Meaning Transfer Model is a theory from consumer research which says that cultural meaning moves from the culturally constituted world to consumer goods, and then from those goods to the individual consumer [1]. McCracken’s later work applied it to celebrity endorsement: an endorser carries meanings, and an endorsement moves some of them onto the brand [2].
Key points
- Meaning travels in a path: world, then goods, then consumer. Advertising, the fashion system and consumption rituals are the instruments of that movement [1].
- In endorsement, the celebrity is the source of meaning and the brand is the receiver [2].
- Experiments support transfer from a celebrity to a brand at the individual level [2].
- Meanings can be positive or negative. A brave celebrity makes a brand look braver, a crazy one makes it look crazier [3].
- Consumers use the meaning they take from a celebrity to build their own self-concept [4].
Origin
Grant McCracken, a consumer researcher, set out the theory in 1986 in the Journal of Consumer Research. His article analysed where cultural meaning lives in the consumer system and how it is moved from one place to another [1]. In 1989 he applied the idea to the question of who the celebrity endorser is and what the endorsement process rests on [5]. Later researchers describe this as the meaning transfer model for celebrity spokespersons, an alternative to source models from communication research that focus on explicit persuasive messages [2].
How it works in sports media
An athlete is a person whose story, style and image are shown in public every week. When a brand pairs itself with that athlete, the model expects some of those meanings to attach to the brand, and from the brand to the people who buy it [2]. The same logic applies to a team, a league or a sports event used as a brand partner, although the studies cited here test celebrities in general, not sports figures in particular.
The transfer is not automatic. It is stronger when a lesser-known brand is associated with a celebrity through co-branding, and this pattern did not hold for well-known brands [3]. The fit between brand and celebrity also matters. Endorsement strengthens consumers’ self-brand connections when they aspire to be like the celebrity, and harms them when they do not [4].
Examples
In an online experiment, celebrity traits such as “brave” or “crazy” were attached to brands, and changes in brand belief and attitude followed the valence of the traits [3]. In another set of experiments, well-known brands were paired with well-known celebrities, and the results supported McCracken’s axiom that meaning moves from the celebrity to the brand [2]. For how athletes act as brands on this site, see the articles below.
Common questions
Who created the Meaning Transfer Model?
Grant McCracken, in the Journal of Consumer Research: the general theory in 1986 [1] and the celebrity endorsement version in 1989 [5].
Does meaning only transfer in a good direction?
No. Research finds that negative associations are transferred as well as positive ones, and brand attitudes change in line with the valence of the celebrity’s traits [3].
Does it work the same for every brand?
No. In one experiment the effect was stronger for lesser-known brands joined with a celebrity through co-branding, and did not hold for well-known brands [3].
Related terms
- Athlete endorsement — the deal in which meaning is moved from athlete to brand
- Sports celebrity — the kind of figure that carries the meanings
- Influencer athlete — an athlete whose public persona works as a channel to consumers
- Athlete’s brand — the meanings an athlete builds around themselves
- Sports sponsorship — a related way for brands to borrow sport’s meanings
- Brand equity in sports — the value that borrowed meaning can add to a brand
Read more on Play of Values
- Value of influencer athletes
- Marketable athletes over winning
- Athlete relationships with mainstream celebrities
- Sports marketing history
Sources
- McCracken, G. (1986). Culture and consumption: A theoretical account of the structure and movement of the cultural meaning of consumer goods. Journal of Consumer Research, 13(1), 71–84. https://doi.org/10.1086/209048
- Miller, F. M., & Allen, C. T. (2012). How does celebrity meaning transfer? Investigating the process of meaning transfer with celebrity affiliates and mature brands. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 22(3), 443–452. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2011.11.001
- Tian, Y., Tao, W., Hong, C., & Tsai, W.-H. S. (2022). Meaning transfer in celebrity endorsement and co-branding: Meaning valence, association type, and brand awareness. International Journal of Advertising, 41(6), 1017–1037. https://doi.org/10.1080/02650487.2021.1940059
- Escalas, J. E., & Bettman, J. R. (2015). Managing brand meaning through celebrity endorsement. In Brand Meaning Management (pp. 29–52). Emerald. https://doi.org/10.1108/s1548-643520150000012002
- McCracken, G. (1989). Who is the celebrity endorser? Cultural foundations of the endorsement process. Journal of Consumer Research, 16(3), 310–321. https://doi.org/10.1086/209217