228 CHAPTER 7 ADVERTISINGendorsers were also pre-tested to be equally attractive, equally credible and equally fitting with the advertised
product. The actors Leonardo DiCaprio (global celebrity), Akshay Kumar (local celebrity) and a local non-celebrity
model were selected. Using each of these three endorsers, two identical ads were created for a new brand of home
cinema systems (TFX) that was positioned as either ‘global’ or ‘local’. A new brand was used to avoid potential
confounds of prior brand associations. The global brand ad was drafted in English, mentioning the cities of New York,
London and Delhi, and referring to a website tfx.com. The local brand condition was completely in Hindi, referred
to three Indian cities (Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata) and directed people to the website tfx.in. The advertising copy was
translated and back-translated by four native Hindi speakers to ensure that the ads transferred the same meaning
in Hindi and English. In this study, a glocalisation strategy (a combination of a global brand with a local endorser)
engenders the most positive consumer responses over complete globalisation or localisation.
In the first study, brand globalness was merely manipulated through the language in the ad, geographic locations
and website, but the brand name was kept constant. In the second study, this time for fashion, brand globalness
was more extremely manipulated by also manipulating the brand name. Two fictitious proper names that represented
either a local (Ram Lal) or international, global ( Jack Dixon) fashion designer were selected. The other brand
manipulations were identical to study 1, and also the same three endorsers were used. The design was again a
3 × 2 full factorial, between-subjects design.
When brand globalness is moderate (all verbal elements in the ad except the brand name), global brands do not
score significantly better than local brands in India. Local brands in India are generally not as positively received as
global brands, and the type of endorser does not really seem to make any difference. Global brands, however, should
glocalise their ads by engaging a local celebrity, as ad and brand responses are significantly more positive when a
local celebrity endorses a global brand than with a global celebrity or a local non-celebrity endorser. This glocalisation
strategy may have triggered both the higher prestige of a global brand and a sense of uniqueness among the Indian
participants. When also the brand name is globalised, a global brand is more favourably perceived than a local
brand and there are no endorser differences whatsoever. It seems that the effect of outspoken brand globalness on
brand attitudes is so strong that it suppresses endorser-type effects.It is clear that celebrities are used extensively. For example, one in four ads in US and one
in fi ve UK campaigns feature celebrities.^117 But how eff ective are celebrity endorsements?
Th ey certainly attract a lot of attention, not only from the target group, but also from the
media. Th e latter is very interesting since it can give rise to free publicity. For example, when
the ‘Won’t Kiss Off Test’ campaign for Revlon’s Colorstay Lipsticks was launched, Cindy
Crawford kissed reporters, leading to massive free publicity.^118 Moreover, several studies have
shown that celebrities can have a direct positive impact on ad likeability and also an indirect
eff ect on brand attitude and purchase intentions.^119 For instance, the management of
Pepsi attributes its 8% increase in sales in 1984 to the Michael Jackson endorsement, while
the Spice Girls were good for a 2% global market share increase in 1997.^120 However, not
all celebrities are eff ective for all products or all situations. Several factors play a role.^121
According to the Source Credibility Model, the celebrity should be credible in the sense that
he or she has expertise and is trustworthy. Th e trustworthiness of an endorser is defi ned
as the degree to which the endorser is perceived to be honest and believable. Tiger Woods
has proved that he has mastered how to play golf, which makes him highly credible for
promoting golf equipment and sportswear. In a study in which both an actor and an athlete
promote a candy bar and an energy bar, it was found that the ad featuring the athlete was
more eff ective when an energy bar was promoted, while the type of endorser did not matter
for the candy bar.^122
Besides credibility, attractiveness may also be important. According to the Source Attractiveness
Model, attractiveness refers in this context to the degree that the celebrity is known (awareness
and familiarity), is physically perceived to be attractive and is liked by the target group.
Although all adults agree that Sean Connery is a great movie star, Will Smith will no doubtM07_PELS3221_05_SE_C07.indd 228M07_PELS3221_05_SE_C07.indd 228 6/5/13 3:01 PM6/5/13 3:01 PM