Advertising property or agents? : a case in the local real estate business

Abstract

Purpose- This dissertation explores the use of real estate agents’ face as well as the concept of physical attractiveness and their relevance for the advertising practices in the real estate business. It aims to study the influence of a face and the level of physical attractiveness on the purchasing intentions of the potential property buyers as well as on their perception of credibility. Design/ methodology/ approach- Three self-administered questionnaires with dummy adverts were presented to independent groups of female respondents. Consequently, responses and reactions in terms of purchasing intentions, perception of endorser, corporate and advertising credibility were observed and analysed. Findings- The results showed that in the scenario female received- male endorser, the use of real estate agents’ face and the level of physical attractiveness had no significant influence except in the case of advert credibility, which was found to be influenced by the presence of a picture of the real estate representative. Research limitations/implications- The experimental nature of the research and the limited sample size restricted the generalisability of the results. The study focused only on female respondents exposed to male expert endorsers, not exploring any potential differences in behaviour across genders or in the case of other types of endorsement. Furthermore, respondents were presented with just one product option, leaving other product types and options unexplored. Last but not least, customers were not exposed to real life adverts, which could have also influenced the responses. Practical implications- The study is of practical use for real estate advertisers as it shows that customers would like to see who is “physically” behind the real estate service, put a face to it, irrespective of the level of attractiveness. Hence, the study can serve as a guide for improving advertising strategies and practices in the real estate business.