Most consumers say celebrity endorsements have no impact on their buying decisions and do not believe that celebrities or influencers really use the merchandise they promote, according to an opinion survey by the National Institute of Development Administration.
The Nida Poll – in the wake of the iCon scam – was conducted by telephone interviews on Oct 15-16 with 1,310 people aged 18 and over of various levels of education, incomes and occupations nationwide to gauge their opinions on “who will protect consumers?”
Asked how much impact celebrity endorsements have on their buying decisions, 42.21% of the respondents said no impact at all, 22.98% said they had a great impact on them, 19.01% a moderate impact and 0.31% did not know or were not interested.
Asked if they believed that celebrities or influencers really used the products they endorsed, the answers were as follows:
52.29% thought they never truly used those products
22.98% thought they used them sometimes
20.53% thought they only used the merchandise at the time they presented the products
3.89% believed they really used the goods in real life
0.31% did not know or were not interested
When asked about what they thought of advertisements that offer several giveaways and/or a lot of discounts, the answers varied as follows:
34.12% said they would suspect the products were of low quality
30.23% saw the method simply as a marketing technique
23.89% would not buy the products with such an offer
19.24% thought that the actual cost of the products must be very cheap
17.94% believed the products might be near their expiry dates
8.63% would compare the price with similar products before buying
7.02% would buy to see if the products were any good
4.27% would buy immediately if they were products for everyday use
2.14% would buy immediately even though they had never used those products
0.38% did not know or were not interested
Lastly, when asked who or which agency the respondents think would provide the fastest help in case of unfair trading practices or deception regarding investments or purchases, the answers were as follows:
24.81% said they would seek help from the press
23.05% police stations
15.88% celebrity volunteers/ social media activists/ public figures
15.80% Office of the Consumer Protection Board (OCPB)
15.80% said they would not file a complaint to anyone
1.91% celebrity lawyers
1.45% state agencies (excluding OCPB)
0.92% NGOs
0.07% politicians
0.31% did not know or were not interested
