1.1 Introduction
Celebrity endorsement also called celebrity marketing is a new phenomenon in the world of marketing communication/advertising. In recent years, the concept of Infinix Smart Phone brand association as a veritable means to understanding customer preference and building valuable brand appears to be the preoccupation of most brand managers. The desire to have an edge in competitions has compelled brand owners in Nigeria to rethink their marketing strategies and practices by embracing innovative ways to create, enhance a distinctive image in the minds of their target market. Brand standing and differentiation have become some spheres of competition for market share as brands continue to engage in activities to attract and keep customers across segments of the market.
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research hypothesis and questions, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.
1.2 Background of Study
The youth market in the world currently is highly technology savvy. This section of the society has been actively transforming the application of digital technology in ways that nobody ever thought of. This market segment, which is made up of people ranging between ages 18-40 is keen on using internet, building websites, playing games and sharing multimedia messages via social media (Selian, 2014). The appetite of the young generation for technology is portrayed through the many ways that Smartphones have become essential communication tools among the youth in Nigeria and worldwide. Studies have discovered that young consumers have a fast adoption curve and that their desire to stay connected in communication to friends is great. However, they tend to be prone to handset fads, and long-term prospects for innovative.
The fast growth of the industry is believed to be as a result of mobile phones becoming a necessity for every Nigerian. Mobile phones, more so smartphones, have made work easier in every sector, right from business, education, and governance among others. According to Sultan & Rohm (2015), these digital gadgets are currently used as fashion items and are also used by the young generation as status symbol to express themselves. With increased competition, as new players join the market, mobile phone companies are forced to develop aggressive marketing strategies that are relevant to the dynamics of the day. Apart from technological advancement, social dynamics and external factors like price, warrant, and experience play part in building loyalty.
The strategies employed focus not only on better service quality and functionality but also on the perceived image that ensures consumers stick to their products or brands, an art that is commonly known as branding. Branding influences a customer’s product patronage, especially for the young markets and therefore companies are determined to build strong brands (Milford & Nwulu, 2015). Through branding, organizations are in a position to create value and meaning for their products as they wish to make consumers stick and choose their brands anytime. One of the main ways of branding, especially in the telecommunication industry, is the use of celebrity endorsement.
Various companies have validation deals with celebrities in the hope that by using celebrities they can achieve a unique and relevant position in the minds of the consumers. Choice of the celebrity, hence, is of extreme importance and is usually done based on many different considerations appeal, looks, popularity or even just a fictional figure to endorse a brand (Liu, 2010). Advertisers often select endorsers as a promotional tactic to communicate the features of their product or brand. Today, this advertising approach appeared to be on the rise across all media types.
Celebrity Endorsement makes Advertisement more remarkable and the company in the short – run makes high brand consciousness among a larger audience as well as an increase in market share (Milford & Nwulu, 2015). Companies use Celebrity Endorsement for very good reasons. It is believed that celebrity endorsement enables instant awareness and immediate action. Bearing in mind the huge amount of money companies are ready to pay for celebrity endorsement, it shows that many companies have had considerable success using noticeable names and appearances as promoting strategy (Milford & Nwulu, 2015). According to Friedman and Friedman (2019), defined that celebrity endorser is an individual who is known to the public (actor, sports figure, entertainer, etc.) for his or her accomplishments in areas other than that of the product class endorsed. However, the Advertisers should note that the use of a well-known personality, who can create original interest and attention for an Advertisement, does not essentially result in attitude changes towards the product.
As well, the study from Till and Shimp (2018), presented an evidence that positive feelings towards advertising and products do not certainly translate into genuine behavior or buying intentions. According to Ifeanyichukwu (2016), the practice of using Celebrities in Advertisements to promote products dates back to more than a hundred years globally but its practice in Nigeria can be traced to the early 90’s. Shimp (2015) opined that more than 25 percent of the total advertisements aired use celebrities. This scenario is not different in Nigeria.
Thus, we see famous Nollywood stars, football stars, basketball stars, athletes etc. signing up with a particular brand by featuring in their Advertisements on televisions, Newspapers and Billboards. For instance, Veteran actress Genevieve Nnaji was a Lux soap ambassador (Lux is a homecare product by the UNILEVER), Actress Chika Ike is also an ambassador for energy drink, and Actress Funke Akindele popularly known as Jenifa is the face of Jobberman etc. Carbonated drink industries are not left out as we see beverage companies In Nigeria signing up celebrities (actors, actresses, athletes, musicians) as their brand ambassadors.
Research statistics in Nigeria have revealed that the use of celebrity advertisement has doubled in the past ten years that is statistics related to the consumer goods industry. The growth in the use of celebrities in brand message communication among both non-luxury brands and luxury brands has taken place. Many celebrities see the multibillion-dollar beverages market as a rewarding way to increase their already famous brand. Celebrities that were previously connected with the music industry or/and film industry are revealing their presence in the consumer market, particularly the telecommunication market (Milford & Nwulu, 2015). It is also worthy to note that a top celebrity (whether an athlete, movie star or musician) can be signed up to 20 different brands (Ifeanyichukwu, 2016).
The usage of Celebrities as means of communication has been frequently used in Advertising and Branding. This is done because it is assumed that celebrities have a powerful effect on the affluence of the brands they endorse. Advertisers believe that using celebrity endorser will foster, in the mind of the consumer that affect positively on the buying decision of consumers. Marketers use celebrity endorsement in order to help better storage of information in consumers’ minds which they can easily remember in purchasing situations (Liu, 2011). Celebrity endorsement is a practice gaining grounds in modern times. It has become pervasive in the advertising industry in Nigeria, as it has become a multi-million venture. Marketers use celebrity endorsement to influence the purchase decisions and patronage of consumers, in order to increase sales as well as expand market shares. Telecommunication companies in Nigeria have over the years adopted the use of celebrity endorsement as a marketing communications tool for decision and engagement of consumers to purchase product.
Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Influence of Celebrity Endorsement on Sales and Patronage of Infinix Smart Phone.
1.3 Statement of Problems
Investigation revealed that companies, civil society organizations and government agencies spend billions of naira annually placing one form of Advertisement or the other in the media. Also, companies, in their bid to outsmart one another for consumer’s attention and purchase decision, normally deploy various advertisement strategies. Some pay huge amounts of money to celebrities so as to identify themselves with their products. They do this in the hope that such an appearance will instantly produce a significant effect of making the product become popular and ultimately influence audience decision to purchase the product/service.
The reality however is that several products in spite of celebrity endorsement and expensive advert have failed to attract customers’ attention or patronage towards many products. For example, when a celebrity is not accepted, his/her unacceptability may affect the product that he/she identifies with negatively.
According to various scholars’ findings showed that endorsement can have a negative effect on product patronage and purchase decisions of consumer, the product and even the celebrity through shadow effects or multiple products endorsement; similarly, the appearance of a celebrity may not guarantee effective advertisement, especially if there is no correlation or in-depth attachment between a celebrity and the endorsed brand (Lee et al., 2014; Ifeanyichukwu, 2016; Malik & Muhammad, 2016).
As a result, most organizations are faced with the problem of determining criteria and the best way (s) of using celebrities to endorse their product in such a manner as to produce desired results. Similarly, misfit between an endorser and the product being endorsed in terms of the inability of consumers to identify endorser’s quality with the product being advertised is an issue of concern in celebrity endorsement.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to scrutinize the Influence of Celebrity Endorsement on Sales and Patronage of Infinix Smart Phone. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To find out the Frequency of exposure to Celebrity Endorsement of Infinix Brand among consumers.
- To determine the extent celebrity endorsement increases the brand acceptance of Infinix product.
- To ascertain the influence of Celebrity Endorsement on the Brand Loyalty to Infinix product.
- To understand the Influence of Celebrity Endorsement of Infinix Brand on the Product patronage of consumers.
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- To what extent does celebrity endorsement increase the brand acceptance of Infinix product?
- How does celebrity endorsement of Infinix brand influences the product patronage among consumers?
- To what extent is the influence of celebrity endorsement on the brand loyalty to Infinix product?
- To what extent is the frequency of exposure to celebrity endorsement of Infinix brand among consumers?
1.6 Research Hypothesis
In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.
Hypothesis One
- H0: There is no significance factor inhibiting Celebrity Endorsement on Sales and Patronage of Infinix Smart Phone
- H1: There is a significance factor inhibiting Celebrity Endorsement on Sales and Patronage of Infinix Smart Phone
1.7 Significance of Study
This work will help Nigeria celebrity know the extent of their influence on endorsement of product on the patronage of the brand. It would also highlight if celebrity endorsement is an area in advertising that is worth thorough investigation as huge resources are expended by companies on advertisement annually.
The study will throw more light on the acceptability of a product as a result of its commercial is due to celebrity’s endorsement of the product with various intermingling factors such as music and graphics playing complementary roles.
Also, the research work will be of invaluable use as a literature review to researchers in mass communication and advertising department as a reference to further up research on celebrity endorsement and its effect.
1.8 Scope of Study
The scope of the research is focused on Influence of Celebrity Endorsement on Sales and Patronage of Infinix Smart Phone in Nigeria.
1.9 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
- Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
1.10 Operational Definition of Terms
In this research work, the terms used were operationally defined, the meaning reflect how the researcher wants the terms to be understood in the context of the work.
Celebrity: This is an expert in an industry such as entertainment, sports or politics with great popularity and respect from the public
Celebrity Endorser: Celebrity endorser is any individual who enjoys public recognition and who uses this recognition on behalf of a consumer good by appearing with it in an advertisement
Brand: An identifiable product, service, person or place augmented in such a way that the buyer or user perceives relevant, unique added values, which match their needs most closely.
Influence: the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something, or the effect itself.
