LeBron James is breaking up with McDonald\'s Corp. The basketball star is ditchi

Question

LeBron James is breaking up with McDonald's Corp. The basketball star is ditching the fast-food giant in favor of a role as "brand ambassador" at upstart chain Blaze Pizza -- part of a growing trend of elite athletes and entertainers who don't want to be just pitchmen any more. Blaze, one of several fast-growing chains vying to be the so-called Chipotle of pizza, expects to finish 2015 with about 110 restaurants and just over $100 million in revenue. James, a four-time National Basketball Association most valuable player, has been an investor in Blaze since 2012, and now has the opportunity to use his immense star power to put a chain that most Americans have never heard of squarely on the map.

There was a time when a star as big as James would have stuck with large, deep-pocketed companies like Nike Inc., PepsiCo Inc. and McDonald's, and plenty still do. But by casting his lot with Blaze, James can also boost the value of the equity investment. And because he has a financial stake, he may be an even more effective spokesman, said Allen Adamson, North American chairman of the branding firm Landor Associates. "He's just not selling out to get a paycheck," he said. "Consumers are skeptical unless they believe that the celebrity actually uses the product and is invested in the brand."

Prominent athletes can use their star power, particularly on social media, to shape the companies they back, said David Carter, executive director of the Marshall Sports Business Institute at the University of Southern California. And they're more willing to pass up endorsement cash to gamble on a long- term payoff, he said. "A guy like LeBron can move the needle with a company like that," Carter said. "He's a powerful brand ambassador and he has the megaphone of social media. That's a dramatic shift."

LeBron has at least a 10 percent stake in Blaze, according to a person familiar with the situation who asked not to be named because the information isn't public. He's also a partner in a franchise group that holds the rights to develop Blaze restaurants in Chicago and South Florida, according to Jim Mizes, the chief operating officer of the pizza chain.

"LeBron believes strongly in the company and where it is going and was ready to double down," Maverick Carter, James's business partner, said in an e-mail. "He wanted to invest the value of his endorsement into a company he owned."

#1 question. There are many ways in which sources can influence consumers, including through credibility, attractiveness, and power. Which of these characteristics does LeBron James possess as a spokesperson for Blaze Pizza? Choose only one of these characteristics for your answer and make sure to explain your choice.

Explanation / Answer

Here in this case LeBron James is using the “Attractiveness” as a source to influence consumer as a spokesperson for Blaze Pizza. Attractiveness is basically pulling and appealing the customers.

LeBron James had already been popular brand ambassadors of recognised brand such as Nike Inc., PepsiCo, and McDonalds. This gives him opportunity to attract all his loyal customers to get attached with his new brand Blaze Pizza, in which he is supposed to have 10% of stake. In this scenario the customers develop trust and faith on the celebrity as they think the celebrity himself/herself using the particular product and consider that particular brand as the best because their influencers have capitalized in it.

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