http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20091104005208/en
Former political figures, however, are considered least persuasive
NEW YORK--(Business Wire)--
The issue of celebrity endorsements is something a number of companies grapple
with as they are planning their advertising campaigns. Do they go with an
endorsement or let the product or service speak for itself? If they decide to
move forward with an endorsement, what type of celebrity should be the one
facing the camera? Some types of celebrities can help and persuade someone to
buy the product while others may be less persuasive in their pitch. The age
groups being targeted are a factor as well; certain celebrities can be seen as
more persuasive with different age ranges.
When it comes to helping sell, almost two in five U.S. adults (37%) find
business leaders to be most persuasive when they endorse a product in an ad. On
the other side of the situation, two in five Americans (39%) say they find
former political figures to be least persuasive when they endorse a product in
an advertisement.
These are some of the findings ofa new Adweek Media/ Harris Poll,surveyof 2,186
U.S. adults surveyed online between September 25 and 29, 2009 by Harris
Interactive®.
Looking at other types of celebrities and their persuasiveness, one in five
Americans (21%) say they find athletes to be most persuasive when they endorse a
product, followed by 18% who say television or movie stars are most persuasive,
14% who say singers or musicians and 10% who say former political figures are
most persuasive.
When it comes to how other celebrities rank in the category of least persuasive,
almost one-quarter (23%) say television or movie stars are least persuasive,
while 14% say business leaders are least persuasive. Just over one in ten
Americans (13%) say when athletes endorse a product they find them least
persuasive and 11% say singers or musicians are least persuasive.
Age differences in celebrity endorsements
Certain celebrities are seen as more persuasive from the eyes of different age
groups. Almost half of those who are aged 55 and older (46%) say business
leaders are most persuasive compared to only 28% of those who are 18-34 years
old. One quarter of those aged 18-34 (23%) say television or movie stars are
most persuasive while only 15% of those aged 55 and older feel the same way.
There is also a difference among those who are seen as least persuasive. Almost
half of those aged 35-44 (45%) say they feel former political figures are least
persuasive when they endorse a product compared to one-third of those aged 18-34
years old (33%).
TABLE 1
CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS THAT ARE MOST PERSUASIVE
"When they endorse a product in an ad, which type of celebrity do you find most
persuasive?"
Base: All U.S. adults
Total Age
18-34 35-44 45-54 55+
% % % % %
Business leaders 37 28 33 38 46
Athletes 21 24 21 20 19
Television or movie stars 18 23 21 15 15
Singers or musicians 14 13 15 17 12
Former political figures 10 13 9 9 8
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding;
TABLE 2
CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS THAT ARE LEAST PERSUASIVE
"When they endorse a product in an ad, which type of celebrity do you find least
persuasive?"
Base: All U.S. adults
Total Age
18-34 35-44 45-54 55+
% % % % %
Former political figures 39 33 45 39 42
Television or movie stars 23 20 19 24 26
Business leaders 14 21 12 12 10
Athletes 13 12 14 11 14
Singers or musicians 11 14 10 14 9
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding;
The Harris Poll®#125, November 4, 2009
By Regina A. Corso, Director, The Harris Poll
Methodology
This Adweek Media/Harris Poll was conducted online within the United States
September 25 and 29, 2009 among 2,186 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for
age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted
where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the
population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents`
propensity to be online.
All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are
subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to
quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated
with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options,
and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids
the words "margin of error" as they are misleading. All that can be calculated
are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure,
unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical
because no published polls come close to this ideal.
Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to
participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to
reflect the composition of the adult population. Because the sample is based on
those who agreed to participate in the Harris Interactive panel, no estimates of
theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council
on Public Polls.
About Harris Interactive
Harris Interactive is a global leader in custom market research. With a long and
rich history in multimodal research, powered by our science and technology, we
assist clients in achieving business results. Harris Interactive serves clients
globally through our North American, European and Asian offices and a network of
independent market research firms. For more information, please visit
www.harrisinteractive.com
About AdweekMedia
AdweekMedia encompasses the publications, websites, digital products and events
produced by Adweek, Brandweek and Mediaweek. Through this dynamic media network,
each brand keeps the agency, marketing and media communities competitive and
connected by delivering the latest news and expert analysis most relevant to
their specific needs.
AdweekMedia is part of Nielsen Business Media, which is a unit of The Nielsen
Company. Nielsen Business Media is a leading market-focused provider of
integrated information and sales and marketing solutions, helping businesses go
to market more effectively and efficiently. For more see www.adweek.com.
Harris Interactive, Inc.
Alyssa Hall, 212-539-9749
ahall@harrisinteractive.com
Copyright Business Wire 2009
