CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENT AND LOCAL GOVERNANCE: A STUDY OF NUTRACEUTICAL SECTOR'S INFLUENCE ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOR

Abstract

The nutraceutical industry has been experiencing explosive growth with increase in health awareness and the way of life of the consumer. In this regard, celebrity endorsements have become an effective marketing device that creates promising perception, trust and purchase behaviors of consumers. At the same time, a local governance program through various regulatory measures, health campaigns, and public awareness is important in influencing consumer practice by making sure the products used are safe, and that they lead to informed consumer decision making. This paper examines how the influence of celebrity endorsement and local government influence the shopping trends of consumers in the sphere of nutraceuticals. Adopting a mixed-methodology approach, structured questionnaires and interviews were placed to consumers in urban and semi-urban areas with the help of secondary information in industry reports and publications by regulators. The results indicate that local governance actions and celebrity endorsements have a strong positive effect on brand recognition and perceived product efficacy as well as on consumer confidence and promotion of ethical consumption. The paper demonstrates the relationship between marketing practices and regulatory policies in influencing the consumption decision of people and what marketers, policy-makers and players in the industry can do to maximize marketing communication and regulatory processes to ensure sustainable development in the area of nutraceuticals.