference to try to kiss her. Thus, whereas male

Table 1. The proportion of male and female fans of selected celebrities

Male Stars Male Fans Female Fans Female Stars Male Fans Female Fans Han Lu 33% 67% Ada Liu 81% 19% Yifeng Li 41% 59% Yuanyuan Gao 72% 28% TFBOYS 53% 47% Angelababy 67% 33% Wallace Chung 56% 44% Crystal Liu 65% 35% Aloys Chen 61% 39% Mi Yang 62% 38% Andy Lau 81% 19% Vicki Zhao 56% 44% Source: (Baidu, 2016)

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fans are less visible than female fans, those who become dysfunctional fans are more disruptive, catching media attention and forming in the public imagination the image of a male dysfunctional fan.

Teenage, Youthful vs. Mature Fans

Regarding the age group into which celebrity fans fall, on April 1, 2016, the Baidu index showed that among five selected celebrities, each celebrity attracts a diverse age group (Figure 1). Whereas Lu Han takes the teen idol route and attracts the highest proportion of teenage fans (i.e. age 19 and under), tfboys and angelababy attract the highest proportion of those 20-29 years old. Meanwhile, Ada Liu attracts more mature fans, including the highest proportion of the 30-to-39-year-olds. Interestingly, though each celebrity holds a stronger attraction for a particular age group, they all attract fans across the age spectrum. Lu Han, the teen idol most attractive to teenage fans, is also attracting fans age 50 and over. Together, the index shows a higher proportion of fans among those 20–29 years old, followed by those 30–39 years old. These two groups together (i.e. 20-39 years old) account for more than 70% of all fans. Contrary to popular myth, the proportion of teenage fans (age 19 and under) is not as high as one might expect. Teenage fans are highly active in online voting and promoting hot topics on social media, but they are financially constrained. Their limited purchasing power makes it difficult for them to buy concert tickets or expensive products that their idols endorse. On the other hand, youthful fans (20-39) are the mainstay of celebrity fans. They are also the most active age group to participate in a celebrity’s on-site activities. This group of fans is at an important stage of their career development, often facing dissatisfactory events in real life. Thus, they regard the celebrities as the ideal characters to worship, and through related activities they vent their dissatisfaction in real life. Mature fans, on the other hand, are more rational and secure. They are generally in good financial health and are able to buy celebrity- endorsed products. However, their initiatives, enthusiasm and participation in fan-related activities are not as strong as those of the younger fans.

Education Levels

Education level affects the fans’ cognitive abilities and judgement. Fans with a lower educational level tend to be more reckless, and they more likely trust hearsay on social media and in tabloids. In contrast, fans with a higher educational level are more rational and mature. They have stronger abilities to make independent judgements and are less likely to remain dysfunctional fans. Nevertheless, there are dysfunctional fans with both high and low levels of education.

Fans Who Like the Character Roles versus Fans Who Like the ‘Real’ Celebrity

Beyond demographic profiles, fans can be classified as those who like the characters played by the celebrities (e.g. Harry Potter) and those who like the celebrities themselves (e.g. Daniel Radcliffe). At the initial stage, most fans are attracted to the roles played by the celebrities. Over time, some fans who like the roles played by a celebrity may gradually transfer their love for the roles to the celebrity him/ herself and become less keen on the roles they played (Weibo.com, 2015). Others will remain fans of the character roles for an extended period of time. Fans who like the roles the celebrities play are characterized by their unrealistic fantasy about their idols, thinking that the real persons are identical to the character roles. When eventually they find out the

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Figure 1. Age distribution of the fans of selected celebrities Source: (Baidu, 2016)

discrepancies, they usually abandon the celebrities. For example, Wen Zhang, a male star who played the image of a good man and husband, was reviled by his fans for having an affair with a female star. Wang Xun, who apparently looked simple and honest but abandoned his wife, was also condemned by his fans. Fans who like the real celebrities are characterized by their fantasy that one day they will fall in love and become the celebrities’ partner. These fans are usually loyal and highly sensitive. Wallace Chung’s agent is well aware of and respects the fans’ special relationship with him. To avoid situations that may cause the fans to be jealous, the agent stays away from inviting especially beautiful hostesses or humorous hosts to his birthday parties or news conferences, taking on hosts/hostesses that assume a more neutral style.

Fan Motives and the Pathological Tradition

Fans’ anecdotal celebrity-worship behaviours have given the general public and researchers the impression that celebrity fans are crazy, idiotic and irrational. Indeed, Lu Han’s young fans actually chartered buses to track him all day long, in an effort to keep up with his latest news, thus playing the role of paparazzi and infringing on his privacy. Meanwhile, Crystal Liu’s passionate fans rushed onto the stage during a roadshow, knocking her down during the frenzy. Furthermore, fans of Lu Han, Wallace Chung and others who were unhappy with the celebrities’ management intervened, demanding that the celebrities fire their management teams (Weibo.com, 2016). These images of the obsessed individual and hysterical crowd are in line with the pathological tradition in fandom studies (Duffett, 2013). The pathological tradition suggests that fans undergo a progres- sion from normality to deviance, as seemingly normal fans increasingly identify with the celebrity and lose their grip on reality, leading to their inevitable pursuance of excessive, deviant behaviours. Some empirical studies also attempt to trace a causal relationship between intense parasocial relationship and abnormal psychology (e.g., McCutcheon, Lange & Houran, 2002). Accordingly, ‘normal’ and ‘obsessed’ fans comprise two major fan segments, with ‘obsessed’ fans framing the popular imagination of fandom with their excessive behaviours.

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Nevertheless, a recent study that adopted a grounded theory approach to examine fan motives suggests that the binary approach may be somewhat simplistic. Rather, the study identifies five segments: casual fans (with playful motive), fascinated fans (with aspirational motive), devoted fans (sense of belonging), dysfunctional fan (identification with celebrity), and reflective fans (solid self-identity) (Jia, Hung & Zhang, 2017). This categorization of fan segments recognizes the “textual productivity” of a fan community (Zwaan & Duffett, 2016), a point that will be explained in more detail later in this chapter. The constructive aspects of fandom that boost the fans’ creative output and entice them to be socially engaged are gradually drawing attention in academic studies of fandom and popular culture.

THE MARKETING IMPACTS OF CELEBRITY FANS

The celebrity endorsement market is highly vibrant in China. As more and more brands compete for the consumer’s limited disposable income, celebrity endorsement provides a marketing communication tool to enable the sponsoring brand to stand out, grab consumer attention and strengthen its appeal in this growing consumer market. According to the brand consulting firm Millward Brown, China has the third highest percentage of companies in the world using celebrity endorsements, with over 50% of the advertisements featuring one or more celebrities (Market Me China, 2015). The popular use of celebrity endorsement reflects consumer acceptance and positive response to this strategy. Indeed, compared to American consumers, Chinese consumers are significantly more receptive to celebrity endorsement. They perceive such advertisements as providing more valuable product information, being more pleasurable to watch and heightening their desire for the featured product (Schaefer, Parker & Kent, 2010). The following section will outline the various marketing roles fans play in boosting a celebrity’s popularity and, at the same time, strengthening their earning power both in their profession and as endorsers.

Active Celebrity Image-Shaper

In the past, the public’s knowledge of a celebrity was based almost exclusively on the works of the celebrity as well as the publicity activities (e.g. interviews, variety shows, press conferences) in which he/she participates. Since the celebrity’s management agency organized the majority of the activities picked up by the media, from shows to albums to interviews, the agency has almost exclusive control over the shaping of the celebrity’s image as presented to the public. This system of shaping and grooming a celebrity is being challenged nowadays, as each fan can post his/her feelings and thoughts concerning the idol on social media. As the fans’ voices grow, they can shape the image of a celebrity in accordance with their preferences and challenge the management agency’s ‘monopoly’ in this regard. Experiences have shown that the keen interests and fervent participation of fans can topple the ‘star system’, an industry practice that selects promising actors and singers and glamorizes them in created personas (McDonald & Wasko, 2008). In the past, actors/singers not selected and prioritized by the ‘star system’ would have been relegated to a secondary ‘tier’. However, dedicated fans, can now elevate these actors/singers to become the focal point of discussions in public forums, thus attracting media exposure and resources. Chris Lee, whom his fans believed the industry under-appreciated, edited the ‘LEE Weekly’ to promote his various talents, qualities and merits. Enter- tainment news and programs in both online and offline media picked up these fan-created contents to further diffuse and consolidate the celebrity’s fan-shaped persona. Thus, fan-created contents about this

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celebrity might influence an average Internet surfer with limited knowledge of Chris Lee, both directly and indirectly. While some celebrities can benefit from the positive image-shaping activities that their fans initiate, others may suffer from their fans’ improper remarks and behaviours. A famous K-pop group, EXO has a highly positive image that its agency packaged. However, its fans’ vicious attack on a martial arts master, who did not know EXO, backfired and damaged the image of EXO (Guancha.cn, 2015). As celebrity fans become their idol’s alternative image-shapers or reshapers through their voices and behaviours, the celebrity and the management agency must become aware of the advantages and disadvantages of this phenomenon.

Fervent Purchaser (of Celebrity Works and Endorsed Products)

Few would be surprised that when a celebrity launches new works, the fans are the first to snatch them up. It is nevertheless interesting to note that the fans snatch up new releases in high volumes, and the work itself (i.e. the type, the quality) is a minor concern. Rather than watching a movie one time, as most people do, fans would watch a new release that fea- tures their idol multiple times. If the idol is a key character in the movie, some fans will buy dozens of tickets to give away as gifts, to their friends and even to strangers. Other, more serious, fans may book a theatre and invite everyone in their workplace to watch the movie together in a private setting. The same goes for music albums. While to most people they are a product, a copy of which one would buy, interested fans focus on the emotional bonding with the celebrity they feel they can strengthen through multiple purchases. Going further, the act of purchasing multiple copies is unrelated to the ‘output’ (i.e. the product or service) of the purchase. When Lu Han’s digital music album RELOAD went on sale, many fans bought dozens, or even thousands of copies. Of course, a consumer can download one copy and listen to all the music tracks in the album; buying multiple copies does not give the buyer any more music. However, fans would buy multiple copies anyway to indicate and strengthen their bond with the celebrity. The fans’ support for their idol and his/her works can extend to the idol’s endorsed products. When an idol endorses a product, some fans will spare no effort to support it (him/her). The endorsed product’s price-value, or even its usefulness, is of minor concern. If the endorsed product is of no practical use to the fans, they will give it away as gift, as they would extra movie tickets. This was the case when Wallace Chung endorsed the Ecovacs floor sweeping robot. Indeed, Ecovacs recognized from a transaction that totalled tens of thousands of yuan that there was a fan who bought more than ten robots to give away as gifts. To this end, the Ecovacs chairman thanks the fan on social media for her strong support and promises to invite her to the next launch event. The conventional consumer purchase-decision process model suggests that consumers go through five steps in their purchase decisions: Problem recognition → Information search → Evaluation of alternatives → Purchase decision → Post-purchase evaluation (positive or negative). However, as indicated in the above examples, celebrity fans seem to follow a different, simpler process. Moreover, even if the fans have a negative opinion of an endorsed product, it is unlikely that they would admit their true (negative) product experiences on social media. Thus, their purchase-decision and post-purchase evaluation may look like this: Idol endorsement → Purchase decision → Post-purchase evaluation (positive).

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Figure 2. Fans’ purchase-decision process

No doubt, many readers would sneer at these fans’ irrational behaviours, suggesting that they are unreasonable and stupid. However, when viewed objectively, the fans have simply taken a path down the peripheral route of persuasion (Petty & Cacioppo, 1986), forgoing the product evaluation process. In other words, after spending a great deal of time and effort learning about their idol, the fans have come to consider the celebrity a ‘brand’ they can trust. This strong TRUST toward the idol allows the fans to omit product evaluation and go directly to the purchase-decision stage. In sum, the fans’ purchase- decision process may look like this:

Voluntary Marketer-Promoter

In addition to buying their idol’s endorsed products, celebrity fans are also strong promoters of these products. They will voluntarily block negative news concerning these products and try their best to spread positive word-of-mouth and increase the Internet browser traffic for related websites. In a commercial enterprise, a company must hire marketing specialists, monitor the costs, and provide them with good incentives to promote the product. However, when a company takes on a celebrity endorser, many of his/her fans would willingly contribute to the success of this product free of charge. A few talented or professional fans may contribute to the advertising design and public relations activities. By working the social media, the company can also rally the help of numerous fan-volunteers to glean important information about the market and consumers. When Wallace Chung endorsed the Ecovacs robot, fans actively interacted with the chairman and other officials of Ecovacs on Weibo to achieve a better, more coordinated endorsement effect. The content of the interaction between fans and the company was later published as poetry by Ecovacs. While the fans’ work is voluntary, companies that recognize their important contributions will provide appropriate feedback, such as timely release of endorser pictures and information, thanking the fans on social media, or inviting those with outstanding contributions to attend the product launch. In the case of the Ecovacs endorsement by Wallace Chung, the opinion leaders among his fans received free admission

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tickets to the idol’s birthday party. Similarly, Cetaphil selected fans with strong consumption power to attend the product launch. Procter & Gamble invited Lu Han’s fans to design advertisements and readily accepted their proposed advertising theme. As the endorser-fans comprise an important resource for a company beyond their direct buying powers, companies should consider ways to actively engage this important stakeholder group to garner its significant marketing prowess.

Rally Pro

To show their love and devotion, some fans will put in an extreme investment of time, money and efforts both online and offline, to bring fame and fortune to their idols. This is especially evident when the celebrity has new releases or new endorsements. These fans will build up the momentum by strategically participating in online voting, liking and sharing. Indeed, three months before the release of Wallace Chung’s film Bounty Hunters, his extreme fans were already organizing publicity activities such as creating online discussions, planning promotional tactics and even creating templates of promotional materials that fans with less time or talents could readily use. In addition to online promotion, these rallying fans also take part in offline promotional activities, such as printing signs and pictures of their idol. They also produce fans, toys and other promotional items for use and distribution. Some would willingly use their personal money and pay a huge sum to rent billboards in eye-catching locations in their hometown, to feature upcoming releases.

AN ILLUSTRATIVE STUDY: WALLACE CHUNG’S FANS

To illustrate the characteristics of celebrity fans and their marketing impacts, the authors tracked the Weibo fan pages of male singer/actor/director Wallace Chung (born in 1974), and conducted a netnographic study (Kozinets, 2002) to identify his fans’ characteristics, motives and marketing impacts. In addition to tracking these postings, the authors also tracked the ‘likes’, ‘shares’, and comments on the fan pages to gain further insights into his fans. Chung is among the hottest celebrities on Weibo. He consistently ranks among the top three stars on various leaderboards and scored a remarkable 9.9125 on the celebrity-news media index on Weibo on January 21, 2015 (Vlinkage, 2015). Chung has also won the title ‘top male celebrity’ multiple times, including most recently in January 2017 (Vlinkage, 2017). He has a substantial following of active fans, who won the Most Active Fan Club Award in 2016, the highest honour for celebrity fan clubs (Ent.ifent. com, 2016).

Accessing and Analyzing Fan Postings

The authors opened a Weibo account and tracked the activities of 200 of Chung’s most active fans on the website. For over two years, the authors tracked their Weibo activities almost every day, including their original postings, forwarding activities and comments on other fans’ postings. The authors paid particular attention to long postings (i.e. 1,000 or more words) because of their richness. Only text-based UGC is used in this chapter to facilitate reporting. Using a grounded theoretical approach, the authors formed initial thoughts on fan types and motives, gradually placing them into different categories and detailing their respective characteristics and behav-

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iours. The authors also analysed 85 text messages and postings collected from other Internet sources to cross-validate facts reported in Chung’s fan postings. For example, in the fan visitation featuring Wallace Chung and Angelababy, the postings of Angelababy’s fans were examined to cross-validate the data collected from Chung’s fans. The lack of major differences in any of the 85 cases confirmed the trustworthiness of his fans’ postings.

Analysis and Findings

Based on the analysis, the authors identified five fan segments with different motives and engagement levels with the celebrity. They include: casual fans, fascinated fans, devoted fans, dysfunctional fans, and reflective fans. Figure 3 outlines these segments and their different motives. The five-segment model provides a clearer, more refined demarcation of fan segments than the dichotomy of ‘normal’ and ‘obsessed fans’ used in previous research. Further, it identifies and describes the motives that drive each stage of fandom, thus filling a gap in fandom studies by and large left unexplained (Duffett, 2013). To substantiate the five-segment model, the remainder of this chapter provides a description of fans in each segment and identifies the fan activities that exert marketing impacts on the celebrity’s works and endorsed products. In sum, the findings show five segments of celebrity fans with different motives and marketing impacts.

FAN SEGMENTS, MOTIVES AND MARKETING IMPACTS

Casual Fans with Playful Motives (Limited Marketing Impacts)

Casual fandom represents the first step on the individual’s path to fandom. Casual fans are exposed by chance to the celebrity’s performance in films, television serials, shows, songs, or dances that leave them with a favourable impression derived from the celebrity him/herself, such as good looks, rich and famous lifestyle, strong personality, or superb performance. Alternatively, the character the celebrity takes on in the performance makes the impression. In other words, the character can take on a life of its own as fans develop a sense of affinity with the character in the performance, rather than with the celebrity who takes on the role. Fans at this stage have invested only limited cognitive and emotional efforts into knowing and bonding with the celebrity. They often have difficulties distinguishing whether the source of their favouritism is the celebrity or the character the celebrity assumes, and this process can take place even if fans relate to the character rather than the celebrity. The authors consider this the first step to fandom. Prior to this stage, the fans may not know the celebrity at all or, even if they do, they have little understanding of or feelings for the celebrity. The distinguishing characteristics of fans at this stage lies in their favourable impression of the celebrity, and the cognitive and emotional investments remain small. Casual fans have a weak connection with the celebrity, making the fandom temporary and unstable. Casual fans may like the focal celebrity today but switch to another celebrity tomorrow if a new film or song catches their fancy. Zuckerman (2006) refers to an audience’s mild emotional investment in media entertainment as a playful motive of entertainment. Since casual fans are only mildly engaged, the authors purport that at this stage fans their fandom has a playful motive (Hung, 2014). Whether a casual fan remains temporarily engaged or

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Figure 3. Fan segments and motives

invests deeper emotions in the celebrity depends on the celebrity’s ability to continually engage him/her. Without a certain degree of media exposure, casual fans would quickly forget the celebrity. Since casual fans’ relationship with the celebrity is temporary and unstable, they exert limited marketing impacts on the celebrity’s works and endorsed products. Rather, more serious fans can engage casual fans and introduce them to the celebrity’s other quality works in order to build their loyalty and commitment toward the celebrity. Casual fans’ typical behaviours include:

• Following TV drama/reality shows/variety shows that feature the celebrity; • Watching two or more times the shows/films that feature the celebrity; • Writing film/TV drama/variety show critiques on social media but declaring specifically his/her preference for the focal celebrity; • Being obsessed with the films/TV dramas/variety shows/dances/songs of the focal celebrity for a period of time; • Feeling blissful when thinking of the celebrity; • Failing to distinguish between the roles played by the celebrity and the celebrity him/herself.

Fascinated Fans with Aspirational Motives (Fervent Purchasers)

Fans at the next stage are fascinated fans. An important feature of fascinated fans is their extensive knowledge of the celebrity. They collect information not only on the celebrity’s works, but also an as- sortment of information related to the person, including his/her youthful years, family life, performing experiences, (unpopular) past works, and all sorts of trivia and tidbits related to the celebrity. Putting

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together the various pieces of information allows fascinated fans to feel that they know the celebrity really well. They may become inspired during the process of collecting and sorting information, and they resonate with the celebrity, his/her attitude and outlook on life. Fascinated fans invest considerable emotions in the celebrity. They also take part in star-gazing activities that require sizable investments of time, energy and financial resources that sometimes may bring about physical and mental exertion (Holt & Thompson, 2004). During the process, the fans become ‘transported’, and they immerse themselves in the physical, social and emotional presence of the celebrity (Hung, 2014). Typically, they become addicted to these activities and stay up all night to watch TV dramas and glean related information on the Internet. Some may find it difficult to extricate themselves from celebrity idolization. Driven by their fascination with the celebrity and their invested emotions, fascinated fans are fervent purchasers of celebrity works and the products he/she endorses. They participate in fan activities, creating homemade paraphernalia and actively promoting the celebrity and his/her works and endorsed products to others. Fascinated fans’ typical behaviours include:

• Watching unpopular works of the celebrity with interest • Downloading videos that feature the celebrity and spending all their free time watching them on mobile • Extensively collecting all kinds of information related to the celebrity • Having a strong resonance with the life attitude and behaviours of the celebrity • Able to distinguish the celebrity from his/her roles in performances • Creating homemade paraphernalia • Actively promoting the celebrity and his/her works and endorsed products to others

Devoted Fans with a Sense of Belonging (Voluntary Marketer-Promoters, Fervent Purchasers)

An important feature of fans at this stage is their urge to join fan clubs and to connect with other like- minded people. They enjoy talking to other fans on WeChat or QQ (both popular social media in China), and they feel a sense of belonging when they ‘meet’ these other fans. Together, they participate in celebrity-related events and support the celebrity’s activities. Devoted fans not only have a high emotional attachment to the celebrity, but also want to express their love toward the celebrity through their behaviours. They would impersonate the celebrity by wear- ing similar styles of clothing and putting on similar accessories. They consider these acts a tribute to the celebrity and a way to show that they belong. In return, devoted fans gain psychological satisfaction and a sense of pride by carrying out these acts. Since external display is important to devoted fans, the number of devoted fans a celebrity attracts becomes a powerful embodiment of his/her commercial value. Fans tend to change their behaviours a great deal after they join fan clubs. They influence one another in the club, and there is a high level of peer pressure for fans to fit in and behave in a similar manner. Thus, products that bear a style that is similar to the celebrity’s fashion and the limited editions as well as the derived products (e.g. mementos bearing the celebrity’s picture or signature) that fan clubs make available often sell out in a short time.

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Aside from impersonating the celebrity, devoted fans also try to behave in ways that conform to the group’s will. At times, these collective behaviours are less than desirable, unethical, or even illegal. Fans may mock, insult, and bully other celebrities and their fans to highlight their idol’s superiority. In order to show their loyalty, they may ridicule fans who do not conform to their will and jeer at them while other like-minded fans look on and cheer. Since a group’s will often reflects opinion leaders’ will, opinion leadership plays a prominent role in fan clubs (Le Bon, 2015). As devoted fans, this segment comprises the main force behind ‘voluntary marketer-promoters’ and ‘fervent purchasers’ of celebrity works and endorsed products. They actively encourage other fans to attend concerts and shows and invite them to the celebrity’s endorsement activities (e.g. product launch). Some of them become opinion leaders among fans and participate in the planning of the celebrity’s commercial activities and the management of fans. Devoted fans’ typical behaviors include:

• Writing articles on social media to express their feelings for the celebrity • Contributing their time and talents to promote the celebrity • Becoming opinion leaders in fan clubs and helping to manage fans • Attending (and inviting others to) birthday parties, concerts, award ceremonies and other activities related to or attended by the celebrity • Impersonating the celebrity • Buying multiple copies of celebrity works and endorsed products and encouraging others to buy such products

Dysfunctional Fans with Identification Motives with Celebrity (Rally Pro)

Among devoted fans who are well-connected with other fans, peer pressure in fan clubs often affects behaviours. On the one hand, they work together to boost the celebrity’s reputation and protect his/her commercial value. On the other hand, they behave irrationally and undertake excessive idolization behaviours. In extreme cases, dysfunctional fans may ‘loosen’ personal boundaries and mix up their own identities with the celebrity’s. They may also regard the celebrity as a child who needs protection. This can be counterproductive. When they struggle to protect and defend their idol’s image and reputation, they get into fights with other fans of the focal celebrity, as well as other celebrities’ fans. Luckily, only a small proportion of fans go through this stage and become dysfunctional fans. Dysfunctional fans are people the celebrity both likes and hates, since the celebrity may feel some responsibilities for the fans’ irrational behaviour in public places. On the one hand, the celebrity needs a strong group of fans to defend his interests; on the other hand, the celebrity is concerned that dysfunctional fans may offend other actors or staff with whom he/she works and make trouble for the team. Fans at this stage particularly love everything related to or endorsed by the celebrity. They would live frugally to save money to buy expensive celebrity-endorsed products and participate in all activities related to the celebrity, even if they have to travel across the country to attend. The public perception that fans are all crazy and idiotic often stems from the unreasonable and irrational behaviours of dysfunctional fans. Hunt, Bristol and Bashaw (1999) point out that some fans behave in antisocial, disruptive or deviant manners. McCutcheon et al. (2002) also note that some fans are borderline pathological. These researchers are likely referring to dysfunctional fans.

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Dysfunctional fans comprise the mainstay of the rally pro and they also display the characteristics of devoted fans. Those who are highly protective of the celebrity but who remain clear-headed would guide and cool off the more extreme fans, moderating their disruptive idolization behaviors, such as getting into shouting matches or undertaking vicious online attacks of other celebrities and their fans, to prevent harm coming to the celebrity, themselves, or others. Dysfunctional fans’ typical behaviours include:

• Paying attention to the celebrity, including his/her whereabouts, as an important part of the fan’s personal life • Borrowing mobile phone numbers from many friends to register accounts to vote for the celebrity • Acting on eagerness to own all the products related to the celebrity, including celebrity works and endorsed products • Looking for every opportunity to meet the celebrity and seeking to be intimate (e.g. hugging, kiss- ing) with him/her • Participating in disputes to defend and protect the celebrity from provocations (e.g. other celebrities’ fans, injustice of awards ceremonies, dishonest film producers) • Scurrilously attacking other celebrities’ fans and ridiculing non-conforming fans in the club • Guarding the celebrity, the same way a parent would care for his/her children

Reflective Fans with a Solid Self-Identity (Celebrity Image Shapers)

As fans grow and mature, accompanied by a deeper understanding of the workings of fan clubs, even dysfunctional fans may ease off their fanatic behaviours. They become more reflective (Hung & Li, 2006) and recognize that they and the celebrity are separate entities, leading separate lives, and that the celebrity is only a small part of their lives. They are able to refocus on their own lives again, but they would remain keen on the celebrity. They view the celebrity as a faraway friend. Fans at this stage carry out their celebrity-worship behaviours calmly. They have gone through the good and bad times of a fan club and understand how the group works, together with members’ characters and behavioural patterns. When necessary, they would come forward to resolve conflicts among fans. Although reflective fans are no longer the main driving force behind fan clubs or in daily star-gazing activities, they form the backbone that supports the celebrity. Indeed, reflective fans comprise the most stable segment of fans. The calm demeanours of the reflective fans allow them to assess the unique strengths of their idol. Thus, they become the mainstay of the celebrity’s image shapers. Using fan literature and other contents, they showcase the celebrity’s works, personality and values in the best light to advance his/her fame. Reflective fans’ typical behaviors include:

• Recognizing that the celebrity is human with his/her strengths and weaknesses • Recognizing that his/her life is parallel to and different from that of the celebrity • Keeping an arms’ length relationship with the celebrity • Staying away from daily star-gazing activities both online and offline • Participating in and inviting others to attend the celebrity’s shows, fan-club activities, and other major events (e.g., award ceremony) • Enjoying the celebrity’s new works as soon as they come on the market

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• Helping to shape the image of the celebrity in the best light • Trying to be as good a person as their idol

Summary

The above paragraphs outline five segments of celebrity fans. Each segment has different motives and invests differently in engagement with the celebrity, thereby exerting different marketing impacts. At the entry point of fandom, casual fans invest limited resources, as their fandom is temporary and unstable. As they become more interested in the celebrity and increase their emotional, time and financial investments, they become fascinated fans. Further down the road, fandom is no longer a personal proj- ect, but a social one. Devoted fans join fan clubs and impersonate the celebrity, leveraging their social relationships and social identity to pursue fandom. To management agencies and marketers, devoted fans have strong commercial value. They are heavy purchasers of celebrity-related products, as well as avid promoters of these products. Yet, further along, some devoted fans may become so consumed by the celebrity that they cross the psychological boundary between their own identity and the celebrity’s to become dysfunctional fans. Dysfunctional fans may undertake extreme idolization behaviours that are potentially harmful to themselves and the celebrity, and disruptive to society. However, their strong bond with the celebrity makes rallying their strength. Finally, as fans grow and mature, they become reflective on their engagement with the celebrity. They reverse their extreme idolization to pursue an arm’s-length approach to celebrity engagement, treating the celebrity as a faraway friend. Reflective fans remain loyal and supportive of the celebrity and his/her activities. Their arm’s-length approach to celebrity worship gives them objectivity to shape or reshape the image of the celebrity in the best light (Table 3).

FACTORS AFFECTING A FAN’S DEVELOPMENTAL PROCESS

The approach outlined thus far advocates that a fan’s development follows a linear and stepwise approach, starting from being a casual fan and gradually moving up the ladder to becoming a reflective fan (Figure 3). While this general approach applies to many fans, an analysis of the fans’ UGC over time and across celebrities shows substantial variations of this typical developmental process. Some fans may remain

Table 3. Summary of fan segments, their characteristics and marketing impacts

Fan Segment (Motives) Characteristics & Fan Behaviors Marketing Impacts Reflective Fans Provide backbone of fan support, arm’s-length Celebrity Image-Shapers. (Solid Self-identity) relationship with celebrity. Dysfunctional Fans Irrational idolization behaviors, protective of Rally Pro, also display behaviors of Devoted (Identification with Celeb.) celebrity. Fans. Devoted Fans Strong commercial values. Voluntary Marketer- Fan club membership, impersonation. (Sense of Belonging) Promoters and Fervent Purchasers. Fascinated Fans (Aspirational Emotional, time and monetary investment. Fervent Purchasers. Motives) Casual Fans Temporary, unstable relationship with celebrity Limited marketing impacts. (Playful Motives)

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at a particular fan stage a long time, while others may skip a stage altogether and advance to a higher stage. Needless to say, at each stage some fans become bored, lose interest in the celebrity, and drop out of fandom. Thus, an interesting question concerns what factors could affect a fan’s development. While an exploration of these underlying factors is not the main focus of this study, the authors discuss the following factors that may shed light on this issue. Analysis of the UGC shows that the fans’ psychological state may play a key role in these variations. It seems that some fans are more rational, playful, or dysfunctional. Alternatively, these respective motives may be more central to specific fans’ orientations to life and entertainment. Fans that are more rational by nature may be casual fans for a short time before they advance to become fascinated fans (stage 2). Then, they develop into devoted fans (stage 3) and skip the dysfunctional stage (stage 4) altogether before arriving at the final stage of being reflective fans (stage 5). Apparently, the dysfunctional state does not match these fans’ temperament or psychological needs, so they forgo the stage completely. The analysis also identifies fans that have a more playful, rather than a loyal, disposition. These fans become casual fans readily. However, rather than moving up the ladder, they drop out quickly and become casual fans of some other celebrities. This cycle can repeat time and again. Perhaps it is the funny and playful nature of being a casual fan that can best satisfy these fans’ psychological and entertainment needs. In the meantime, the authors also observe fans that advance to the dysfunctional stage after only a short tenure as fans in the earlier stages, and then experience great difficulties pulling themselves out of the dysfunctional fan stage. In sum, there is considerable variability in the length of time a fan remains at a particular stage, whether he/she advances to the next stage, skips it altogether, or moves ‘horizontally’ to become a fan of another celebrity. The fans’ psychological state seems to be a driver of these processes.

CONCLUSION

With the exception of certain superstars (e.g. Elvis Presley; Doss, 1999), fans in the pre-social-media era have exerted limited impact on society and the economy. This is partly because fans are scattered, and fan communities are small and thus have limited power. This mode of fandom has since changed. The ubiquity of social media allows fans to stay connected and form huge fan communities across the country and beyond. As the chapter shows, fans nowadays are highly diversified and comprise both men and women across the age spectrum and education levels. Some of them like the character roles the celebrity plays, while others prefer the ‘real’ person. Fans also have different motives for celebrity engagement that go beyond the two segments of ‘normal’ and ‘obsessed’ fans previously identified. Findings of this chapter confirm that celebrity fans have different characteristics and motives that can be categorized into five segments, beginning with casual fans and progressing to reflective fans. Describing these segments affirms both the constructive and the negative aspects of fandom. Aside from dysfunctional fans, most other fan segments are sensible and rational. They derive fun, creativity, a sense of belonging, and even personal growth from the idolization process. As such, the findings also tie into past research that measures a fan’s celebrity attitude (e.g. McCutchen et al., 2002), investigates fan idolization behaviors (e.g. Frazer & Brown, 2002), fan-fan relationships and their mutual implications (e.g. O’Guinn, 1991). Meanwhile, the study also identifies some interesting fan segments, such as fascinated fans, a transitional stage, and reflexive fans, a final but sustainable stage of fandom that has received limited research attention.

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This chapter also shows that as fans invest in their celebrity engagement activities, they inadvertently play four important marketing roles. Aside from casual fans who have yet to establish a stable relationship with the celebrity and thus exert limited marketing impact, the remaining segments play unique marketing roles. Fascinated fans are the mainstay of fervent purchasers; devoted fans are not only fervent purchasers, but they are also the mainstay of voluntary marketer-promoters. Meanwhile, dysfunctional fans are good at rallying, whereas reflective fans, who maintain a more rational and objective relationship with the celebrity, are the celebrity image-shapers (or reshapers). Despite their loose structure and organization, fan communities allow connected fans to bring about changes to the ‘star system’. Fans participate actively to ‘reposition’ the celebrity, and they invest their own time, money, efforts and talents to promote the celebrity (and related works). As indicated in many of the examples in the chapter, some companies (e.g. Ecovacs) understand that fans comprise an important asset and actively engage fans to achieve the best celebrity endorsement effects. With that said, fan communities are loosely organized. Many factions within the community continuously evolve, and the personnel change fluidly from one faction to another. Thus, connected fans provide unique marketing opportunities to companies, but at the same time, they are unpredictable, making them very difficult to manage or control.

FUTURE PROSPECTS

This chapter poses some important directions for future research. For example, it assumes that a fan harbours one motive at a time, though this has not been proven. Also, it remains unclear why some fans would advance to another stage while others would stay at the same stage for a prolonged period, drop out, or skip a stage. Future research can take these exploratory findings, validate and extend them. The chapter also discusses some fan-specific consumer phenomena. For example, the fans display unique characteristics in their purchase-decision processes. With an apparently high level of celebrity trust, they forego the process of evaluating alternative products and produce only positive feedback. The high volume at which fans purchase celebrity-related works to strengthen their bonds with the celebrity are also thought-provoking, especially when digital products are concerned and the fans receive no additional ‘products’ for their multiple purchases. These instances illustrate interesting marketing phenomena that future research can further delineate. Related to the consumer phenomena are the implications of the celebrity-endorsement literature. To date, the endorsement literature focuses primarily on the celebrity-brand relationship. This orientation has brought to light important theoretical frameworks such as source credibility (e.g. Ohanian, 1990; Tripp, Jensen & Carlson, 1994), affect and meaning transfer (e.g. Ohanian, 1990; McCracken, 1989) that delineate the processes through which the advantages of the celebrity can be leveraged onto an endorsed brand. Meanwhile, the celebrity-consumer relationship plays a secondary role, with the relatively passive consumers whose role is limited to deciding on the appropriate image fit (e.g. Amos, Holmes & Strutton, 2008; Choi & Rifon, 2012). The passive consumer likely has been the case when fans were scattered. However, with the advances of connected fandom, fans are playing active marketing/promotional roles, including ‘repositioning’ a celebrity. Thus, when a company acquires a celebrity endorser, the company is also taking on a fan community, a major stakeholder in celebrity endorsement. To date, there is very limited examination of

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the roles of fans in the celebrity-endorsement literature. The authors look forward to the development of theoretical frameworks to understand this phenomenon and make explicit the fans’ marketing impacts. The study also has implications for managers and professionals in celebrity-related industries. This chapter provides an initial framework of fans, their motives, and marketing impacts. Industry professionals can develop appropriate plans based on this framework to manage fans more effectively and to add value to the celebrity and related works. For example, managers can take initiatives to provide celebrity-rich information to casual fans to heighten their interest in the celebrity and facilitate their entry into fascinated fandom. Moreover, managers can engage fascinated and devoted fans and can leverage their network and expertise to manage product launch and promotional programs. As to dysfunctional fans, managers should arrange preventive measures before news releases and major events arouse their sentiments and deflect crisis before it takes place. As to reflective fans, managers can garner the expertise and objectivity of reflective fans and shape the celebrity’s persona to best connect with other fan segments, as well as the targeted consumers, to achieve better marketing results.

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KEY TERMS and definitions

Baidu: Baidu is a Chinese multinational technology company specializing in Internet-related products/ services and artificial intelligence. It has the second largest search engine in the world. Celebrity Endorsement: A commercial activity whereby a celebrity becomes the spokesperson of a brand or the products of an enterprise. Celebrity Engagement: The attention and behaviors that fans undertake and direct at a celebrity. Idolization: The act of admiring strongly or worshiping blindly a celebrity. Para-Social Relationship: A one-sided relationship whereby fans regard the celebrity as their ac- quaintance or friend, though the celebrity has no knowledge of the fans. Roadshow: The publicity or touring performances the media or the celebrity’s management agency organizes. Star-Gazing: The activities fans undertake to show their love and idolatry toward the celebrity. User-Generated Content: Content in forms of text, images, or/and videos on social media, created and shared spontaneously by fans to promote a celebrity or other focus of interest. Weibo: A social networking website launched by Sina for users to post messages and upload pictures and videos; one of the most popular social media in China. Wallace Chung: A Chinese singer, actor, dancer, and director. He was born in Hong Kong on Novem- ber 30, 1974 and has played the leading roles in many films and TV dramas. Well-known by audiences in China, he was ranked #45 on the 2015 Forbes China Celebrity List.

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