Abstract
Celebrity endorsement refers to the strategy employed by firms to advertise their products through celebrities lending their name to advertisements for products or services even though they may not be experts. Endorsers use their public recognition to appeal to consumers from the perspective of the celebrity personnel. In today’s highly competitive market combined with rapid growth of communication channels such as the rise of social media as alternative advertisement channel, the use celebrities in advertisement is believed to have a far reaching impact than traditional marketing mechanisms. Marketers have been investing significant amounts of money in creating brand imagery through endorsers who are expected to contribute qualities such brand likeability, attractiveness and trustworthiness. The belief is, these qualities are transferable from the celebrity endorser to the brand and as such, celebrities with the right appeal have the ability to bring in the desirable campaign outcomes.
Market studies indicate that customers derive some level of fulfilment for products or services that have been endorsed by their favourite celebrity. This is cited as the reason for celebrity endorsement being overly successful in most countries. However, the success is not automatic. The endorsing celebrity is must hold certain qualities as defined by the advertising firm and have the right appeal to the targeted demographic. There requires to be compatibility between the brand and the celebrity and which is the success-defining factor of the brand-celebrity collaboration. The compatibility is measured in terms of identity, personality, lifestyle, and market positioning against competitors. Personal credibility of the celebrity is also of significant importance. Celebrity credibility is defined by the celebrity’s trustworthiness and character. In the event that their credibility is severed, most brands terminate their engagement with the celebrity. An example is the 2013 cancellation of Oscar Pistorius contract with Nike after he was charged in a South African court.
Celebrity endorsement is not a new phenomenon but one which has been in existence for over 3 decades. Celebrity endorsements have been proven to change consumers’ demeanour towards a brand or a product. Based on a celebrity’s credibility, one can bring in new customers as well as generate renewed faith in customers who had previously abandoned a brand. This is achieved through the celebrity’s ability to generate new enthusiasm in the market. The market is not without critics who hold that celebrity endorsements have minimal positive impact on actual sales. The enthusiasm created by a celebrity being on an advertisement is short-lived and does not always translate to sales.
Following this, the present study seeks to examine the effect sporting celebrity endorsements have on how consumers perceive brand image and buying intentions. The three main questions are; to what extent do sporting celebrity endorsers’ positive and negative attributes influence the perception of consumers towards brands? How do sporting celebrity endorsers influence the buying intentions of consumers? How can sporting celebrity endorsers enhance the profile of both celebrities and brands? The study consists of four chapters: Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology/Data Analysis and Ethics.

Chapter: Introduction
1.1 Background Information
Celebrity endorsement assists the company to improve its brand awareness in the market. According to Budhiraja (2012), celebrities have three types of association consumers of the brand; for instance, psychographic connect, demographic connect and mass appeal. Brand awareness is understood as the ability of the consumers to identify a brand under different conditions (Popa, 2016). According to Popa (2016), consumers have a psychological need to be acquainted with a certain product or organization. Such acquaintance prepares them (consumer) and makes it easier for them to assign different positive attitudes for certain products or services that they are unfamiliar within the market (Popa, 2016). Business organizations are using the media in all the above mentioned three aspects to enhance the brand awareness among their consumers. This has changed the way consumers perceive products. Popa (2016) further asserts that unlike the traditional advertising where the campaigns were placed in either newspapers or posters, the rise of technology has revolutionized the marketing approaches. Johansson and Bozan (2017) agree with the other scholars that having a celebrity endorse a given product enhances both sales and brand awareness for the business organizations.
Marketing is an important element in the organization. Byberg et al. (2015) explain the importance of marketing citing that it enhances value for customers, which results in building a strong customer relationship. According to them, a celebrity endorsement is an effective approach of building a strong relationship between the organization and the consumers because consumers tend to feel stronger about a given product when they can relate to the celebrity endorsing it. Davies and Slater (2017), in their study of how different sporting events influence the consumer behavior, explain that in sports, marketing fans are considered as vital influencers of a given product success. According to them, celebrity endorsement strengthens the fan patronage because they enhance the level of engagement between the fans and the product. As a result, the majority of fans will feel safe and stronger when they use a product that they believe their idol celebrity is relating with. Alexander (2016) argues that fans will have such a strong connection with the brand because they are obsessed by the lives of the celebrity icons.
Celebrity endorsement enhances consumer’s intention to purchase a product in the market as long as they can relate to the attributes that are valuable to them (Sassenberg et al. 2012). Therefore, companies invest in the trustworthiness of the celebrities. According to Carvalho (2012), companies select the celebrities who are widely regarded as honest, believable and dependable. These are the main values that consumers can easily relate to. This will encourage them to buy the product when they come back again in the market. Hussain and Khan (2015) similarly agree that a celebrity endorsement is a powerful tool that companies use to achieve many benefits among them brand recall. In his study of the impact of celebrity endorsement on customer’s brand perception, Janjua (2013) found that there was a positive correlation between the endorsed celebrity brands and the consumer perception. According to the author, celebrities can be an influential reference for the consumers in the market, which makes them a powerful asset to marketers.
In creating brand recall, sporting celebrity endorsement differentiate the firm’s product and services from its competitors in the market; thus, resulting in a competitive advantage. According to Byberg et al. (2015), celebrity endorsement, as a marketing tool, can cause image change and overexposure to consumers in the market. Among the sports celebrities who have been involved in the product, endorsement includes David Beckham for H&M and Tiger Woods for Rolex. Hussain and Khan (2015) explain that celebrity endorsement produced a greater recall for both brand name and also the organization. The above two cases are among the successful sports celebrity endorsement that has helped the respective companies achieve greater consumer attention and recall (Hussain& Khan 2015).
1.2 Statement of the Problem
In a latest study, Davies, and Slater (2017) aimed at finding out the effect of sports celebrity on brand choice by contrasting the perceived images of two sporting celebrities in two different sports – Formula One and Tennis. Their impact was explored on a range of products. Study findings indicated a there existed a relationship between celebrity profile, product and brand. According to this study, the use of role models helped to enhance consumer expectation. There was a higher perception of products endorsed by F1 drivers in comparison to tennis players. Purchase intent was not limited to products within sporting but included non-sport products such as mobile phones. Product perception and purchase intention was influenced by the positive image brought about by celebrity endorsement (Davies, and Slater 2017).
Consequently, Bush, Martin, and Bush (2004) investigated the impact sport celebrities had on the behavioral intentions of adolescents. The research goal was identifying the influence of a teenager’s athlete role model influence on consumer related behavioral intentions. Findings of the study show that the positive image created by role model athletes has a positive influence on the teenager’s brand selection. Female teens were likely to be more influenced by their athlete role models in comparison to boy teens. In 2009, Renton investigated whether celebrity athlete endorsement of a product of either high or low status affects the consumer attitudes and purchase intentions. A case study of Maria Sharapova’s endorsement of a black Armani dress was undertaken. Renton (2009) concluded that, the endorsement of a products whether of high or low status by a celebrity athlete with result in increased consumption of the product because of the athlete’s star power. Even then, it is not every component of star power that led to an increase of consumers’ direct consumption. Other factors that influenced purchase intention included expertise, character style, and attractiveness. Finally, Kiiskinen (2017) sought to provide further insights of athlete endorsements and the consumer perception of the same. The research applied the match-up theory. According to the match-up theory, the product congruence of an athlete is of great significance in the analysis of athlete endorsement effectiveness. The study findings were a confirmation of the theory; this is based on the result that a high athlete-product congruence has a higher rate of effectiveness in comparison to that of an athlete with a low athlete-product congruence.
To ensure success, there are principles of celebrity endorsement that brands must adhere. Consistency and long-term commitment is key principle. Brands must strike to maintain consistency of the endorser to create a strong personality and identity. This should be viewed as a long-term strategic decision. While consistency is key, firms also need to conduct constant monitoring of new celebrities with a different appeal while also monitoring the continued impact of the current endorser. The persona of the celebrity must not be allowed to overshadow the brand. This can be achieved by establishing advertising collaterals as well as other communications. Advertising firms should also understand that celebrity endorsement is only a channel under sponsorship marketing and not a goal(Mukherjee 2009).Celebrities command a high price tag and thus a firm must evaluate the cost of celebrity endorsement against the value generated.
Currently, there is a gap on how customers associate with sports celebrity endorsers and how they perceive the characteristics of these individuals. The ambiguity of some of the studies reviewed makes this dissertation worth conducting. Consequently, the present study seeks to examine the effect sporting celebrity endorsements have on how consumers perceive brand image and buying intentions.
1.3 Main Objective and Specific Research Questions
The central aim of the dissertation is finding how sporting celebrity endorsers influence the perception of customers of the brand image and buying intentions.
The main objective of this dissertation leads to the following research questions and their own sub-set objectives as follows:
Research Question 1: To what extent do sporting celebrity endorsers’ positive and negative attributes influence the perception of consumers towards brands?

This research question will be addressed in the following objectives:

Objective 1: To determine which attributes of sporting celebrity endorsers consumers view positively

Objective 2: To determine which attributes or behaviours of sporting celebrity endorsers consumers view negatively

Objective 3: To examine the extent to which positive attributes of sporting celebrity endorsers influence consumer attitudes to brands

Objective 4: To examine the extent to which negative attributes and behaviours of sporting celebrity endorsers influence consumer attitudes to brands

Research Question 2: How do sporting celebrity endorsers influence the buying intentions of consumers?
This research question will be addressed in the following objectives:

Objective 5: To determine which positive attributes of sporting celebrity endorsers are most likely to positively affect the buying intentions of consumers

Objective 6: To determine which negative attributes of sporting celebrity endorsers are most likely to deter consumers from purchasing branded products

Research Question 3: How can sporting celebrity endorsers enhance the profile of both celebrities and brands?
This research question will be addressed in the following objectives:

Objective 7: To make recommendations to brands and sporting celebrity endorsers based on the research findings aimed at optimising the benefits of celebrity endorsements to both brands and sporting celebrities

Objective 8: To gather an understanding of how sporting celebrity endorsers are perceived to consumers wanting to create their own brand through endorsements with established brands and whether that is increasing their entrepreneurial presence

1.4 The Structure of the Dissertation
The study consists of four chapters: Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology/Data Analysis and Ethics.

Chapter Two: Literature Review
Communication is a vital element in marketing that holds the channel of distribution intact. Communication between the buyer and the seller is very important because it serves as a way of transmitting persuasive information through the marketing channels. Consumer purchasing power depends significantly on the communication, which can be achieved through branding. Brand image is significant to consumers. Brand image is how the consumers perceive or interpret the product or service either physically or emotionally. The modern society is believed to be excited with the celebrities. This has resulted in more companies relying on the celebrities to distinguish their brands in the market as well as create a competitive advantage. This chapter reviews different literature while answering the following question; how do sporting celebrity endorsements affect consumer perceptions on brand image and purchasing intention?
2.1 Celebrity Endorsements
2.1.1 The Meaning Transfer Model
According to Su and Tong (2015), McCracken explained the effectiveness of celebrity endorsers by evaluating the meanings that the customer linked to endorsers and ultimately transfer to the brand by recommending a three-stage Meaning Transfer Model, which is classified into three stages. According to McCracken, celebrity endorsers have an effect on the three phases (He et al., 2016). Celebrities give meanings and personalities to different lifestyles in stage one, that people without fame may not do. Businesses have the power of choice in selecting the celebrity endorser for their particular products. In addition, companies create promotional campaigns that seek to transfer the meanings and personalities from celebrities to products. The third stage is when the meanings and personalities of products are transferred to the users of endorsed products.
 Stage 1
Endorsements provide advertising agencies with access to specific individuals from a culturally developed world (Thomas and Fowler, 2016). Specific and strong meanings are found within celebrity endorsers, as they have the ability to transfer meanings more extensively, distinctly, as well as competently to promotional campaigns compared to non-celebrity endorsers (Knoll and Matthes, 2017). However, Roy and Bagdare (2015) argue that non-celebrity endorsers are also capable of transferring meanings to advertisements, as they are charged with meaning and companies may opt for them if they have lower advertisement expenses. More often, meanings brought out by non-celebrities to marketing communication are sufficient. Therefore, the reason why celebrities are preferred (bringing value to the endorsement process) arises. However, the answer remains in what celebrities can transport from their image into the marketing communication strategy. Celebrities associate their personal lifestyle and personality through their marketing communications with a particular brand, compared to non-celebrities who are not able (McCormick, 2016).
Whilst individuals with no public recognition act out the meanings brought to the promotional campaign, celebrities are more effective as they have the ability to stimulate meanings through their personalities with ease. Celebrities own the meanings because they have established them in public platforms through repeated and passionate performances, and therefore are able to strongly enhance the transfer of meanings (Albert et al., 2017). Ha and Lam (2016) note that celebrities that are strongly linked to specific roles become the most effective endorsers.
 Stage 2
The ideal celebrity choice is rooted in the meanings they stand for, on a highly established marketing plan (Winterich et al., 2018). Businesses are supposed to start by determining symbolic characteristics looked for in products by consumers (Erfgen et al., 2016). While companies should select celebrity endorsers that bring the most and appropriate meaning to their products, they should take into account budget constraints. Promotional campaigns have to identify and deliver the meanings of products when celebrities are chosen (Su and Tong, 2015). The campaigns must seize all the desirable meanings expected to be obtained from celebrities, ensuring no crucial meanings are unused by only capturing the desired meanings from celebrities. Promotional campaigns, according to Dwivedi et al. (2015) should be organised to suggest significant similarities between products and celebrity endorsers, allowing consumers to make the last step in The Meaning Transfer Process. The second stage is complete when the consumer is able to recognise and accept both the celebrity endorser and endorsed products (He et al., 2016).
 Stage 3
Consumers are always evaluating products that have useful meanings for them. Sassenberg et al. (2018) argue that stage three of the model is challenging as there is no automatic meaning transferred between the consumer and the product. Therefore, customers must select the meanings of the product and incorporate them within their day to day lives. Celebrities develop personal characteristics, which enable them to play a crucial function in the third stage of the Meaning Transfer Model (Roy and Bagdare, 2015). Celebrities help the third stage of the Meaning Transfer Model as they are viewed as special consumers that have established clear, meaningful, and strong selves that consumers seek to achieve.
2.1.2 The Source Credibility Model
This approach asserts that effective communication depends on trustworthiness as well as expertise levels that endorsers have (Pradhan et al., 2016). Information from sources viewed as credible has the ability to influence attitudes, opinions, beliefs and behaviours through an internalisation process. This occurs when recipients receive the source influence, associated with their personal attributes as well as value structures (McCormick, 2016).
 Trustworthiness
Defined as; integrity, honesty and believability of endorsers (Albert et al., 2017). Businesses look for celebrity endorsers that can be trusted, believed and relied upon. Research indicates that trustworthiness is a vital factor in credibility and likability of celebrity endorsers, as it directly affects brands they represent (Winterich et al., 2018). The association between brands and consumer purchase intentions is not influenced by the trustworthiness towards endorsers (Winterich et al., 2018).
 Expertise
Refers to the degree to which celebrity endorsers are perceived to be sources of credible assertions (Erfgen et al., 2016). Celebrity endorsers with expertise are more persuasive as they comprehensively understand the products they represent, which enhance purchase intentions (Su and Tong, 2015). High brand recognition is cemented when celebrity endorsers are; experts – the higher the level of celebrity expertise, the more the effectiveness of the promotional campaign (Su and Tong, 2015).
2.1.3 The Source Attractiveness Model
Studies indicate that consumers involuntarily have positive opinions about perceptions of image (He et al. 2016; Sassenberg et al. 2018). Previous research indicates that attractive endorsers are likely to influence perceptions than when they are not (He et al. 2016). Celebrity endorsers that are found appealing by consumers evoke more purchase intentions than unattractive endorsers do. According to Knoll and Matthes (2017), effective marketing communication depends on similarity and familiarity as well liking of endorser(s).
 Similarity
According to Roy and Bagdare (2015), similarity refers to a resemblance that exists between the informed recipient and the source. Endorsers that are similar to consumers in multiple ways create better cohesiveness and influence consumers more. Businesses seek to develop empathy by using celebrity endorsers that connect well with particular consumers to increase the bond between them, which in turn increases persuasiveness (Ha and Lam, 2016).
 Familiarity
Relates to the presumed resemblance and knowledge that celebrity endorsers possess through exposure (Paul and Bhakar, 2018). Consumers familiar to celebrity endorsers often have much in common. Celebrities that have close relationships with consumers have a higher chance of influencing them (Paul and Bhakar, 2018). Therefore, it may be important for businesses to select celebrity endorsers that are familiar with their target customers.
 Attractiveness
Refers to the style of the celebrity endorser and their relationship with the branded product; either relating to the physical appearance or character of the endorser (McCormick, 2016). Firms use likable celebrity endorsers in commercials and promotional campaigns because of followers more likely to purchase the products they endorse (Yoon and Shin, 2017). Celebrities are able to influence the opinions of consumers on endorsed products (He et al., 2016). Therefore, attractive endorsers are expected to influence brand images positively.
2.1.4 Brand Attitudes Model
Several traditional models do not include the attitudes of consumers on endorsement (Hassan and Mohammed, 2016). Rather, they concentrate on how sources and endorsement factors influence attitude towards brands. Giroux et al. (2017) indicate that this model introduces a new variable, which is the attitude towards endorsement. Brand Attitude Model serves as a mediator between attitudes to brand images, and attributes associating to endorsement factors (Su and Tong, 2015).
 Attitude towards Celebrities
Consumers have a tendency of forming attitudes towards products and celebrity endorsers (Roy and Bagdare, 2015). Attitude for celebrity endorsers can be positive or negative. Research reveals that attitudes towards celebrities have been referred to as ‘celebrity effect’, indicating a good association between brand image and attitude towards celebrities (Winterich et al., 2018).
 Celebrity-Brand fit
Celebrity and brand fit are variables that have applied in several studies. Brand fit also known as consistency or similarity refers to the extent to which celebrities and brands are similar or consistent (Albert et al., 2017). Research demonstrates a positive linkage between brand attitudes and celebrity brand-fit (Erfgen et al., 2016). The brand fit is vital since its absence can possibly create a negative effect on the evaluation of the brand.
 Celebrity Expertise
Expertise, as discussed earlier, is part of source credibility. Research indicates that expertise is central to the new model and has a positive effect on brand attitude, buying intentions as well as product evaluations (Pradhan et al., 2016).
 Perceived Celebrity Motive
What consumers think about the motives behind celebrity endorsements could have a huge effect on celebrity endorsement (Kim et al., 2017). A brand evaluation could be affected negatively if consumers see the motives of celebrities as negative. For example, negative brand assessments could be due to the greed of celebrities that endorse brands for money and not necessarily because they like or believe in the brands (Kim et al, 2017).

2.2 Buying Intention and Buying Behavior
There is a believe that sports celebrity endorsement enhances the consumers buying intention and behavior in the market. According to Hussain and Khan (2015), many studies show a positive relationship between the source attractiveness and the consumer attitudes in the market. According to the authors, there is a significant relationship between consumer buying intention and the source of attractiveness as well. Brison et al. (2015) argue that companies rely on advertising to capture the attention of consumers. Budhiraja (2012) also assert that the charisma celebrities always entice people. According to the author, celebrities are worshipped by their fans that trust their decisions. In this regard, companies find it easy to use them to capture the attention of the market.
Sports celebrity endorsement enhances both affective and behavioral attitudes of consumers. Sassenberg et al. (2012) explain the affective attitudes and behavioral attitudes and how the two relates to celebrity endorsement. According to the authors, the affective attitudes involve the feelings that a consumer has regarding a particular brand. Consumer feelings can move through various stages before a consumer becomes a loyal customer of the brand. Therefore, celebrity endorsement helps in facilitating these emotional responses to enable the customer to build trust and loyalty to the brand and the company. Sassenberg et al. (2015) argue that before a consumer can get the opportunity to develop interest towards a particular brand, they must gain knowledge regarding the brand. After gaining the knowledge about the product and develops the interest, what follows is the preference and attachment to the product and brand. Sports celebrity endorsement enhances the acquaintance and consumer preference. The celebrities provide the consumers with the information they need to get acquainted with the brand.
Sports celebrity endorsement influences the consumer behavioral component of attitudes. According to Sassenberg et al. (2015), the behavioral component of consumer attitudes involves the tendency of the consumer to respond in a certain way towards the product. As Budhiraja (2012) explains, the modern day corporate world is characterized by high levels of competition in almost all the spheres of business. However, to ensure that the business survives in such a competitive market environment, the organization must undertake strategies that will ensure that the company remains competitive and relevant in the market. According to Budharaja (2012), organizations must go beyond following the traditional marketing mix of the 4Ps.
Therefore, a celebrity endorsement is expected to increase the consumers’ perceived quality of the brand. According to Popa (2016), celebrity endorsement influences the brand quality perception in three main aspects; for instance, quality, uniqueness, and esteem. This, according to Popa (2016), enables the consumers to differentiate the brand from the competitors. Johansson and Bozan (2017) explain that consumer behavior is highly influenced by the celebrity endorsement. According to the authors, when the endorser is a huge celebrity, it is most likely that their endorsement will have a great effect on the consumers. Johansson and Bozan (2017) provide an example of a sports celebrity endorsement. Zlatan’s endorsement of Vitamin Well product is one of the cases where companies have used the sports celebrities to change the consumer behavior in the market. Based on their study, Johansson and Bozan found that most consumers identified with the product endorsed by Zlatan because he is a great athlete from a great team. However, it is not the personal achievement of the athletes that influences the consumer behavior. Some other factors include familiarity, likability, characteristics, and attractiveness (Johansson &Bozan, 2017).
Sports celebrity endorsement facilitates consumers’ recognition regarding a brand or product. There are different stages or levels that consumer’s decision making must go through. Carvalho (2012) highlights and explains these stages including the need to recognize a problem, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase, and post-purchase behavior. The first two stages are highly influenced by celebrity endorsement. A customer may be frustrated on what product to choose from in the market. However, with the help of the celebrity that they are familiar with, they are able to make up their minds faster. As Chan et al. (2013) explain, a sports celebrity serves as a mediator that establishes contact between the customers and the brand owners.
Sports celebrity endorsement serves a great role in promoting brand awareness, brand recall, consumer purchasing intention and purchasing behavior. Based on this analysis, celebrity endorsement has become a widespread phenomenon in the business world today. With the development of technology, consumers are encountering promotional messages extensively. As a result, it makes it difficult for the advertisement to be more effective. However, with the increasing competition, companies are becoming more creative to meet the expectations and capture the attention of the market. Sports celebrity endorsement is continuously becoming an integral part of the modern market because many fans are able to associate with the celebrities they adore. Therefore, sports celebrity is a marketing strategy that may organizations adopt with the hope that it would help them overcome the marketing challenges and improve their competitive advantage and general performance.
2.3 Sports Celebrity Endorsement and Purchasing Intentions
Purchasing intentions refers to a customer’s predisposition to purchase a certain product (Belch and Belch 2004). Consumer behavior is formed when external factors stimulate a consumer’s purchasing decision on the basis of personal characteristics.Often, consumers go for the product with a good brand image because good brand image enhances customer trust and product reliability. With the increased viewership of sport activities, athletes are increasingly being seen as global celebrities. Top athletes in the different sports disciplines have become a mainstay of sports products advertising with their images relating to more positive attributes. These attributes comprise of symbolic and functional benefits. Numerous authors have undertaken an in-depth study in consumer sports celebrity involvement and their influence on the consumer perceptions on purchase intention.
First, Bragança Düsenberg, Cunha de Almeida, and Barbosa de Amorim (2016) conducted a study in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with the sports celebrity selected being Ricardo Izecson, famously known as Kaka. Kaka’s selection was based on the respondents’ familiarity with him having been named the 2007 world best player by FIFA. A total of 1,122 questionnaires were collected with 1,025 of the questionnaires considered valid. The respondents’ average age was 21.4 years. Study findings indicate that endorser trustworthiness had the greatest influence on consumer intention to buy. Endorser’s expertise was the second greatest influence while attractiveness was cited as the third greatest influence. According to this study, the influence of Kaka on the purchase intentions of consumers was high in respondents involved in sports activities. The higher the rate of a respondent’s sports involvement, the higher the probability that they would purchase a product endorsed by Kaka (Bragança Düsenberg, et al. 2016).
In another study, Baig and Siddiqui (2012) aimed at identifying the overall perceptions of respondents on sports celebrities and their impact on consumer purchase intentions and brand loyalty in Pakistan. Respondents in the study were university students in their final year of BBA this was because in many instances, students possess immense knowledge on sports and celebrities. Study findings indicate that, celebrity endorsement contributes to positive attitude towards a brand or product but the attitude may not necessarily lead them into purchasing the product. Celebrity endorsement was found to have positive results on the motivation of consumers’ brand perception and intention to buy. The decision on whether to buy or not was also dependent on whether the sports celebrity used products from the brand he/she was endorsing and whether the product had any relation to the athlete’s sporting profession (Baig and Siddiqui 2012).
Similarly Johansson, and Bozan, (2017) sought to find out the impact of footballer Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s endorsement of Vitamin Well+, a health drink for athletes as well as non-athletes launched in Sweden in 2008 and now established in more than 28 countries. According to the study findings, the endorsement by Zlatan was a key influence on the consumers’ perception of the new product and their decision to buy it. One respondent, an 18 years old was quoted as saying “Zlatan would never agree to endorse a bad product. I bought it because of him (Johansson, and Bozan, p.25.” The celebrity endorsement gave Vitamin Well+ brand a sense of believability despite Zlatan not being an expert in the field of health drinks. The study confirms that celebrity endorsements affect consumer perceptions on purchase intention.
In 2009, Lear, Runyan, and Whitaker conducted a research whose focus was on the impact of sport celebrity endorsements in retail advertising in the United States, the increased use of athletes to endorse brands or products and a case study on the impact of Tiger Wood’s endorsement of Nike. The mode of advertising under consideration in this study was endorsements through print media. The researchers analyzed 12 issues of the SI magazine within a duration of 12 months. The study concludes that, the signing of Woods to Nike in 1996 was a big gamble. However, the rise of Woods to become a top golfer in the world, through retail sales, his endorsement has helped Nike recoup many more times revenue in comparison to the endorsement fee paid. Lear, Runyan, and Whitaker (2009) opine that Wood’s endorsement ranks among the most successful sales campaign and it is in the same footsteps that hundreds of other American companies have followed because celebrity endorsements influence consumer perception and purchase decision.

2.4 Conceptual Framework
This section seeks to use briefly discussed models and theories to develop a conceptual framework, which will enhance the collection of data and provide a comprehensive answer to the research problem.
2.4.1 To what extent do sporting celebrity endorsers’ positive and negative attributes influence the perception of consumers towards brands?
The objective of this research question is to examine the impact of celebrity endorsements on brand images. Therefore, this research question seeks to provide answers about the consumer perception on the brand image. The research question will also provide answers on how celebrity endorser attributes affect brands. The model that focuses on celebrity attributes affecting consumer attitudes towards; endorsements and brands, is the best model related to this research question. In addition, attractiveness and credibility, as well as other attributes such as; celebrity expertise, celebrity motives, and celebrity brand-fit will aid in determining the attitudes towards celebrity endorsers.
2.4.2 How do sporting celebrity endorsers influence the buying intentions of consumers?
The aim of this question is to investigate how and when celebrity endorsers influence the buying intentions of consumers positively. The source attractiveness model is best suited to answer this research question. The model presents attributes such as similarity, familiarity and likability – evaluating the impact of each attribute on buying intentions of consumers.
2.4.3 How can sporting celebrity endorsers enhance the profile of both celebrities and brands?
The purpose of this research question is to investigate how the sporting entrepreneur’s engagement affects the effectiveness of communication, by offering consumers with contextual clues about the disposition and motivation of endorsers towards the products being endorsed. The most appropriate model for this research question is Credibility Source Model, which focuses on measuring trustworthiness and expertise of the endorser.

Figure 2.1 Conceptual Framework

Source: Author, 2018

2.5 Chapter Summary
Celebrity endorsement, brand image, and consumer purchase intentions are study variables in this dissertation. To answer the research questions, there must be additional knowledge regarding the attributes that are most appropriate for celebrity endorsers. Furthermore, investigation on how the identified attributes influence the perception of consumers on the brand image as well as their purchase intentions will follow. Explicit answers to the research questions will give a better understanding of how celebrity endorsements affect consumer attitudes as well as behaviours, thus meeting the study objective.

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