The Value of Celebrity in Marketing

Many marketers choose to tap an existing celebrity to represent their brand, such as Toyota tapping the famous Kaley Cuoco to be their RAV4 Genie. Other marketers choose to create their own celebrity, such as T-Mobile hiring an unknown model, Carly Foulkes, and turning her into a popular sex symbol.

As a differentiating value, Celebrity means fame; a widely known person.  A celebrity can be a powerful force for marketers. They also bring some serious challenges.

Marketing Questions:

• Is engaging a celebrity the best strategy for building your brand, at this time?
• Have you outlined the objectives you expect your celebrity to achieve for your brand?
• Your competitors will look to exploit any negativity they can find about your selected celebrity. How will you respond, if attacked?
• Are there clear win-win agreements between the brand and your selected celebrity?
• What incentives exist for your celebrity to add maximum value to your brand?
• What is the planned lifespan of linking a celebrity with your brand?
• If your brand is hit with a serious PR crisis, will your celebrity be seen as a positive or negative force?
• What if your selected celebrity creates a credibility issue? How will you manage this?
• What’s the plan for removing the link between your brand and celebrity? How fast can this happen, if/when it becomes necessary?
• With fame comes power. Who controls this power?

How can the value of celebrity help you create competitive advantage?

 

Today’s value was selected from the “Fun-Recreation” category, based on the e-book Developing Your Differentiating Values.