Influence of Celebrity Endorsement on Purchase Decisions of Students in Select Nigerian Universities in Ekiti State

ABSTRACT The study examined the influence of celebrity endorsement on purchase decision of students in selected Nigerian Universities in Ekiti State. The specific objectives were to: to find out the level of exposure of undergraduates of Ekiti universities to celebrity endorsement, investigate the influence of celebrity endorser’s attractiveness on purchase decision of students of Ekiti universities, determine the influence of Celebrity endorser’s trustworthiness on purchase decision of students of Ekiti universities and examine the channels through which the undergraduates of Ekiti universities are exposed to celebrity endorsements. Several literatures were reviewed in the study while “Source Credibility Theory was also reviewed to guide the study. The study adopted descriptive survey method. Initially a sample size of 398 was calculated to achieve the desire level of precision for this study. However, due to limitations in data collections, specifically the challenges of physical contact with respondents, response rates only 150 respondents were obtained. Data Collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Findings of this study showed that there was significant level of exposure of undergraduates of Ekiti universities to celebrity endorsement. There was significant influence of celebrity endorser’s attractiveness on purchase decision of students of Ekiti universities. Recommendations were made to rectify the discrepancies detected while it was suggested for further study that investigating the role of congruency between the celebrity endorser and the product or brand: The study suggests that the type of product or brand being endorsed is a crucial factor in the effectiveness of celebrity endorsement. Further research can investigate how congruency between the celebrity endorser and the product or brand impacts the effectiveness of celebrity endorsement among others.