Understanding Bad-Boy Celebrity Endorser Effectiveness: The Fantasy-Based Relationship, Hedonic Consumption, and Congruency Model

Current theories of source persuasion and endorser credibility posit that celebrities become ineffective endorsers when they have been involved in a scandal. However, little attention has been given to the success of “bad-boy” celebrities, endorsers who thrive in spite of, if not because of, their association with negative information. In this conceptual article, we propose a new fantasy-based relationship, hedonic consumption, and congruency (FHC) model to provide insight into the effectiveness of bad-boy celebrity endorsers. According to this model, relationships with a bad-boy celebrity are formed via consumption of the celebrity’s narratives through the consumers’ use of books, magazines, movies, music, social media, television shows, or other forms of media. This view of celebrity endorsements suggests that consumers relate to bad boys through fantasy-based relationships, which allow consumers to escape from the stress of their everyday lives. Hence, a celebrity’s scandal, when congruent with the fantasy, can add to the fantasy escape and enhance the fantasy-based celebrity relationship. This fantasy-based relationship is then relived and revitalized through hedonic consumption of the endorsed product. Our model provides a new perspective on factors that influence source persuasion and insight into the effectiveness of bad-boy endorsers. Areas for future research are also proposed.