Effect of celebrity endorsement on tourists' perception of corporate image, corporate credibility and corporate loyalty

This study explores the effectiveness of using Korean celebrities to endorse a Korean hotel in the Japanese market. Specifically, Japanese tourists' perception of the hotel's corporate image and corporate credibility were tested along with corporate loyalty. This study found that trust in celebrity endorsers by consumers is transferable to perceptions of image of the hotel, its credibility and loyalty to the hotel. Structural equation modeling was used to explain difference in the relationships between constructs that identified the effectiveness of each celebrity. One important finding was that specific celebrity endorsers may not appeal to the entire target market and for this reason more than one endorser may be required to promote a product. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.