Article Critique – The Effectiveness of Celebrities in Conservation Marketing

Article Critique – The Effectiveness of Celebrities in Conservation Marketing

The article explores the utilization of celebrities in the marketing and fundraising efforts of UK conservation and humanitarian organizations, shedding light on the complex relationship between celebrities and these sectors. Employing a mixed-methods approach, the study provides insights into the prevalence, effectiveness, and challenges of celebrity endorsements. It underscores that all the organizations surveyed utilize celebrities to varying degrees in their marketing and fundraising activities, emphasizing the perceived value of celebrity endorsements (Jun et al., 2023). However, the study reveals that these organizations lack formal strategies for developing and maintaining celebrity partnerships, often engaging with celebrities opportunistically. The study finds that celebrities enhance willingness-to-engage (WTE) among the public, indicating their potential to motivate involvement in conservation and humanitarian causes (Duthie et al., 2017). However, the effectiveness of celebrity endorsements is nuanced. Respondents’ WTE is significantly influenced by their beliefs about the celebrities featured in the advertisements. Those who believe other people are influenced by the celebrity’s support display higher WTE, emphasizing the importance of perceived credibility and influence in celebrity endorsements.

Moreover, the article examines why respondents choose one celebrity over another. Factors such as the celebrity’s perceived caring nature, knowledge about the issue, and authenticity of their support play a pivotal role in preferences. An interesting revelation is the negative impact of celebrity endorsements on message recall. Respondents were less likely to remember the content of an advertisement featuring a celebrity than if it featured the control (Duthie et al., 2017). This suggests that celebrities’ pre-existing associations with multiple causes may overshadow a campaign’s message (Freire et al., 2018). One weakness of the article is its limited generalizability. The study primarily focuses on UK conservation and humanitarian organizations. While it provides valuable insights into the practices and perceptions within these specific sectors, it may not fully represent the broader global context. The effectiveness of celebrity endorsements can vary significantly across different countries and cultures, and this study’s findings might not be directly applicable to organizations operating in other regions or with different target demographics.

In summary, the article significantly contributes to the field of celebrity endorsements for social causes. It offers valuable insights for organizations seeking to optimize their celebrity endorsement strategies and presents a nuanced understanding of the role of celebrities in social campaigns. It is a compelling read for practitioners and researchers interested in the impact of celebrities on public engagement in social causes.

References

Duthie, E., Veríssimo, D., Keane, A., & Knight, A. T. (2017). The effectiveness of celebrities in conservation marketing. PLOS ONE, 12(7), e0180027. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0180027

Freire, O., Quevedo-Silva, F., Senise, D., & Scrivano, P. (2018). The effectiveness of celebrity endorsement in aspiring new celebrities. RAUSP Management Journal, 53(3), 289–303. https://doi.org/10.1108/rausp-04-2018-011

Jun, M., Han, J., Zhou, Z., & Eisingerich, A. B. (2023). When is celebrity endorsement effective? Exploring the role of celebrity endorsers in enhancing key brand associations. Journal of business research, 164, 113951. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.113951

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https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0180027

Write a 250-word article review using the article link above. Two peer-reviewed articles were dated from 2007 or later. Please reference those articles in the paper.