International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship

Impact of athletic star power on product consumption

Karla McCormick,
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Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship, https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSMS-06-2016-0030
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Impact of
Impact of athletic star power on athletic star
product consumption power
Karla McCormick
Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA

Abstract Received 2 June 2016

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine if the star power of an athletic endorser influenced Revised 1 March 2017
consumers’ consumption of the advertised product. Specifically, does the amount of star power an athlete is Accepted 29 September 2017
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thought to have impact consumers’ direct consumption of the advertised product and media consumption of
the athlete? Moreover, the components of star power, along with congruency measures, were examined to
determine which components of star power influenced both direct and media consumption.
Design/methodology/approach – Four advertisements were created that used an athlete with high star
power and an athlete with low star power. Respondents viewed two of the advertisements, but did not know
which athlete had high star power or low star power. They were asked to answer a questionnaire that
contained questions pertaining to the components of star power (source attractiveness, source credibility,
professional trustworthiness, likeable personality and character style), congruency of the athlete and product,
direct consumption of the advertised product and media consumption of the athlete.
Findings – Results indicated that overall star power increased the direct consumption of the advertised product
and the media consumption of the athlete, however not each component was found to be significant. Character
style was the only component that was consistently significant across all four advertisements. The congruency
between the athlete and product was also found to be significant across all four advertisements.
Research limitations/implications – First, this study only looked at two athletes; others may generate
different results. Second, the products used in the study were fashion related; other categories of products
may also generate different relationships. Third, only two brands were used. It was also assumed that the
respondents knew the athlete in the advertisement. Finally, the questions used to measure direct consumption
did not distinguish between buying the brand in the store or online.
Originality/value – This study has the potential to contribute theoretically by analyzing how and which
components of star power affect consumption of endorsed products, as well as which components influence
consumers. Moreover, adding a congruency measure will aide in strengthening the measurement of endorser
effectiveness. The justification of the present study lies in the need to determine how the dimensions of star
power an athlete possesses contribute to the consumption behaviors of consumers.
Keywords Consumption, Athletic endorser, Endorsements, Match-up hypothesis, Star power
Paper type Research paper

Introduction
The use of endorsers has been a popular advertising tool for decades, and remains as one
today. Athletes have been used as endorsers for over 30 years, where they have endorsed
more product categories than any other type of celebrity (i.e. actors, musicians, comedians,
etc.) (Carlson and Donavan, 2008). Athletes provide several important benefits to
advertising such as increasing brand name recognition, creating positive associations by
transferring different qualities to the product like physical appeal or likeability, and aiding
in the development of distinct brand personalities (Kamins, 1990; Ohanian, 1991). If used
appropriately, endorsers in advertising can serve a valuable role in enhancing a firm’s
competitive position by not only contributing to building a favorable brand image
(Till, 1998), but also by having direct economic influence on the firm (Agrawal and
Kamakura, 1995; Elberse and Verleun, 2012).
Many firms today are willing to pay athletes top dollar to have their product associated
with a star athlete. In 2013, more than 100 US-based companies spent more than $15 billion
on sponsorships (IEG Sponsorship Report Sponsorship Report, 2014b). Nike, one of the top
US sponsors spent around $265 million on athletic sponsorship in 2013 (IEG Sponsorship International Journal of Sports
Marketing and Sponsorship
Report Sponsorship Report, 2014b). Companies that employ athletic endorsers are not © Emerald Publishing Limited
1464-6668
limited to sport-related brands, many fashion brands have signed athletes to endorsement DOI 10.1108/IJSMS-06-2016-0030
 IJSMS deals, especially in the male fashion market (IEG Sponsorship Report Sponsorship
Report, 2011). David Beckham, according to Forbes, earned $42 million from endorsements
with Adidas, Coty, HandM, Sainsbury’s, Samsung and his newest partner, Breitling watches
(David Beckham-Forbes) as well as designer brand Armani. Tom Brady earns $7 million a
year from his endorsements that include UGG, Stetson Cologne and Under Armour
(Manfred, 2013). Designer watch brands Citizen, Piguet, Breitling and Tag Heuer continue to
employ both male and female athletes in their advertising campaigns, thus extending the
reach of their products to a new consumer base. Marketers of designer watches are doubling
and tripling their sponsorship budgets, hoping to increase acceptance of luxury and high-
end fashion in the male watch market (IEG Sponsorship Report Sponsorship Report, 2011).
Currently, Tiger Woods can be seen endorsing Nike, which recently re-signed him to a
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$20 million endorsement deal (Bateau, 2013) and Hero MotoCorp, where he received a
four-year deal worth around $8 million a year (Badenhausen, 2014). Maria Sharapova signed
the most lucrative deal to date for a female athlete, with Nike worth $70 million for eight
years (Wilson, 2011). Her other endorsements include: Cole Haan handbags, Tiffany,
Tag Heuer, Evian Water and Samsung (Wilson, 2011), which have brought her an estimated
$23 million (Adams, 2014).
Brands that benefit from the endorser-brand relationship do so when the fans feel a
connection with the athlete (Carlson and Donavan, 2008). Specifically, it is the fan’s
identification with the athlete that contributes to making an effective endorsement (Kamins
et al., 1989). In turn, this identification with an athlete based on their power as a star, leads to
increased product consumption (Wann, 1997). While many athletes today are recognizable,
few are true athletic stars. Athletic stars have highly developed skills, or abilities, media
presence, known for their hard work or some career defining moment, resulting in a high
level of recognition (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005; Stevens et al., 2003). Therefore, a true
athletic star imparts a certain type of power upon an individual, which can be referred to as
star power (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005). Star power stems from a combination of French
and Ravens (1959) basis of power and the unique characteristics of a specific individual,
making him or her “star worthy.” An athlete’s position in the public eye offers him/her the
opportunity to exert referent power due to his/her ability to make others want to be like
him/her; it also gives him/her expert power because of his/her knowledge and skills,
legitimate power due to his/her social role or status and reward power from his/her ability to
provide positive feelings or remove negative ones (French and Raven, 1959). Therefore, the
purpose of this study was to determine if the star power of an athletic endorser influenced
consumers’ consumption of the advertised product. Moreover, does the identification with
the athletic endorser affect ones desire to learn more about the athlete?

Review of literature
Much of the research conducted on athletic endorsements has built upon findings in advertising
research on celebrity endorsements (Brooks and Harris, 1998; Burton et al., 2000; Kamins, 1990;
Martin, 1996). These studies generally conclude that the persuasive effects of the celebrity
endorsement are enhanced when the celebrity is perceived to be an expert or trustworthy
(Boyd and Shank, 2004; Ohanian, 1991), when there is a good fit between the athlete and the
brand ( James, 1996; Koernig and Boyd, 2009; Till and Busler, 1998), or when the endorser is
thought to be physically attractive (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005; Kahle and Homer, 1985).
In sports market demand studies, star power has been studied and considered an important
factor to positively influence the attractiveness and promotion of sport-related products (Zhang
et al., 1995, 2003). Previous research has also associated the power of the athletic endorser to the
endorser’s credibility and attractiveness (Shank, 1999); other endorsement studies have shown
that celebrity/athlete endorsements are believed to generate a greater intent to purchase the
endorsed item (Kahle and Homer, 1985; Kamins et al., 1989; Ohanian, 1991).
 Direct consumption Impact of
Consumers have numerous ways to purchase products today. Advertising has long been used athletic star
to influence consumer-purchasing decisions. Woodside and Taylor (1978) hypothesized that power
the more the product is advertised the higher quality it has and the more it will be consumed.
They found that consumers viewed products that are nationally advertised to be higher in
quality, leading to increased purchase intent. Therefore, the brands that are heavily advertised
are more easier to recognize, thus leading to greater consumption. By creating a greater
confidence in the quality of a brand, advertising may be more directly related to the purchase
decision (Woodside and Taylor, 1978). Cobb-Walgren et al. (1995) found that the brand with
the greater advertising budget yielded much higher levels of brand awareness, which
generated higher product preference and purchase intentions.
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Findings in endorsement literature indicate that the expert celebrity endorser elicited
higher purchase intentions than the non-celebrity endorser (Ohanian, 1991) and that when
there is a good fit between the athlete and the product purchase intentions will increase
(Till and Busler, 1998). The measurement of purchase intentions has examined consumer
goods in a multitude of categories, including jewelry, perfume/cologne, apparel, beauty
products (razors, soap, make-up), electronics, grocery items and pens. Today, consumers
have various ways to access information about products allowing them to become more
knowledgeable the products they purchase.

Online media consumption

One of the most common ways a consumer can access product information is through the
use of online media. The consumption of online media via the use of Smartphones, tablets,
search engines and social media platforms has not only made it much easier for consumers
to access information about their favorite athlete but also give them more outlets to view
advertisements. According to IEG Sponsorship Report Sponsorship Report (2014a), North
American ad spending will continue to grow, largely in the digital segment (10 percent
growth in the USA) but will be offset by a continued decline in newspaper, TV, radio and
magazine spending. Companies are constantly looking for new ways to advertise their
products and are finding that traditional platforms are no longer reaching their core
customers. Digital advertising is able to reach more consumers, and the sports industry is
projected to have 70 percent of the sponsorship market in 2014, spending $14.35 Billion
(IEG Sponsorship Report Sponsorship Report, 2014a).
Social media is at the forefront of online media consumption. It has revolutionized the
way consumers interact with athletes by providing direct access and removing
the middleman, the traditional media (Cunningham and Bright, 2012). Athletes today are
turning to Facebook and Twitter to promote their endorsements and connect with fans
(MacMillan, 2009). Social media has also impacted the sports industry from the way one
can watch a game to the ability to know what athletes do during their off time. Social
media has a way of softening athletes; it allows fans to get to know the person behind their
athletic persona.
Social media provides platforms needed to help establish a relationship between the
fan (consumer) and the athlete (Cunningham and Bright, 2012). Cunningham and Bright
(2012) conducted a study that measured the athletes’ attractiveness, credibility and
endorser-product congruence toward an athletic endorsement on Twitter. They found that
only the endorser-product congruence predicted attitude toward an athletic endorsement
on Twitter. Social media platforms like Twitter provide a direct line of communication
between the athletic endorser and the consumer. This type of communication not only
allows the athlete to promote themselves or their sponsors directly to consumers at any
time, but also allows new marketing opportunities for advertisers and marketers to
promote their products through the athletes’ social media accounts.
 IJSMS Andrew et al. (2009) measured direct merchandise consumption and media consumption
in relation to a specific type of sport. They found that specific factors such as the social
experience, vicarious achievement and adoration were important for direct consumption,
while knowledge, drama and aesthetics were important for media consumption. Braunstein
and Zhang (2005) examined the dimensions of athletic star power associated with
Generation Y sports consumption. Results showed that 30 percent of direct consumption
and 20 percent of media consumption of the endorsed product was explained by the athlete
used in the advertisement. Kim et al. (2011) examined a link between relationship quality
and sport behavioral intentions, including media consumption and merchandise
consumption. They found that fans that perceived a higher level of relationship
quality with a sports team were more likely to consume team-related media content and
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team-related merchandise.

Component of star power

Choosing the right endorser is vital to the success of not only the advertisement but also
contributes to the effectiveness of the endorsement. Previous research has proposed several
theoretical models to help identify what makes an endorsement effective. These theoretical
models can also be used in the formation of star power. The four most notable theoretical models
include: the source credibility model, the source attractiveness model, the meaning transfer
model and the match-up hypothesis. These models are highly applicable to the sports industry,
where star athletes have the ability to influence consumers because of their appearance,
expertise, skill set and media persona (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005).
The source attractiveness model stands on the belief that one’s acceptance of a message
relies on the similarity, familiarity and liking of an endorser (McGuire, 1985). Most television
and print ads use physically attractive people, because studies have shown that consumers
tend to form positive stereotypes about such people (Ohanian, 1991). Past research has
found that attractive people are more successful in changing beliefs than their unattractive
counterparts (Kamins, 1990; Till and Busler, 1998; Kahle and Homer, 1985; Ohanian, 1991).
The source credibility model contends that the effectiveness of a message depends upon the
perceived level of expertise and trustworthiness of an endorser (Hovland and Weiss, 1951).
Researchers have suggested that celebrity endorsers bring credibility to the advertising
message, thus making these messages more effective (Kamins, 1989; Ohanian, 1991).
The transfer meaning model (TMM) states that celebrities’ effectiveness as endorsers stems
from the cultural meanings they possess. A three-stage model that begins with the formation
of a celebrity image, proceeds to the transference of images from the celebrity to the product
and concludes with the transference of meaning to the consumer. Distinctions of status, class,
gender, age, lifestyle types and personality types are examples of the cultural meanings
celebrity endorsers may possess and transfer to products they endorse (McCracken, 1989).
The brand strategy of companies like Nike, which uses many top athletes, is inspired by this
model (Belch and Belch, 1998). In addition to their own personality characteristics, athletes also
bring the characteristics of their sport to the endorsement process ( James, 1996).
The match-up hypothesis “generally suggests that the message conveyed by the image
of the celebrity and the image of the product should converge in effective advertisements
and implies a need for congruency between product image and celebrity image on an
attractiveness basis” (Kamins, 1990, p. 5). It also contends that the visual imagery contained
in the advertisement conveys information over and above the information contained in
explicit verbal arguments (Rossitier and Percy, 1980). According to Kahle and Homer (1985),
when a celebrity’s physical attractiveness is congruent with the product he/she is endorsing,
the “match-up” hypothesis would predict a positive impact on the product and the
advertisement evaluations; if there were incongruence, those evaluations would decline.
Several authors have stated that there is a need to measure athletic endorsers’ congruency
 with the brands they endorse. A congruency measurement is crucial because if a match is Impact of
not made, the endorsement would be deemed ineffective. Most consumers know that they athletic star
will never play like their favorite athlete, but owning equipment their favorite athletes power
endorse makes them feel better (Erdogan and Baker, 1999). Kim and Na (2007) examined the
fit between the celebrity athlete with both a sport and non-sport-related product. They found
that when the athlete endorsed the sport-related product the athletes’ credibility and
attractiveness helped employ favorable evaluations toward the endorsed product.
More recently, Lee and Park (2014) examined the strength of endorsements under
varying degrees of an endorser-product match and how those varying degrees affect the
persuasiveness of the endorsement. Results indicated that how the message is processed
enhanced the effectiveness of the endorsement, specifically the endorsement was
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strengthened when a proper match was found.

Other factors, not as well-researched, that can contribute the star power of an athlete
include familiarity and likeability of the endorser. Miciak and Shanklin (1994) researched how
to choose celebrity endorsers for advertising endorsements and indicated that the endorser
should be meet five baseline criteria: be trustworthy, recognizable by the target audience,
affordable, low risk and a good fit for the target audience. Erdogan et al. (2001) investigated
how to choose celebrity endorsers and found that not only are attractiveness and credibility
important, but also the familiarity and likeability of the celebrity are vital as well.

Rationale
The components of star power have been studied minimally in relation to athletic endorsements
(Braunstein and Zhang, 2005; Charbonneau and Garland, 2005). Likeable personality has also
been studied very minimally in athletic endorsement research (Plummer, 2000). Character style
or social image has had little attention as well; many studies focused on the impact of the
athlete’s negative image (Miciak and Shanklin, 1994; Louie and Obermiller, 2002), but when
focused on the positive image not much has been done (Ohanian, 1991; McCracken, 1989).
Braunstein and Zhang (2005) pointed out that the addition of a congruency measure in relation
to star power would greatly benefit the athletic endorsement research. Charbonneau and
Garland (2005) noted that athletic endorsement studies using the match-up fit variable, along
with the physical attractiveness variable and the source credibility variable is scarce. Other
studies have touched on the general perception of athlete endorsers and the reasons for their
use; however, there were a number of limitations identified in those studies that were associated
with the applicability of the proposed theories to the selection process of the athlete endorsers
(Braunstein and Zhang, 2005).
The measurement of star power has been more abstract because until recently there was
no formal measurement with which to measure this concept. Many previous studies took the
entire environment, not merely the celebrity and the endorsement into consideration
inadequately; the impact of media value and the characteristics of the product and the
consumers are integral to the relationship formed in the process of the endorsement
(Braunstein and Zhang, 2005). The studies that focused on athletic endorsers mainly
incorporated the opinions of advertising executives (Miciak and Shanklin, 1994) and
overlooked the importance of the perspectives of the consumers (Kahle and Homer, 1985;
Kamins, 1989, 1990; McCracken, 1989; McGuire, 1985). Several researchers have indicated
that understanding the needs and wants of consumers will help in the selection of a star
athlete who possesses the same characteristics as the desired target market, therefore
helping to enhance the effectiveness of sports endorsements (Brooks and Harris, 1998;
Chalip, 1996). A company needs to understand their target market and who is going to be
buying their products; the market demand of the endorsed product is as distinguishable and
important as the market demand of the core elements of a sporting event (Zhang et al., 2003).
Therefore, the aim of this study was twofold, first to determine if popular athletes with
 IJSMS endorsement deals have star power and to ascertain which athlete had the highest star
power and which athlete had the lowest star power (study 1). Second, to investigate the
differences in consumption patterns of athletic endorsers who have varying degrees of star
power (study 2). Specifically, to examine the components of star power and determine which
components of star power impacted consumer’s direct consumption of the advertised
product and media consumption of the athletic endorser.
Moreover, examining the amount of star power an athlete is believed to have can
aide marketers in choosing the endorser that best fits the image of the company. Therefore,
the congruency between the athlete and the product will also be examined. The source
attractiveness model, the source credibility model, the TMM and the match-up hypothesis
were all used as the theoretical framework for this study. The match-up hypothesis was
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added to the framework based on previous recommendations of researchers. In addition,

previous studies were also examined for past celebrity selection criteria (Miciak and
Shanklin, 1994; Erdogan et al., 2001). This study has the potential to contribute theoretically
by analyzing how and which components of star power affect consumption of endorsed
products, as well as which components influence consumers. Moreover, adding a
congruency measure will aide in strengthening the measurement of endorser effectiveness.
The justification of the present study lies in the need to determine how the dimensions of
star power an athlete possesses contribute to the consumption behaviors of consumers.
See Table I for a complete list of the constructs and definitions used in this study.

Method
Pilot study
A pilot study was conducted to find a systematic way to select which athletes to use for this
research. Due to the number of professional athletes, a process was needed to find which

Construct Definition

Character style
Direct consumption
Expertise
Likeable personality
Match-up hypothesis/Athlete
brand congruency
Media consumption
Star familiarity
Star power
Trustworthiness
Table I.
Construct definitions
The social image of the athlete and how the public perceives him/her.
It entails what kind of person he/she is, meaning does he/she have a
positive or negative image in the public eye (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005)
How often consumers purchase products that the athlete endorses, wears,
promotes or sells (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005)
“The extent to which a communicator is perceived to be a source of valid
assertions” (Erdogan et al., 2001, p. 40)
How consumers view the athlete in regards to their social image; is the
athlete viewed as a good person, friendly or likeable to consumers
(Braunstein and Zhang, 2005)
“Generally suggests that the message conveyed by the image of the
celebrity and the image of the product should converge in effective
advertisements, implies a need for congruence between product image and
celebrity image on an attractiveness basis” (Kamins, 1990, p. 5)
How often the consumer will look up the athlete online, read about them on
the internet, in magazines, watch them on television and follow them
throughout their season of play (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005)
How familiar the consumer is with the athlete; are they a fan of the sport
they play and watch he/she play abundantly (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005)
A combination of French and Ravens (1959) basis of power and the unique
characteristics of a specific individual, making him or her “star worthy”
“The honesty, integrity and believability of an endorser as perceived by
the target audience” (Erdogan et al., 2001, p. 40); “the consumer’s
confidence in the source for providing info in an objective and honest
manner” (Ohanian, 1991, p. 47)
 athletes to use for this study. Previous studies have employed numerous procedures when Impact of
selecting the endorser and product to study, so there was no one correct method to follow. athletic star
To ensure that the researcher did not have any bias when deciding which athletic endorsers to power
use, a search was conducted to assist in compiling a list of professional athletes. First, the
athletes should represent a pool of athletes that have current endorsement deals. Second, the
athletes should include both genders and more than one ethnicity (Choi and Rifon, 2007).
Therefore, it was concluded that a thorough online search should be conducted to find the top
ten athletes that met the above-mentioned search criteria. Previously, Braunstein and Zhang
(2005) used a list of ten athletes when choosing which athletes to use for their research;
therefore, this method was employed for this research project. Since this study was looking at
the star power of an athlete, it was decided that finding athletes who encompassed the
components of star power was vital. Therefore, the phrase “most searched athletes with
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endorsement deals” was used. This phrase encompasses the not only athletes with current
endorsement deals, but also those athletes who are constantly being read about, “looked-up,”
viewed (images), and shown interest in. These factors align the purpose of this study. The list
of the top ten athletes was compiled by the researcher and included: David Beckham,
Tiger Woods, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Bret Farve,
Dwayne Wade, LeBron James and Michael Phelps and Kobe Bryant.
Next a questionnaire was created that asked respondents to rank the top ten athletes in
order with “1 being most familiar” and “10 being least familiar.” Therefore, a list
(just athletes’ names were used) was created and distributed via e-mail to 50 male and
female undergraduate and graduate students and student athletes ages 18-30. This
method was used to reduce the list of athletes from 10 to 5, but was also a way to check
how familiar these athletes were. In total, 30 e-mails were returned, 17 women and 13 men.
The results indicated the top five athletes based on the respondents’ familiarity of the
athlete: Tiger Woods, Tom Brady, David Beckham, Serena Williams and Maria
Sharapova. Print endorsements were then found for each of the five athletes: Tiger
Woods/TagHeur (watch), Tom Brady/Stetson Cologne, Maria Sharapova/Cole Haan
(purse), David Beckham/David Beckham Cologne and Serena Williams/Nike (apparel).
Since real advertisements/endorsements were used, there were limitations on the
brands/products found in the advertisements. However, all five advertisements used had a
brand and product that fell into the categories of apparel, accessories and fragrance,
which make up a large portion of the retail industry.

Study 1
Questionnaire development and administration
After the pilot study concluded, a questionnaire was developed containing questions
pertaining to star power and consumption. The Scale of Athletic Star Power (Braunstein and
Zhang, 2005), which addresses the components of star power (source attractiveness, expertise,
professional trustworthiness, likeable personality and character style), was used.
Consumption questions addressed the direct consumption of the advertised products (how
likely they are to buy the product the athletic is wearing or using), and the media consumption
of the athletic endorser (how likely they are to watch them on TV, look them up online, read
about them in magazines or follow them throughout their season of play). These questions
were all measured on a five-point Likert scale (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005).
To measure the congruency between the athlete and the brand questions was put into a
five-point Likert scale, which included how familiar the respondent is with the athlete, if the
image of the athlete is congruent with the product in the advertisement, if the product is a
good fit for the athlete, if the athlete is believable endorsing the product, and if the
respondent thinks the athlete would wear or use the product he/she is endorsing. These
questions have been asked in past research and are therefore appropriate to use to measure
 IJSMS congruency between the athlete and the product (Kamins and Gupta, 1994; Kamins, 1990;
Till and Busler, 1998).
This questionnaire was sent out online using Survey Monkey to a stratified sample
consisting of 250 men and women ages 18-65. This type of sampling has been used in
previous endorsement research, so was deemed appropriate for this study (Sarangan and
Sarangan, 2016; Tijjani et al., 2016). Several organizations were recruited by the researcher
via e-mail and either agreed to participate in this research or declined to participate. These
national organizations were recruited for their diverse member enrollment; if they agreed to
participate, they sent via e-mail a list of their members’ contact information to the
researcher. The respondents were asked to view each of the five advertisements and then
answer the questionnaire. In total, 150 questionnaires were returned to the researcher to
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input into SPSS and analyze.

Results
To calculate factor scores for the athletic star power, congruency and consumption
variables, exploratory factor analysis with promax was conducted first for all five
advertisements. The five components of star power were analyzed separately, as were the
congruency and consumption questions. Factors were reduced if the eigenvalue was less
than 1.0 (Kaiser, 1960), if the factor loading was less than 0.40 or it was double loading
(Tabachnick and Fidell, 1996; Braunstein and Zhang, 2005). In total, 16 items were removed
because they met the above criteria. Three questions were also moved from the professional
trustworthiness section to the character style section due to increased factor scores
and question relevance. See Table II for factor scores. α reliability coefficients were
calculated next for the five components of star power, congruency and consumption
questions and varied across the advertisements. See Table III for Cronbach’s α scores.
Descriptive statistics were then calculated for the five components of star power,
congruency and consumption questions for all five advertisements. The athletic star power
was then calculated for each of the five athletes. Previously, this had been done by
looking at the mean score of the star power variables and making sure it was above a
3.0 (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005); therefore, this method was deemed appropriate and used
for this study. However, the mean score for the congruency questions was analyzed as well.
Respondents did believe that all five athletes had star power, as each athletes mean score of
the star power variables and congruency items score above a 3.0.
In order to conduct study 2, it was necessary to determine which athlete had the highest
and lowest star power. Therefore, the five components of star power and congruency items
were summed for each of the athletic endorsements, indicating that Tiger Woods had the
highest athletic star power score (13,612), while Maria Sharapova had the lowest athletic
star power score (18,629). A manipulation check was also performed. The t-test indicated
that respondents did believe that Tiger Woods (83.773) did have higher star power than
Maria Sharapova (178.306). Something to note, the scale items were reversed scored, with 1
was “strongly agree” and 5 being “strongly disagree,” therefore the higher the summed
score, the lower the star power, and the lower the summed score, the higher the star power.

Post hoc test

To select the product categories for Tiger Woods and Maria Sharapova to endorse, a post hoc
test was needed. To increase the ecological validity of the study (Fleck et al., 2012; Koernig and
Boyd, 2009), fictitious advertisements were created. To eliminate any pre-existing bias
respondents might have, it was determined that these created advertisements should not
be of a product or brand that Tiger Woods and Maria Sharapova have endorsed or are
currently endorsing.
 Factor loading
Impact of
athletic star
Expertise power
1. He/she is has superior athletic skills 0.649
2. He/she is aggressive when he/she plays 0.541
a
3. He/she is a team player 0.389/0.588
a
4. He/she is an extremely talented athlete 0.564/0.503
5. He/she shows leadership abilities 0.725
6. He/she is goal oriented 0.588
7. He/she is at the peak of his/her career 0.522
8. He/she is a hard worker 0.682
9. He/she is courageous 0.627
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10. He/she is enthusiastic 0.625

11. He/she has a high level of technical ability 0.574
Source attractiveness
a
1. He/she has a lot of media attention 0.610/−0.329
2. He/she is recognizable 0.574
3. He/she is physically attractive 0.618
4. He/she is physically fit 0.514
5. He/she is outgoing 0.756
a
6. He/she is energetic 0.613/0.350
7. He/she is distinctive looking 0.614
8. He/she is masculine/feminine 0.595
9. He/she is entertaining when he/she plays 0.723
Professional trustworthiness
1. He/she is responsible 0.791
2. He/she is well spoken 0.744
3. He/she is intelligent 0.810
4. He/she is dignified 0.800
5. He/she is positive 0.764
b
6. I agree with his/her lifestyle 0.796
b
7. He/she is ethical 0.770
b
8. He/she serves the community 0.781
a
9. He/she is friendly 0.793/0.325
a
10. I agree with his/her way of life 0.824/0.364
a
11. He/she shows good sportsmanship 0.761/0.306
12. I agree with his/her behavior 0.794
Likeable personality
a
1. He/she is charitable 0.360
2. He/she is modest 0.702
3. He/she is funny 0.752
a
4. He/she is very charming 0.730/0.369
5. He/she is humorous 0.695
a
6. He/she is personable 0.752/0.317
a
7. He/she is honest 0.737/0.310
8. He/she is approachable 0.767
9. He/she has an ability to connect with his/her fan base 0.762
10. He/she displays morality 0.734
a
11. He/she is charismatic 0.727/0.303
12. He/she is kind 0.762
13. He/she spends time with fans 0.774
a
14. He/she is a daredevil 0.541/0.302
15. He/she is likeable 0.778
Table II.
(continued ) Factor analysis
 IJSMS Factor loading

Character style
1. He/she is controversial 0.670
2. He/she is flamboyant 0.548
a
3. He/she is worldly 0.320
Congruency
1. How familiar are you with the athlete who appeared in the ad? 0.574
2. How congruent is the image of the athlete with the brand they are endorsing? 0.513
3. Do you think this brand is a good fit for this athlete to endorse? 0.568
4. How believable is this athlete endorsing this brand? 0.542
5. Do you believe this athlete would wear or use this product? 0.577
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Direct consumption
1. I intend to purchase products that he/she wears 0.632
2. I intend to purchase products that he/she endorses 0.702
3. I purchase sports merchandise with his/her team/brand logo 0.705
4. I have purchased products that he/she wears 0.652
5. I have purchased products he/she endorses 0.654
6. I like products that he/she endorses 0.697
7. I purchase equipment for his/her sport 0.568
a
8. I attend his/her sporting events 0.523/0.302
9. I participate in his/her sport 0.501
Media consumption
1. I read magazines on him/her or his/her sport 0.789
2. I read about him/her in the sports pages of my newspaper 0.845
3. I visit websites that focus on him/her or his/her sport 0.856
5. I watch sports information programming about his/her sport 0.874
6. I watch him/her or his/her sport on television 0.895
a
7. I read books on him/her or his/her sport 0.301
Notes: aIndicates item that were removed from survey; bindicates the questions moved to the character
Table II. style section

Recently, Truong et al. (2008) used fashion brands where subjects were asked to rank
brands in terms of the status each conveyed, therefore this method was deemed
appropriate for brand selection for this research. Based on previous research, a
modified list of fashion brands was compiled (Eastman et al., 1999) and was distributed
via e-mail to the stratified sample used in study 1. Respondents were asked whether seven
different fashion brands (Guess, Armani, Liz Claiborne, Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, Ralph
Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger) were of high or low status. In total, 150 responses were
returned. Results indicated the Guess brand as having the least amount of status,
while Armani was deemed the brand with the most status. See Table IV for frequency
distribution of brands.

Study 2
Advertisement development
Four advertisements were created based on the results of study 1 and the post hoc test.
A thorough search was conducted to view current and past advertisements from both
Armani and Guess. During this search, it was determined that the majority of the
Armani advertisements featured clothing, while the majority of the Guess advertisements
featured accessories. Therefore, clothing was chosen as the product category for the
Armani advertisements and a watch was chosen for the Guess advertisements.
Since watches are a large sub-classification in accessories and Guess offers watch styles
 Component of star power
Expertise
Source attractiveness
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Advertisement No. Cronbach’s α score
Impact of
athletic star
1 0.920 power
2 0.953
3 0.894
4 0.745
5 0.973
1 0.881
2 0.842
3 0.644
4 0.215
5 0.901

Professional trustworthiness 1 0.959

2 0.975
3 0.949
4 0.385
5 0.954
Likeable personality 1 0.814
2 0.903
3 0.795
4 0.895
5 0.968
Character style 1 0.737
2 0.447
3 0.771
4 0.238
5 0.660
Athlete/Product congruency 1 0.895
2 0.948
3 0.794
4 0.831
5 0.983
Direct consumption 1 0.921
2 0.971
3 0.885
4 0.718
5 0.992
Media consumption 1 0.893
2 0.943
3 0.874 Table III.
4 0.992 Study 1 Cronbach’s
5 0.984 α scores

for both men and women, it was deemed appropriate for this study. These product
categories have been used in past endorsement research, more recently Koernig and
Boyd (2009) used fashion clothing brands because they are continually consumed by
consumers, Piacentini and Mailer (2004) used clothing because they are socially consumed
product category and according to Fleck et al. (2012), luxury brands use celebrities
extensively in their advertising. Numerous brands in these product categories employ
celebrity or athletic endorsers to promote their products. David Beckham and Rafael
Nadal have been featured in Armani advertisements; Michael Phelps had an endorsement
deal with Louis Vuitton whereas, Eli Manning and Paula Creamer have endorsement deals
with Citizen Watches, Maria Sharapova and Cristiano Ronaldo endorse Tag Heuer and
Tiger Woods just signed a deal with Rolex. Thus, this suggests that there is a need to
measure athletes who endorse both these product categories.
 IJSMS Variable Frequency %

Guess
High 33 22.0
Low 117 78.0
Armani
High 150 100.0
Low 0 0.0
Liz Claiborne
High 75 50.0
Low 75 50.0
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Calvin Klein
High 132 88.0
Low 18 12.0
Donna Karan
High 149 99.3
Low 0 0.0
Ralph Lauren
High 147 98.0
Low 3 2.0
Table IV. Tommy Hilfiger
Frequency High 74 49.3
distribution of brands Low 76 50.7

Questionnaire development and administration

A questionnaire was created that included the modified version of The Scale of Athletic Star
Power (Braunstein and Zhang, 2005), the previously used congruency questions, and
modified consumption questions. These questions were all measured on a five-point Likert
scale. This questionnaire was hosted and distributed through Survey Sample International
to a national sample of 300 men and women ages 18-65. Respondents were asked to view
two of the created advertisements which contained either the athlete with high star power or
the athlete with low star power; however, they did not know which athlete had high star
power or low star power. In total, 300 questionnaires were returned.

Results
The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy indicated results yielding values
close to 1 in every set of questions for star power, including congruency and consumption
variables, indicating that the patterns of correlations are relatively compact and factor
analysis should yield distinct and reliable factors. The Bartlett’s test of spehericity also
generated significant results; for both the star power and consumption questions,
this test was highly significant (p o 0.001), and therefore, factor analysis was appropriate.
Exploratory factor analysis results indicated significant internal reliability, with
eigenvalues over 1, no double factor loadings, and all factors greater than 0.40.
Specifically, the values were between 0.7 and 0.9, which are good and superb values,
respectively. Cronbach’s α scores indicated high internal consistency for the direct
consumption and media consumption variables for all four advertisements. The α
reliability scores for the components of star power, including congruency, indicated that
the expertise, source attractiveness, professional trustworthiness and likeable personality
and congruency had very high internal consistency for all four advertisements; however,
 the character style component had somewhat lower scores. See Table V for the Cronbach’s Impact of
α scores for the four created advertisements. athletic star
Multiple linear regression was then used to identify which components of star power power
impacted the direct consumption of the product and media consumption of the athlete for
each advertisement. Overall, across all four advertisements, linear regression indicated that
all five predictors generated a significant star power model. However, not every predictor in
these models was significant. These results indicate that these predictors had varying
degrees of importance across the four advertisements. See Tables VI-XIII for a complete

Component of star power Advertisement No. Cronbach’s α score

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Expertise 1 0.949
2 0.957
3 0.970
4 0.965
Source attractiveness 1 0.901
2 0.867
3 0.929
4 0.945
Professional trustworthiness 1 0.930
2 0.966
3 0.966
4 0.974
Likeable personality 1 0.949
2 0.962
3 0.967
4 0.958
Character style 1 0.785
2 0.816
3 0.744
4 0.637
Athlete/Product congruency 1 0.879
2 0.830
3 0.888
4 0.903
Direct consumption 1 0.937
2 0.940
3 0.964
4 0.922
Media consumption 1 0.945
2 0.948 Table V.
3 0.949 Study 2 Cronbach’s
4 0.952 α scores

Adj. R2 Zβ MSE r F t-Test Tolerance VIF

Overall 0.175 0.187 41.408 0.449 7.666 po 0.01 Expertise ¼ 1.440, p ¼ 0.152 0.311 3.212
model −0.165 Attractive ¼ −1.531, p ¼ 0.128 0.453 2.208
0.006 Trust ¼ 0.032, p ¼ 0.975 0.171 5.848
0.152 Likeable ¼ 0.927, p ¼ 0.355 0.197 5.087 Table VI.
0.267 Character ¼ 2.324, p ¼ 0.021 0.398 2.510 Direct consumption:
Predictor 0.194 0.206 31.245 0.458 13.086 p o0.01 Expertise ¼ 2.023, p ¼ 0.045 0.513 1.948 Maria Sharapova/
specific −0.228 Attractive ¼ −2.328, p ¼ 0.021 0.557 1.795 Armani linear
model 0.420 Character ¼ 4.263, p o0.01 0.551 1.815 regression models
 IJSMS breakdown of these results. When analyzing the fit between the athlete and product, results
indicated that each athlete/product combination was significant. See Tables XIV and XV for
a complete breakdown of these results.

Discussion
Past studies in athletic endorsement research have focused on similar variables, including
the physical attractiveness and credibility of the endorser, while others have explored the

Adj. R2 Zβ MSE r F t-Test Tolerance VIF

Overall model 0.207 0.027 45.761 0.480 9.708 Expertise ¼ −0.154, p ¼ 0.878 0.157 6.361
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−0.106 p o0.01 Attractive ¼ −0.582, p ¼ 0.561 0.142 7.028

Table VII. −0.057 Trust ¼ −0.355, p ¼ 0.723 0.187 5.339
Direct consumption: 0.027 Likeable ¼ 0.195, p ¼ 0.846 0.242 4.131
Maria Sharapova/ 0.543 Character ¼ 5.283, po 0.01 0.450 2.221
Guess linear Predictor 0.197 0.449 32.661 0.449 40.144 Character ¼ 6.336, po 0.01 1.000 1.000
regression models specific model p o0.01

Adj. R2 Zβ MSE r F t-Test Tolerance VIF

Overall model 0.171 0.158 66.827 0.448 6.740 Expertise ¼ −0.833, p ¼ 0.406 0.165 6.061
−0.194 p o0.01 Attractive ¼ −1.043, p ¼ 0.299 0.173 5.774
Table VIII. −0.101 Trust ¼ −0.535, p ¼ 0.594 0.167 5.987
Direct 0.137 Likeable ¼ 0.802, p ¼ 0.424 0.205 4.889
consumption: tiger 0.432 Character ¼ 4.066, po 0.01 0.529 1.890
woods/Armani linear Predictor 0.180 0.431 55.832 0.431 30.384 Character ¼ 5.512, po 0.01 1.000 1.000
regression models specific model p o0.01

Adj. R2 Zβ MSE r F t-Test Tolerance VIF

Overall model 0.207 0.027 45.761 0.480 9.708 Expertise ¼ −0.154, p ¼ 0.878 0.157 6.361
−0.106 p o0.01 Attractive ¼ −0.582, p ¼ 0.561 0.142 7.028
Table IX. −0.057 Trust ¼ −0.355, p ¼ 0.723 0.187 5.339
Direct consumption: 0.027 Likeable ¼ 0.195, p ¼ 0.846 0.242 4.131
Tiger Woods/Guess 0.543 Character ¼ 5.283, po 0.01 0.450 2.221
linear regression Predictor 0.197 0.449 32.661 0.449 40.144 Character ¼ 6.336, po 0.01 1.000 1.000
models specific model p o0.01

Adj. R2 Zβ MSE r F t-Test Tolerance VIF

Model 1 0.197 0.305 20.170 0.472 8.703 p o0.01 Expertise ¼ 2.382, p ¼ 0.018 0.311 3.212
−0.092 Attractive ¼ −0.863, p ¼ 0.389 0.453 2.208
−0.261 Trust ¼ −1.509, p ¼ 0.133 0.171 5.848
Table X. 0.450 Likeable ¼ 2.790, p ¼ 0.006 0.197 5.087
Media consumption: 0.054 Character ¼ 0.477, p ¼ 0.634 0.398 2.510
Maria Sharapova/ Model 3 0.222 0.382 13.506 0.487 15.235 p o0.01 Expertise ¼ 3.105, p ¼ 0.002 0.343 2.916
Armani linear −0.327 Trust ¼ −2.034, p ¼ 0.044 0.201 4.972
regression models 0.427 Likeable ¼ 2.976, p ¼ 0.003 0.253 3.959
 economic costs associated with using an endorser, the negative image of an endorser, or the Impact of
use of multiple endorsers in advertising. However, none of these studies focused on apparel athletic star
brands that were endorsed by an athlete with high or low star power. Therefore, this study power
was conducted to determine if the endorsement of an athlete with high or low star power
influenced consumers’ willingness to consume the advertised product or their desire to
engage in the use of media to learn more about the athlete.
Overall, each advertisement generated different relationships with the variables of star
power and direct consumption. The one variable that was consistently significant across the

Adj. R2
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Zβ MSE r F t-Test Tolerance VIF

Overall 0.169 0.143 18.263 0.444 7.074 p o0.01 Expertise ¼ 1.048, p ¼ 0.297 0.299 3.340
model 0.085 Attractive ¼ 0.669, p ¼ 0.505 0.351 2.849
−0.402 Trust ¼ −2.303, p ¼ 0.023 0.183 5.464
0.313 Likeable ¼ 2.009, p ¼ 0.046 0.229 4.361 Table XI.
0.307 Character ¼ 2.405, p ¼ 0.017 0.341 2.929 Media consumption:
Predictor 0.163 0.370 15.005 0.424 10.317 p o0.01 Character ¼ 2.879, p ¼ 0.005 0.267 3.752 Maria Sharapova/
specific −0.376 Trust ¼ −2.548, p ¼ 0.012 0.249 4.014 Guess linear
model 0.365 Likeable ¼ 2.376, p ¼ 0.018 0.352 2.842 regression models

Adj. R2 Zβ MSE r F t-Test Tolerance VIF

Overall model 0.214 0.149 28.148 0.492 8.567 Expertise ¼ 0.805, p ¼ 0.422 0.165 6.061
0.083 p o 0.01 Attractive ¼ 0.458, p ¼ 0.647 0.173 5.774
0.261 Trust ¼ 1.420, p ¼ 0.158 0.167 5.987 Table XII.
−0.321 Likeable ¼ −1.930, p ¼ 0.056 0.205 4.889 Media
0.333 Character ¼ 3.218, p ¼ 0.002 0.529 1.890 consumption: Tiger
Predictor 0.205 0.303 27.603 0.465 18.789 Character ¼ 3.093, p ¼ 0.002 0.599 1.670 Woods/Armani linear
specific model 0.209 p o 0.01 Expertise ¼ 2.136, p ¼ 0.035 0.599 1.670 regression models

Adj. R2 Zβ MSE r F t-Test Tolerance VIF

Overall model 0.129 0.023 30.529 0.394 5.952 Expertise ¼ 0.127, p ¼ 0.899 0.157 6.361
−0.024 p o0.01 Attractive ¼ −0.126, p ¼ 0.900 0.142 7.028
0.048 Trust ¼ 0.288, p ¼ 0.774 0.187 5.339 Table XIII.
0.010 Likeable ¼ 0.069, p ¼ 0.945 0.242 4.131 Media
0.353 Character ¼ 3.280, p ¼ 0.001 0.450 2.221 consumption: tiger
Predictor 0.180 0.430 23.810 0.430 36.146 character ¼ 6.012, p o0.01 1.000 1.000 woods/Guess linear
specific model p o0.01 regression models

Adj. R2 r F t-Test

Maria Sharapova/Armani 0.082 0.296 po 0.01 14.951 po 0.01 3.867, p o 0.01

Maria Sharapova/Guess 0.236 0.491 po 0.01 47.001 po 0.01 3.867, p o 0.01 Table XIV.
Tiger Wood/ Armani 0.101 0.328 po 0.01 16.034 po 0.01 4.004, p o 0.01 Direct consumption/
Tiger Woods Guess 0.087 0.304 po 0.01 16.152 po 0.01 4.019, p o 0.01 congruency results
 IJSMS four advertisements was character style. The Maria Sharapova/Armani advertisement also
had significant relationships with source attractiveness and expertise, while the Maria
Sharapova/Guess advertisement had significant relationships with professional
trustworthiness and likeable personality. For both of the Tiger Woods advertisements,
character style was the only component of star power that was significant. Based on the
results of this study, the athlete’s behavior in the public, away from their respective
sport may play a role in consumer’s decision making when buying products endorsed by
star athletes.
Overall, there was not one component of star power that was consistently significant
with media consumption across the four advertisements. The one component of star
power that was significant in three of the advertisements was character style.
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Respondents, again consistently believed the character or social image of the athlete was
important. Other significant relationships found in the Maria Sharapova/Armani
advertisement were expertise, likeable personality and professional trustworthiness, while
the Maria Sharapova/Guess advertisement had significant relationships with professional
trustworthiness, likeable personality and character style. The Tiger Woods/Armani
advertisement also had significant relationship with expertise. Due to the increased use of
social media platforms and constant media coverage, athletes’ media presence has greatly
increased. Social media is now used as a primary source of sports information more often
than newspapers, radio and magazines (Broughton, 2013). Today, one can use Google, ask
Siri and read all forms of print media digitally to learn or read about their favorite athlete
or brand. In the USA, 73 percent of avid sports fans have a Facebook account and use it in
relation to sports (Broughton, 2013). Therefore, when measuring media consumption,
questions should be modified to incorporate the use of social media or other forms of social
networking platforms.
When examining the congruency between the athlete and the product respondents
did believe that each endorser-product combination was a good fit. Results indicated that
each advertisement had a significant product-endorsers match, thus leading to
increased direct and media consumption. The fit between the endorser and the brand
has been linked to endorser effectiveness and can help strengthen the relationship
between the consumer and the brand, when this relationship is viewed as congruent.
The findings of this study are similar with previous studies that concluded
that an endorsement is more effective when the endorser and product are congruent
(Kim and Na, 2007; Fleck et al., 2012; Till and Busler, 1998) and identified that
the fit between the athlete and product not only influenced consumption but also should
be considered a component of star power. Consumers have long idolized celebrities and
tried to emulate their styles and behaviors because they may view the celebrity’s
image as congruent to their own. This behavior holds true for athletes as well, consumers
who are fans of an athlete may seek out their endorsements and purchase the
products endorsed by their favorite athletes in hope that they become similar to them
because they have consumed these endorsed brands (Choi and Rifon, 2007). According
to the annual fan engagement study conducted by catalyst, an IMG Consulting
Company, brands that connect with sports fans on social media motivate consumers

Adj. R2 r F t-Test

Maria Sharapova/Armani 0.112 0.342 p o0.01 20.731 p o0.01 4.553, p o0.01

Table XV. Maria Sharapova/Guess 0.284 0.537 p o0.01 59.961 p o0.01 7.743, p o0.01
Media consumption/ Tiger Wood/Armani 0.201 0.455 p o0.01 36.050 p o0.01 6.004, p o0.01
congruency results Tiger Woods Guess 0.106 0.334 p o0.01 20.821 p o0.01 4.563, p o0.01
 to take action. Nearly 70 percent of sports fans that “like” or follow brands on social Impact of
media are willing to take additional action, including purchasing, commenting or sharing athletic star
brand content (Broughton, 2013). power
In conclusion, this study found that the amount of star power an athlete has will vary.
Further, the components of star power did impact consumption patterns and should
include a congruency measure. In addition, the results also indicated that the fit between
the brand and the athlete in an advertisement did influence consumption patterns.
Understanding the target market of the brand can help marketers pick the athlete that
best fits their brand’s image. Moreover, measuring the star power of an endorser can help
ensure advertising effectiveness. With advances in technology and use of social media
platforms consumers have more ways to not only view advertisements, but also learn
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about the products and endorsers who appear in them. Ultimately, picking the right
athletic endorser is crucial to not only the success of the endorsement but also to the
consumption of the product as well.

Limitations and future research

Several limitations merit discussion. First, this study only looked at two athletes;
others may generate different results. Second, the products used in the study were
fashion related; other categories of products may also generate different relationships.
In addition, the advertisements used in the pretest utilized real endorsements, therefore
the researcher only had access to brands/products that those athletes had actual
endorsement deals with. Third, only two brands were used; Armani and Guess are widely
recognizable brands that produce goods in many product categories. These brands have a
history of using celebrity and athletes as endorsers. Guess has employed Drew
Barrymore, Anna Nicole Smith and Claudia Schiffer, while Armani has used David
Beckham, Victoria Beckham, Rihanna, Megan Fox and Josh Hartnett. It was also assumed
that the respondents knew the athlete in the advertisement. Finally, the questions
used to measure direct consumption did not distinguish between buying the brand in the
store or online. Future research should distinguish between these two methods of
purchasing items.
Future research could include measuring athletes endorsing their own brands.
In today’s society, many athletes are involved in clothing lines, jewelry lines, shoe lines
and perfume lines. For example, David Beckham appears in his own cologne
advertisement and Michael Jordan still has creative control over his Air Jordan line.
Looking at the way the product is advertised should be explored. With technology
advancing so rapidly, the way consumers interact with products have changed. No longer
do consumers have to go to a bricks and mortar store to buy a product; now the consumer
can shop from their iPhones or their iPads. Today, few consumers learn about products
from traditional media; now they can see ads on Facebook, YouTube and on apps their cell
phones have as well. Researchers should take advantage of examining consumers’
attitudes toward the media platform used for exposure to a product in advertisement and
how the media platform used impacts purchase intent.

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Further reading
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Corresponding author
Karla McCormick can be contacted at: krenton@fsu.edu

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