Each year, marketers spend a huge part of their budget on advertising. Hiring endorsers to represent a brand remains a very popular advertising strategy. Some advertisers believe that hiring celebrity spokespersons will result to higher sales as compared to hiring anonymous models. However, some theories like the Source Credibility Model and the Elaboration Likelihood Model state that endorsers who are perceived to be credible will yield higher brand recall and would have a more positive influence on consumer’s attitudes and behavior. Since hiring spokespersons remains an important decision, this study was conducted to make a contribution to Filipino managers and advertisers by examining the influences of endorser type (celebrity and anonymous) and endorser credibility on consumer’s attitude and purchase intentions. It also investigates the moderating effects of culture as measured through Hofstede’s cultural dimensions; Collectivism and Power Distance, to the relationship between the endorser and attitude towards the advertisement.
This study conducted an experiment and employed the 2x2 research design. The 2 independent variables were endorser type and endorser credibility. The results showed that Filipino consumers had more positive attitudes and had higher purchase intentions towards advertisements featuring celebrities. It also showed that the qualities under endorser credibility that significantly influenced attitude towards the advertisement and purchase intentions were Experienced, Knowledgeable, Qualified, and Trustworthy. In addition, Collectivism and Power Distance were shown to moderate the relationship between Endorser Type and Attitude towards the Advertisement, and Endorser Credibility and Attitude towards the Advertisement respectively.
The research outcome supports previous literature which state that celebrities have the ability to generate more purchase intentions and more positive attitudes towards a brand. However, managers and advertisers should also consider the results of other researches that yielded different results when deciding on which endorser to hire.

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