The Relationship between Celebrity Endorsement and Brand Image in the Fastfood Industry in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Abstract

A strong brand image is an essential business asset in the modern day business environment. This is because a strong brand image provides an effective way to get the brand noticed amidst the rush and clutter in the daily media. The aim of current study was to determine the nexus between celebrity endorsement and brand image in the fastfood industry. In other to achieve the objective of this study, four research hypotheses were formulated and tested using the Spearman’s Rank Order Correlation (rho), relying on the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Data for the study was collected through questionnaire, and data collected from four hundred and eighteen (418) customers of fastfood firms in Port Harcourt was used in the final analysis. The study found a positive and significant association between celebrity endorsement and all the metrics of brand image considered in the study. Importantly, the study discovered a strong and positive correlation between celebrity endorsement and brand awareness, while the relationship between celebrity endorsement and brand personality is found to be moderate. The paper therefore concluded that celebrity endorsement is a needful communication strategy for building a strong brand image, and recommends that marketers must be careful enough to ensure a good endorser-brand fit so as to raise the unique selling proposition of the firm to new heights.

Keywords: Celebrity endorsement, Brand image, Brand awareness, Brand distinction, Brand personality, Brand prestige.