Effectiveness of Celebrity Endorsements for Non-Profit Organization Essay Example

Effectiveness of Celebrity Endorsements for Non-Profit Organization Essay ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEET Every piece of written work you submit for assessment must have this cover sheet attached. Please type in your details then copy and paste to the front of your assignment and save the file ready to upload. COURSE DETAILS Course Code: RBUS2900 Course Co-ordinator: Dr. Ravi Pappu Course Name: Business Research Methods Assignment No: 2B Assignment Due Date: 28/05/2012 STUDENT CONTACT DETAILS Student Number: James Jun Qiang Low Ng Han Siong Derrick Bram Wijaya Peng Yang Cheng Student Name: 42683346 42485184 42734480 42602600 Email Address: Low. [emailprotected] com Derrick. [emailprotected] com [emailprotected] com [emailprotected] com Work submitted may be subjected to a plagiarism detection process. If this process is used, then copies of this work would be retained and used as source material for conducting future plagiarism checks. Due Date: 28/05/2012 Submitted date: 27/05/2012 RBUS2900 Business Research Methods Assignment 2B Tutorial report Cover sheet Studen t ID 42683346 42485184 42734480 42602600 Low Ng Wijaya Cheng James Jun Qiang Han Siong Bram Peng Yang WEDNESDAY, 12pm – 1pm T27 Assignment 2B TOM MAGOR Surname Given name Tutorial date time Tutorial group (e. g. T24: G1) Assignment Number Tutor’s name Time Tutor T6 Wed 12-1 Teegan T10 Wed 10-11 Teegan T14 Wed 1-2 Kim Tutorial T15 T16 Wed Wed 8-9 9-10 Tom Teegan Tutorial T24 T25 Thu Thu 11-12 3-4 Max Max T18 Wed 4-5 Kim T19 Wed 5-6 Kim T20 Tue 2-3 Kim Time Tutor T21 Tue 8-9 Rahil T22 Tue 9-10 Rahil T23 Tue 2-3 Rahil T26 Tue 12-1 Tom T27 Wed 12-1 Tom T28 Mon 10-11 Max RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B RBUS2900: BUSINESS RESEARCH METHODS Effectiveness of Celebrity Endorsements We will write a custom essay sample on Effectiveness of Celebrity Endorsements for Non-Profit Organization specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Effectiveness of Celebrity Endorsements for Non-Profit Organization specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Effectiveness of Celebrity Endorsements for Non-Profit Organization specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer For Non-Profit Organization James Jun Qiang Low Ng Han Siong Derrick Bram Wijaya Peng Yang Cheng 5/28/2012 This is a research plan on how different celebrity related factors influence donor/volunteer perceptions of the non-profit organization endorsed. RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This proposal is written to address the concerns of PeTA in investigating the effect that celebrity endorsers have on the organisation that they endorse. In particular, three aspects of the celebrity will be analysed. Firstly, due to the high number of advertisement used by PeTA that feature near nude celebrities, this paper will analyse how does the physical attractiveness of a celebrity influence a consumer’s perception of the organisation. Secondly, as many of these celebrities are seen to endorse multiple brands, it would be beneficial for PeTA to study how does over endorsement influence the perception consumers have of PeTA. Lastly, it is proposed that should consumers perceive that celebrities are being paid for their work endorsing PeTA, it would lead to a negative effect on the perception of the organisation. It is also proposed that age, gender and education level will each have a moderating effect on the relationship that exist between each variable and the perception of PeTA. Based on the research objective, it is proposed that the most suitable research method is a pretest-posttest control group experiment whereby negative information about a celebrity’s over endorsement and income from the endorsement will be controlled and provided and the effects of this information will be analysed. This method was chosen as it allows for an isolation of the subjects into specifically just experiencing the experimental conditions. A control group allows for a more accurate detection of changes. Respondents will be selected via simple random sampling from a telephone book used as a sampling frame. The results of the experiment will then be tested using SPSS. Specifically, descriptive statistics, factor analysis, paired samples t-test and multiple regression analysis will be utilised to produce the results. Due to the need to establish cause-and-effect in the experiment, it is proposed that multiple regression analysis would be most suitable. This technique, coupled with theory, will be able to provide PeTA with a good picture of whether perception of a celebrity endorser will have an impact on the perception of the organisation. RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION .. 1 1. 1 1. 2 2. 1 2. 2 2. 3 2. 4 2. 5 3. 1 3. 2 3. 3 3. 4 Problem statement and Research Objectives Importance . 2 Perception of the organisation (Dependent variable).. 3 Attractiveness (Independent variable 1) 3 Over-endorsement by celebrity (Independent variable 2) . 4 Perceived celebrity income from endorsement (Independent variable 3) Moderating variables .. 6 Research design. 7 Research method . 7 Sampling design Data collection 9 Ethics 9 Data collection method .. 10 Figure 1 – Relationship Model Diagram 2. HYPOTHESES DEVELOPMENT .. 3 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 7 3. 4. 1 3. 4. 2 Figure 2 – Pretest-Posttest Group Experiment Method . 10 Figure 3 – Survey: Total error diagram .. 2 Table 1 – Survey errors encountered 13 3. 5 Measurement (Please refer to appendix 2 for survey questions) . 13 Perception of organisation (Dependent variable). 13 Attractiveness (Independent variable) . 14 Over-endorsement of celebrity (Independent variable) 4 Perception of income from endorsement (Independent variable) . 14 3. 5. 1 3. 5. 2 3. 5. 3 3. 5. 4 4. 1 4. DATA ANALYSIS.. 15 Procedure.. 15 Descriptive statistics. 5 Factor analysis. 15 Paired sample T-test . 16 Multiple regression analysis . 16 Factor analysis. 7 Paired samples t-test .. 17 4. 1. 1 4. 1. 2 4. 1. 3 4. 1. 4 4. 2 4. 2. 1 4. 2. 2 Expected results . 17 RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B Figure 4 – Sample paired t-test results 18 4. 3. 3 4. 3. Multiple regression analysis . 18 Discussion of outcomes . 18 References . 20 APPENDIX .. 3 Appendix 1 .. 23 Table 1a Table 1b Table 1c Table 1d Appendix 2 Appendix 3 Conceptual definitions . 23 Hypotheses .. 4 List of measures .. 25 Data analysis techniques 26 Measurement instrument (Survey) 27 Schedule .. 1 RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 1. INTRODUCTION 1. 1 Problem statement and Research Objectives People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PeTA) is the largest animals rights organisation in the world with more than three million members and supporters. It uses a variety of avenues to bring forward its campaign and one of them is through the use of celebrity endorsements. (PeTA, 2012) As a result, there is a need to analyse the effectiveness of celebrity endorsement in furthering the agenda of PeTA. In particular, due to the vast differences in types of celebrities as well as industries that the celebrities are based in, consumers may have a different perception of these celebrities as well as the organisation that is being endorsed. As such, a negative perception of a celebrity and his/her industry may result in transference of negative perception to the organisation being endorsed. (White, Goddard Wilbur, 2009) This is especially applicable to PeTA who endorses celebrities that come from many different industries and each celebrity varies in terms of social standing as well as reputation. As such, an investigation into the effects of celebrity perception resulting in negative information transference to the endorsed organisation will be most suitable to be undertaken for research by PeTA. Based on the problem stated above, there is a need to investigate the various aspects of a celebrity and its effect on PeTA as the endorsed organisation. Three independent factors have been established that form the perception of a celebrity and the dependent variable of the endorsed organisation. (Please refer to figure 1) RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 1 Figure 1 – Relationship Model Diagram 1. Importance The importance of this research study is to ensure a suitable fit between the celebrity and PeTA. This fit is determined by the perception of the celebrity and its effect on the perception of the organisation. By ensuring a good fit, PeTA will be able to focus more specifically on a target market that might have been otherwise unreachable due to the u nsuitable fit between celebrity and PeTA. This is with the pretext that there is a positive correlation between perception of celebrity endorser and perception of organisation. RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 2 . HYPOTHESES DEVELOPMENT 2. 1 Perception of the organisation (Dependent variable) Perception of the organisation is the dependent variable in the case of this study as it seeks to elaborate whether the below-mentioned independent variables will have an impact on the consumer’s perception of the organisation after they have been subjected to the exposure of the independent variables. A similar test conducted by Trimble and Rifon (2006), stated that the attitudes of the audiences toward a non-profit organisation increased when it was endorsed by a celebrity with a positive image. The variables mentioned below are similar in context with what Trimble and Rifon have done but analyses different variables and will provide a different conclusion. 2. 2 Attractiveness (Independent variable 1) Attractiveness of a celebrity has always been a factor of consideration when selecting an endorser for a product. This is particularly the case when evaluating the celebrity endorsers that have been chosen by PeTA whereby physically attractive celebrities are chosen as endorsers. It is seen that physical attractiveness is able to facilitate attitude change (Baker Churchill 1977; Caballero Pride 1984; Chaiken 1986; Horai et al. 974; Joseph 1982; Kulka Kessler 1978; Mills Aronson 1965; Mills Harvey 1972) However, not all research has demonstrated that it increases attitude change in that it causes the consumer to develop a positive perception of the product/organisation being endorsed. The Source Attractiveness Model, derived by McGuire (1985) in a study, suggests that simil arity, familiarity and likeability of a celebrity endorser will determine their effectiveness in endorsing a product. This suggest contrary to the list of articles stated that the RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 3 ttractiveness in the sense of likeability of a celebrity endorser can indeed increase the positive perception of the product/organisation that is endorsed. Hence, by studying the physical attractiveness of a celebrity endorser, especially in the light of how PeTA strongly uses physical attractiveness as an important consideration in selecting endorsers, it would be most suitable to study how the supposed perception of physical attractiveness of a celebrity will indeed affect the perception of PeTA. The hypothesis derived from this variable is as such: H1: The perceived physical attractiveness of an endorser will result in an increased positive perception of the endorsed organisation 2. 3 Over-endorsement by celebrity (Independent variable 2) Mowen and Brown (1981) in their analysis of the effectiveness of celebrity endorsers have suggested that a natural occurrence from the vast number of products endorsed by celebrities is that some celebrities tend to endorse a number of products. While ideally, it is stated that endorsers should not be tarnished by their associations with other products (Foote, Cone Belding 1978), having a â€Å"virgin† endorser would generally be highly expensive and such would not be practical. Hence, the issue of multiple endorsements by a celebrity is especially pertinent in this case because PeTA is seen to have endorsed many celebrities that might endorsed products that are contradictory to the nature of PeTA, which is to protect animals. This may cause a disparity in the perception consumers will now have over the endorsement of such celebrity of PeTA. Kaikati (1987) and Mowen and Brown (1981) have further substantiated that a celebrity endorser may be perceived to be less credible should the celebrity choose to endorse more brands and products. RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 4 Hence, it is brought forth in the next hypothesis: H2: In situations whereby celebrities are seen to endorse multiple products that might be contradictory to the nature of the organisation, there will be a decrease in positive perception of the endorsed organisation. 2. 4 Perceived celebrity income from endorsement (Independent variable 3) When endorsing a product, celebrities are often paid for their services. This is very much accepted as a service rendered, is expected to be paid for. However, the issue in studying this is especially pertinent as by being paid, it is questionable whether that celebrity is truly endorsing the product out of genuine belief in the product or solely for the monetary benefit involved. In the case of PeTA and its endorsed celebrities, it would be especially appropriate as protection of animals is more often a lifestyle and not just the usage of a particular product. The celebrity endorsing the product is expected to believe in the protection of animals and not just for the monetary benefit involved. However, does this perception of being paid for the endorsement result in a related decrease of positive perception for the organisation endorsed? Correspondence Bias (Gilbert Jones, 1986) refers to the observer’s exaggerated use of dispositional attributions, assumptions that the actor does what he does due to his internal dispositions. Kardes (1993) has related this to endorsement advertisements whereby consumers disregard the situational constraints such as the money being paid to the celebrity, due to correspondence bias and thus contributes to the effectiveness of endorsement advertisements. Cronley et al. (1999) found support for the above-mentioned theory in that participants of an experiment actually assumed that the endorser actually liked the product regardless of whether the endorser was paid or not. This was correlated to the participants’ attitudes toward the advertisement, the product and the endorser. RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 5 However, a study conduct by Sorum, Grape and Silvera (2003), had opposite results to Cronley’s 1999 experiment. There was no correspondence bias found in the study. As such, it would be most appropriate the study the supposed effects of correspondence bias on the consumers who see the PeTA advertisements and whether there is a disregard of situational constraints much like in the experiment conducted by Cronley et al. 1999) The hypothesis put forth is thus: H3: The more a celebrity is perceived to be paid for the endorsement, the more negative the perception of the organisation. 2. 5 Moderating variables This study will utilise three moderating variables in the study of the effects of perception of the celebrity endorser in relation to the perception of the endorsed organisation. It is proposed that as age dec reases, the effects of each independent variable on the dependent variable will decrease as well due to the decreased perception of the consumer of the variability of the independent variables. The Selectivity Hypothesis (Putrevu, 2001) has suggested that gender differences in information processing emerge because men are more likely to be driven by overall message themes and women are more likely to engage in detailed elaboration of messages. Hence as a moderating variable, it can be seen that gender is expected to have a moderating effect on the independent variables. Lastly, a study by Daneshvary and Schwer (2000) has concluded that education level is seen to have an impact on perception of endorsement. Lower levels of education are more impressionable to association endorsements than individuals with a college education. Education provides individuals with analytical skills to decipher information and make an RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 6 informed purchase rather than just relying on one source of information. As such, it can be said that education will have a moderating effect on the independent variables. 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3. 1 Research design The research design chosen for this study will be causal in nature as it seeks to understand the cause-and-effect relationships that exist. In particular, it will seek to explain the variance in the perception of the organisation, by analysing the independent variables involved and looking to infer theories and data analysis results to draw a conclusive cause of the variance in the perception of the organisation. As elaborated by Zikmund et al, â€Å"before causal studies are undertaken, researchers typically have a good understanding of the phenomena being studied. † (2010) Hence a causal design is selected due to the vast knowledge already in existence in terms of the literature on perception of an organisation as well as the perception of a celebrity endorser. However, little has been done to show any appropriate causation between the two variables especially one that is particular to the nature of a non-profit organisation. 3. 2 Research method Due to the nature of the research design, an experimental design of a pretest-posttest control group design will be used to explain the cause-and-effect relationship that is proposed between the independent and dependent variable. The subjects in the experimental group are tested before and after being exposed to the treatment. The control group will also be tested at both times but would not be subjected to the treatment. In using this design, Dimitrov and Rumrill Jr. have suggested three considerations in terms of validity of the design. The first two are pertinent to internal validation, which is the degree to RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 7 which the experimental treatment makes a difference in the specific experimental settings and the third one is in consideration of external validity which is the degree to which the treatment effect can be generalised across populations, settings, treatment variables and measurement instruments. (2003, p. 59) Maturation, an internal validity issue, occurs when biological and psychological characteristics of research participants change during the experiment, thus affecting their posttest scores. History, also an internal validity issue, occurs when participants experience an event that will affect their post-test scores. Whereas the interaction of pretesting and treatment, an external validity issue, happens when the pretest sensitises pa rticipants so that they respond differently to the treatment as they might have without the pretest. (Dimitrov Rumrill Jr. , p. 60) Maturation and History will not be an issue for the conduct of our experiment as the time lapse between the pretest and posttest phase is negligible and thus should not allow for any changes in Maturation and History. To prevent the participants from becoming sensitised and perform the experiment differently from what they would have without the pretest, we are utilising a fictional situation in order to control the knowledge of the participants on the subject. Please refer to the Data Collection portion to gain a better understanding. 3. 3 Sampling design Based on the purpose of this research, the decisions resulting from this experiment will have many strategic managerial implications. As such, the target population would be defined as the entire population in the world of people who are of suitable age to donate to a non-profit organisation. As seen from the PeTA website (n. d. ), one of the means of donating would be through credit card deductions. As such, a suitable age group would be the minimum age RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 8 group for owning a credit card, which is 18 years old. Hence the population would range from individuals of 18 years and above. Hence, the population in Australia will be subjected to a simple random sampling method to form the sample population. Chosen participants are expected to be of a variety with differing age groups, gender and income level. As such, a sampling frame of the national telephone numbers in Australia will be used. Factors to consider when determining sample size are the confidence interval needed to predict the result and the amount of standard error permissible to estimate the population parameter. Hence, based on the formula provided by Zikmund et al. (2010, p. 435), with a confidence interval of 95 percent, range of error of 0. 5 and an estimated population standard deviation of 4. 0, we will have a minimum sample size of 246. 3. 4 Data collection 3. 4. 1 Ethics Before proceeding on with data collection, the group will have to keep in mind the ethical issues involved. As researchers, the group will have to be responsible to the people who are involved in this research. Our group will adhere to these select principles such as: a. Objectivity Strive to avoid bias in experimental design, data analysis, data interpretation, peer review, personnel decisions, grant writing, expert testimony, and other aspects of research where objectivity is expected or required. Avoid or minimize bias or self-deception. Disclose personal or financial interests that may affect research. b. Honesty RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 9 Strive for honesty in all scientific communications. Honestly report data, results, methods and procedures, and publication status. Do not fabricate, falsify, or misrepresent data. Do not deceive colleagues, granting agencies, or the public. c. Legality Know and obey relevant laws and institutional and governmental policies. d. Privacy Protect confidential communications, such as papers or grants submitted for publication, personnel records, trade or military secrets, and patient records. e. Nonmaleficence (principle of doing no harm) When conducting research on human subjects, minimize harms and risks and maximize benefits; respect human dignity, privacy, and autonomy; take special precautions with vulnerable populations; and strive to distribute the benefits and burdens of research fairly. These are some of the principles that researchers should adhere to (Peter Steane, 2004; Shamoo A Resnik D, 2009) 3. 4. 2 Data collection method Jack R. Fraenkel, Figure 2 – Pretest-Posttest Group Experiment Method 1993 In this design, the dependant variable will be measured before and after the treatment level is presented. This allows the researcher to compute the means for pretest and posttest and measure the difference (Millsap, 2009). A scenario-based study was chosen because this RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 10 ethod allows for easier operationalising of the manipulations, providing more control over the variables (Dong, Evans Zou 2008). We have identified that we will be using communication as the mean of obtaining primary data, specifically conducting a survey. We have chosen to conduct a survey due to the following criteria (Zikmund et al. , 2010): ? ? ? Questions asked for the tested variables are internal to the respondents. Survey provides the best versatility as the research contains different type of data. As this is a low budget research project, survey is the most efficient and economical data collection method. a. Pretest Written scenarios will be created for this experiment. In the first phase of the pretest, background information of a non-profit organization (PeTA) is provided. Twenty-six questions are then tested to analyse the perceived image of the organization. In the second phase of the pre-test, a celebrity endorser (Brad Pitt) will be introduced. Positive background information about the celebrity is then given. Twelve questions are then used to test the three independent variables. . Posttest In the third phase of the experiment, negative information about the celebrity endorser is given. Information supplied is related to the three independent variables of the following settings: ? ? Attractiveness: Images of a sex scandal and a rugged image of the celebrity Multiple Endorsements: Information of celebrity endorsing for multiple brands however, contradicting to the values of the non-profit organization ? Perceive Income: Information of celebrity getting paid to endorse for a non-profit organization RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 11 Subsequently, the respondents are to fill in the twenty-six questions and twelve questions again in order to analyse the effects of the negative information. c. Procedure The survey will be conducted in an enclosed room and the participants will be seated at individual tables during the conduct of the survey. They will then be randomly selected to be either in the experiment or control group. They will also be informed that their careful consideration into each question would help the researchers evaluate celebrity endorsements on non-profit organizations. This is reminded again by the title provided at the cover page. It will also be emphasised that their participation in voluntary and confidentiality is kept at the strictest levels. This is reminded again as a disclaimer on the last page of the survey. d. Errors Figure 3 – Survey: Total error diagram The figure shows the various types of errors that might be present in survey. Particularly in our survey, we have identified the following possible errors that we might face and the control measures: RBUS2900 Business Research Method Assignment 2 Part B 12 Type of Error Random Sampling Error Response error Interviewer bias Response error Extremity bias Administrative error Interviewer error Control measures Increase the sample size from People of very extreme initial 100 to 200. backgrounds existing in randomize (Bartlett, Kotrlik, Higgins, group 2001) Interviewer introduced as As we are asking about Brad Pitt neutral parties helping to attractiveness, the respondent may facilitate the session and has answer differently due to the nothing to do with the research presence of the interviewer group (Herbert F. Weisberg, 2005) Before the start of the questionnaire, address to the As most of the questions provided respondents the importance of are a seven point semantic correct data needed to be differentiated scale, respondents collected from them, thus may just choose 1 or 7 for emphasizing our appreciation convinence to them to provide their best effort. (Ian Gregory, 2003) As there are two different sets of Make sure the experiment survey, the interviewer might issue ground is properly organize out the wrong amount

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