Impact of celebrity endorser as in-store stimuli on impulse buying

ABSTRACT This research investigates how a celebrity endorser in POP (point of purchase) advertising impacts consumer impulse buying, in cases of both high involvement and low involvement products. It also examines the effect of match-up between the celebrity and the product in consumer impulse buying. An experimental study was conducted to gather data for six different situations utilizing a sample of 218 students in India. Independent sample t-test was applied to test the hypotheses of the study. The results reveal that the presence of a celebrity endorser in POP advertising enhances the consumer impulse buying. Further, the celebrity endorsers are more effective in cases of high involvement products as compared to low involvement products, and the celebrity match-up with the product category also influences impulse buying, however, only in case of high involvement products. The research contributes to the celebrity endorsement and impulse buying literature by finding the effect of celebrity endorsers on consumer impulse buying. The findings are highly relevant for retailers and marketing practitioners interested in impulse buying, suggesting another way of influencing consumer impulse buying.