Abstract

Previous research of celebrity endorsement focused mainly on three aspects: source credibility, match-up theory, and meaning transfer model. Few studies have been done concerning social identity theory in Chinese market. This study shed new light on the current celebrity endorsement research. This study introduces the social identity theory to investigate celebrity endorsement and proposes a model on the basis of social identity theory, offering a new insight to understand the mechanism of celebrity endorsement. This study was conducted in China because it is full of potential opportunities for marketers. The results show that both ideal identity salience and endorser credibility exert positive impact on consumers’ identification with endorser, while endorser distinctiveness does not have an effect on endorser identification. Moreover, endorser identification has a positive influence on both consumers’ attitude toward the ad and the endorser, leading to a higher purchase intention. It is also found that endorser type has a significant effect on endorser credibility in terms of attractiveness and reputation, whereas product type does not affect consumers’ evaluation of endorser credibility.