Are Scottish consumers purchasing choices influenced by celebrity endorsements?

This study aims to illuminate the negative and positive influences celebrity endorsement has on young Scottish consumers purchasing decisions, also covering a range of crucial aspects within this area of research. Additionally, this study is motivated by five research questions: (1) To establish whether or not marketers would take the risk in using celebrity endorsement strategies for their company? (2) To discover, to what extent, young Scottish consumer purchasing choices are influenced by celebrity endorsements? (3) To critically analyse the effect celebrity scandals have on endorsed products? (4) To find out the effect of source credibility of celebrities, which influences consumers (5) To ascertain the level of investment companies are willing to make on celebrity endorsements? These key research questions are fundamental for organisations and it is suggested that a new generation of research in this area needs to address the extended questions. Previous research offers a descriptive account of the key aspects presented throughout the dissertation, which concentrates extensively on celebrity endorsement benefits, risks, credibility and cost. The study advances our understanding of how young Scottish consumers perceive celebrity endorsements. A mixed method research approach was employed in order to test the effects of celebrity endorsement. The quantitative research method consisted of an online survey, which was completed by one hundred respondents in order to answer the key points of the study. In addition, the qualitative research method comprised of semistructured interviews based on the responses of the online survey, which were given to eight participants to illustrate the outlooks of young Scottish consumers. The findings from the research show the impact of celebrity endorsements and how it is more intricate than previously assumed. The results show contrary to expectancies, as many of the qualitative and quantitative results differed from previous research, which emphasises this marketing tool in a different way. The findings prompt a rethinking of celebrity endorsements as emerging themes and complexities of this marketing strategy are highlighted. The results, implications for managers, and future research are discussed.ba_busmanunpub2106_ethesesunpu