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Studying TV and print advertisements, one will realize that either some celebrities are endorsing several brands or a specific brand is endorsed by different spokespersons. These concepts are called multiple brand endorsement and multiple celebrity endorsement respectively.

The question is, does this special form of celebrity endorsement affects consumers' brand attitudes? Following Tripp et al. (1994), the endorsement of as many as four products negatively influences the celebrity spokesperson's credibility (i.e., expertise and trustworthiness) and likeability. They further add that these effects are independent of the celebrity, i.e., the perceptions of even well-liked stars can be influenced. Reasons may be found in the lack of distinctiveness, with one famous person endorsing several products instead of concentrating on and representing one specific brand. Though these findings may be valid, it does not automatically mean that the concept of multiple product endorsement is useless. Further, research is suggested on potential positive effects, like transfer of positive brand images, and on the shape of consumers' response when more than four products are endorsed.

Brand Image & Celebrity

Research has shown that there are three aspects that influence a customer's attitude and, hence, the long term impact on the brand - Attractiveness, Trustworthiness and Expertise. The matrix below shows us the images and the celebrities: -

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* Contributed by: -
Naveen Blazey & Shashi Kanth Ganti,
Goa Institute of Management, Goa.