Research highlights strategies for transforming celebrity aura into credibility for a cause of general interest. So, do these opinion leaders allow associations to collect more donations? To influence our impulses of generosity? Explanations in graphics.
Celebrities, and more recently influencers, no longer just entertain: they guide our choices. From the brands we buy, to the positions we take on ethical issues, their imprint is everywhere. They establish themselves as real sources of information for consumers.
Their influence does not stop at consumer decisions. Actors, comedians and streamers shape our impulses of generosity and the causes we choose to support. Many personalities highlight their charitable commitment: Pierre Garnier with Imagine for Margo, Florence Foresti with the Women’s Foundation or even Omar Sy with Restaurants du coeur. On the influencer side, the ZEvent 2025 made an impression: in three days of marathon on Twitch, more than 16.2 million euros were raised thanks to figures like ZeratoR, Kameto or Baghera Jones.
To better understand these mechanisms, we conducted a series of studies to understand whether the aura of celebrities provided credibility towards the cause to be supported. Concretely, we presented several personalities, ambassadors of a cause, to consumers and analyzed whether they had a positive impact on the credibility of causes of general interest.
Transform aura into credibility
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Our first, intuitive study consists of choosing a personality whose story is directly linked to the cause. For example, figures such as Selena Gomez and Lady Gaga can be credible ambassadors for youth mental health causes, given the trauma they experienced in their youth. The same goes for Emma Watson‘s fight for gender equality, reinforced by her experience of the treatment of young women and teenage girls in the film industry.
The second study is based on what researchers call meaning transfer. In this process, symbols associated with a person are transferred to a product, brand or organization. In this way, a personality can bring their cultural aura, their universe or their symbolic values to a cause, even without an apparent direct link.
When notoriety becomes expertise
In a study with 200 respondents, we tested the impact of the attractiveness of the ambassador personality on their level of perceived credibility towards the cause and the number of donations generated.
To this end, we informed study participants that tennis player Andy Muray was the new ambassador for “Let’s Green Up!” », a fictitious NGO. In a first group, we described the tennis player, emphasizing his attractiveness and his aura. In a second group, we presented a more neutral description of the athlete. We then measured the perceived credibility of the personality through statements such as “This influencer is a reliable source of information” or “I can trust this person”.
Respondents finally had the opportunity to make a donation to the proposed NGO. The results are unanimous: the presence of this aura is an essential condition for the success of fundraising campaigns. It increases the chance of making a donation from 43% to 54%.
A past that gives weight
Beyond their aura, some celebrities strengthen their credibility by highlighting a personal connection with the cause they support. When Mika gets involved with associations helping Lebanon, his message gains strength, because it underlines his attachment to this country of origin.
To test this hypothesis, we carried out a second study with 402 respondents. The latter could support a cause associated with a personality, by varying the type of cause and the personality. To do this, we compared the effectiveness of the ad when the cause is supported by Leonardo DiCaprio, a celebrity known for his aura, and Greta Thunberg, better known for her activism. We first compared groups where these personalities supported a campaign for ecology, linked to the past of the two celebrities, and another campaign supporting access to education. We then measured the credibility of the ambassador personality.
When this connection is highlighted, the credibility of the celebrity or influencer towards the cause therefore increases further.
The power of symbolic transfer
Even when they have no direct link to a cause, celebrities can give it credibility by associating their symbolic universe with it. A comedian who lends his image to a solidarity campaign, or a pop singer who supports medical research, is not necessarily an expert on the subject. This transfer of meaning, presented above, allows associations to reach the public indirectly, by capitalizing on the cultural image of the personality.
We carried out a third study with 400 respondents. The idea: invite participants to support an association for ecology. In one group, the personality ambassador is Keanu Reeves and in the other, Eminem. We were able to establish beforehand that Eminem demonstrated greater symbolic capital than Keanu Reeves. In both cases, we varied the attractiveness and aura of the ambassador personality by presenting it in a favorable or neutral posture.
The results show that a personality with higher symbolic capital, like Eminem, is perceived as being more credible, which increases their ability to generate a surge of generosity.
