Celebrity spokespersons have long been a tradition in advertising and public relations campaigns. Many pairings of stars and products, like Joe DiMaggio + Mr. Coffee, Lou Rawls + Budweiser, Anita Bryant + Florida Orange Juice (for those of us over 50) or Michael Jordan + Hanes, U 2 + iPod, Marie Osmond + NutriSystems for those of you younger.
But today, has Eva Longoria been with L’Oreal long enough to be id’d with the brand? Why was Catherine Zeta-Jones dropped and then brought back as T-Mobile’s spokesperson? U 2 just showed up on TV pushing Blackberry; so long Steve Jobs?
A recent Brandweek.com story by Mark Dolliver says, “The assumption is that consumers are endlessly fascinated with celebs' doings. And many marketers must share that assumption, given their propensity for populating ads with celebrities who may or may not have any plausible connection with the brand that's being sold. Does the presence of a celebrity in an ad actually make it more effective with consumers?”
The story reports on a poll for AdweekMedia among members of LinkedIn. A stunning 78 percent said the celebrity endorsement had no impact on their purchase of a product or service, 12 percent said it actually had a negative impact and only eight percent replied that a celebrity could influence their purchasing decisions.
You’ll need to use your own analytics to decide if people were telling the truth. Many of us are loathe to admit “glamour” can help drive us to pick one car, make-up or beer brand over another.
Bottom line is this: If you are considering using a celebrity endorser, do some testing in advance to make sure it is worth the investment. Spending money on basic “blocking and tackling” marketing and public relations tactics may have a bigger sales impact in the long run.
Unless, of course, you have a chance to work with Catherine Zeta Jones…
