The Influence of Selected Antecedents on Athlete Endorser Credibility, Attitude Towards an Advertisement and Purchase Intentions
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THE INFLUENCE OF SELECTED ANTECEDENTS ON ATHLETE ENDORSER CREDIBILITY, ATTITUDE TOWARDS AN ADVERTISEMENT AND PURCHASE INTENTIONS by BAFOKENG BAFOKENG MAHAO Student number: 20311907 Dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree MAGISTER TECHNOLOGIAE in the discipline Marketing in the FACULTY OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCES at the VAAL UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY SUPERVISOR: Dr Nobukhosi Dlodlo CO-SUPERVISOR: Dr Sumari Tesnear September 2017 DECLARATION This work has not previously been accepted in substance for any degree and is not being concurrently submitted in candidature for any degree. Signed………………………… Date…………………………… STATEMENT 1 This dissertation is being submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Magister Technologiae: Marketing STATEMEMENT 2 The dissertation is the result of my own independent work/ investigation, except otherwise stated. Other sources are acknowledged by giving explicit references. A bibliography is appended. Signed……………………… Date………………………… STATEMENT 3 I hereby give consent for my dissertation, if accepted, to be available for photocopying and for interlibrary loans, and for the title and summary to be made to outside organisations. Signed………………………………….. Date……………………………………. ii LETTER FROM THE LANGUAGE EDITOR Ms Linda Scott English language editing SATI membership number: 1002595 Tel: 083 654 4156 E-mail: [email protected] 24 February 2017 To whom it may concern This is to confirm that I, the undersigned, have language edited the completed research of Bafokeng Mahao for the MTech Dissertation entitled: The influence of selected antecedents on athlete endorser credibility, attitude towards an advertisement and purchase intentions. The responsibility of implementing the recommended language changes rests with the author of the dissertation. Yours truly, Linda Scott iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The following individuals are acknowledged for their contribution towards the successful completion of this work: First, to God Almighty for giving me life, strength and endurance towards the successful completion of this study. My supervisor, Dr Nobukhosi Dlodlo, for inspiring me to pursue this MTech qualification in the first instance. I am indebted to her for providing expert guidance throughout this research journey as well as assistance and the necessary support when the going got tough. Linda Scott for language editing of this dissertation. Aldine Oosthuyzen for the technical editing of this dissertation. My co-supervisor, Dr Sumari Tesnear, for her feedback. My parents, Emily Masello Mahao and Teboho Mahao for their constant prayers and words of encouragement that saw me throughout this journey. My uncle, Thabiso Joshua Mahao, for his constant words of encouragement. My siblings, Thakane Mahao, Thabiso Mahao, Pulane Mahao and Mahao Mahao for spurring me on to always surpass my standards. My friends, Matsemela Papiki Letsema and Aaron Bam, for always being supportive and encouraging throughout my studies and life, in general. A special thank you to all the respondents who assisted by completing the questionnaires during the pilot phase and main survey. Last, but most importantly, my utmost respect and gratitude goes to my late grandparents, Pulane Adeline Mahao and Mahlomola Mahao, for raising me and instilling the discipline and attitude that saw me through this study. iv ABSTRACT Keywords: celebrity endorsement, athlete-endorser, credibility, attitude, purchase intentions Given the pervasive use of celebrity endorsements and the high costs involved in this marketing strategy, it is important for marketers to have knowledge of the right set of procedures to follow in selecting an ambassador to market their products. This study draws from the undertones of Ohanian’s (1990:46) Source attributes theory, comprising elements of the Source credibility theory as well as the Source attractiveness theory. Whereas the former (trustworthiness and expertise) influences consumer attitudes and behaviour through a process called internalisation, the latter (attractiveness) influences receivers of marketing communication messages through a process called identification. The theory is useful when applied during the initial phase of selecting which celebrity to use to endorse products, to avoid costly mistakes of choosing celebrities that do not possess the right set of attributes for persuading consumers. The purpose of this study was to apply the Source attributes theory in understanding the key attributes towards consumers’ evaluations of the credibility of an athlete-celebrity endorser. Moreover, the influence of athlete endorser credibility on consumers’ attitudes and purchase intentions towards the celebrity endorsed advertisement. A quantitative study comprising a non-probability snowball sample of 456 consumers was conducted in 2016, in and around the five major towns of Southern Gauteng province in South Africa. The structured-self administered questionnaire requested participants to indicate their perceptions regarding the attributes of nominated athlete-celebrity, namely, trustworthiness, expertise and attractiveness in endorsing the selected product. In addition, the questionnaire related to consumers’ evaluations of the credibility of the selected athlete-celebrity, consumers’ attitude towards the advertisement where the athlete-celebrity appears and purchase intentions towards the endorsed product. Findings from the study indicated that South African consumers have positive perceptions of the selected athlete-celebrity’s trustworthiness, expertise and attractiveness. In addition, the measurement model was verified using statistical accuracy tests, thereby confirming that the purchase intentions model was a six-factor structure comprising trustworthiness, expertise, attractiveness, endorser credibility, attitude towards the advertisement and purchase intentions. The results of both the confirmatory factor analysis and the structural equation modelling suggest that the three dimensions are valid measures of the overall credibility of the athlete- endorser (R2=0.60). This finding provided support for the scale developed by Ohanian (1990) to be a valid v measure for selecting celebrity endorsers when applied in South Africa. Moreover, the structural model validated the existence of significant, direct impacts of athlete-endorser credibility on attitude towards the advertisement (path estimate=0.704) and attitude towards the advertisement on purchase intentions (path estimate=0.741). Insights gained from this study will assist both marketing academics and practitioners to understand the perceptions of consumers towards the use of athlete-celebrities in product promotions in the South African market. In this regard, if a determination is made that a celebrity could enhance the marketing campaign, marketers should determine to what extent the celebrity should be used. The correct use of the right celebrity, selected in line with these findings, can help ensure greater consumer persuasion. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ..................................................................................................................... ii LETTER FROM THE LANGUAGE EDITOR .................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................... iv ABSTRACT.............................................................................................................................. v TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................................vii LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................. xv LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................................................. xvi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY ......................... 1 1.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................ 1 1.2 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY ..................................................................... 2 1.3 PROBLEM STATEMENT ................................................................................... 4 1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES................................................................................. 5 1.4.1 Primary objective ............................................................................................................ 5 1.4.2 Theoretical objectives ...................................................................................................... 5 1.4.3 Empirical objectives ........................................................................................................ 5 1.5 HYPOTHESES FOR THE STUDY ..................................................................... 6 1.6 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY ................................................ 7 1.6.1 Literature review ............................................................................................................. 7 1.6.2 The empirical study ......................................................................................................... 7 1.6.2.1 Target population .............................................................................................................. 7 1.6.2.2 Sampling frame ................................................................................................................