CREDIBILITY"ethos is the most potent of all means of persuasion" (Aristotle, The Rhetoric, 1356a)

“To become a celebrity is to become a brand name” (Phillip Roth)

Definition of credibility: "judgments made by a perceiver (e.g., message recipient) concerning the believability of a communicator" (O'Keefe, 1995, pp. 130-131)

What is Credibility?

A reliable generalization “A highly credible source is

commonly found to induce more persuasion toward the advocacy than a low credibility source” (Pornpitakpan, 2004)

“The generalization that high credibility sources are more influential than low credibility sources is as close as one can come to a universal law of persuasion” (Gass & Seiter, 2007)

Celebrity endorsers: Selling ethos 25% of advertisements

employ celebrity endorsers (Shimp, 2000).

Roughly 10% of advertising expenditures go to pay the endorser (Agrawal & Kamakura, 1995)

Selling power is known as a celebrity’s “quotient fare” or simply “Q”

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/more/specials/fortunate50/2007/

Transfer effect when a consumer

identifies with a celebrity he/she purchases the product in the hope of claiming some of these transferred meanings for their own lives (Kelman 2006; McCracken 1989).

The match-up hypothesis Endorsers are more

effective when there is a "fit" between the endorser and the endorsed product Kamins, 1990.

The match-up hypothesis How do these four endorsers fit the

“My Life, My Card” American Express image?

Which brands go with which endorsers? What brands

would you match-up with Katie Couric, Amy Winehouse, will.i.am, and Steven Spielberg?

More about celebrity endorsers $800 million was spent in

the U.S. in 1998 on spokespersons Thompson, 1998)

Reliance on celebrity endorsers crosses all product categories (Thompson, 1998)

gender and celebrity endorsers Once relegated 2nd class

status, women endorsers now lead the field

Are celebrity spokespersons effective?

Study by Yankelovich and Gannett, of 1,000 consumers nationwide:

Only 25% of those questioned said a TV ad would induce them to try a product or brand

Only 3% said they would try a new product based on the recommendations of a celebrity

63% said they would try something new based on the advice of a friend.

But: is what they say, what they would

actually do? Even 3% of a national television

audience would represent millions of viewers.

Celebrity endorsers: the downside Tarnished halos:

Michael Phelps: photographed smoking pot

Mel Gibson (DUI and anti-Semitic remarks

Tom Cruise (kooky behavior, denigrated Brooke Shields for taking anti-depressants)

Michael Richards (string of racial epithets)

scandals produce negative fallout for the sponsor's image as well

increased use of animated and animal endorsers can be attributed, in part, to a fear of endorser scandals hurting business

Celebrities and politics "There is no polling evidence

that celebrity endorsements make a difference,“

• Kathleen Hall Jamieson "political endorsements

generally have little impact on voter preference."

• A 2007 study by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

It may be that celebrities are more successful motivating people to vote in general as opposed to tendering a vote for a specific candidate.”

• Natalie Wood, Ph.D., marketing professor

Conceptualizing credibility credibility as a receiver-

based construct credibility as a multi-

dimensional construct credibility as a

situational/contextual construct

(McCroskey & Young, 1981) what isn’t part of source credibility? physical attractiveness?

clothing?)

How credibility works Petty & Cacioppo's ELM model

central route (cognitive processing, deliberation, reflection)

peripheral route (credibility, appearance factors, likeability)

“preferential” processing role of involvement (familiarity with,

importance of issue) Note: in Wilson & Sherrell's 1993) meta-

analysis, 8 of 12 credibility studies (67%) supported the predictions of the ELM.

The factor analytic approach to credibility primary dimensions

expertise (competence) trustworthiness (safety) goodwill (perceived caring)

secondary dimensions dynamism or extroversion composure sociability inspiring

functional approach to credibility; dimensions vary from situation to situation

expertise Sources who are high in

expertise are generally more persuasive than sources who lack expertise

High expertise sources can advocate more discrepant positions on issues

Expertise may interact with attractiveness, gender, and perceived similarity

trustworthiness Jared Fogle, for

Subway, isn’t a celebrity, but his “plain folks” appeal makes him trustworthy.

Richard Hatch won the million dollars on Survivor, but is he trustworthy?

Sources can be high in one dimension and low in another

Simon Cowell may have expertise, but lack perceived caring

Sarah Palin was low in expertise, but high in trustworthiness (genuine, authentic)

Amazing feats of credibility!

Bill Clinton, dissociation between the man and the office: Clinton’s job approval ratings remained at a lofty 65%

during the Monica Lewinsky scandal while his personal popularity plummeted to a dismal 35%.

Tiger Woods, defying the traditional logic Only a few celebrity superstars have been able to

successfully endorse multiple products Tiger Woods is on track to become the first billion dollar

endorser.

Moderating variables that affect credibility

receiver involvement: credibility matters little if receiver involvement is high Low involved receivers are more susceptible to

credibility appeals• reliance on peripheral processing

High involved listeners are less susceptible to credibility appeals

• reliance on central processing Authoritarianism

Authoritarians are highly susceptible to appeals by admired sources

Timing of source identification The source and the source’s qualifications must be

identified prior to the presentation of the message

Generalizing the credibility construct Credibility applies not

only to the rich and famous

institutions and organizations possess credibility as well

In dyadic encounters; there are two sources whose credibility is at stake

Do fictional spokespersons possess credibility?

Institutional credibility: the good, the bad, and the ugly tarnished corporateand

government images FEMA: The Katrina

disaster Wall Street:

underestimating risk CIA and intelligence on

WMD Enron: gaming the

electricity market Wal-Mart: low wages,

poor working conditions