An empirical examination of celebrity versus created animated spokes-characters endorsements in print advertisement among youth

This comparative study contains an analysis of effectiveness of advertisements endorsement by celebrity versus created spokes-character. Endorsements can either be in the form of a celebrity acting as a spokesperson for an organization or the organization can create a spokesperson to act as an endorser. The problem that marketers face is of little scientific proof exists if youngsters perceive celebrity endorsements and created spokes-character differently with regards to their expertise and trustworthiness. The aim of this study was to determine the attitudes of youth respondents with regards to expertise, trustworthiness and attractiveness of celebrity endorsements and created spokes-character in advertisements. The result showed that the overall credibility of celebrity endorsers was higher than spokes-character endorsers. This knowledge will provide strategic advantage to the marketing professionals regarding how and when to make use of created spokes-character and when to use celebrity for endorsement of their brand.