Who’s bigger? Brand or celebrity?

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In the advertising world, celebrity advertising is seen as a substitute for ‘absence of ideas’, and is frowned upon. Most frequently, celebrities are given as mandates to the agency. And scripts are written around them. What clients and agencies forget is that if the celebrity is not integral to the brand and the storyline, he/she can stick out like a sore thumb, leaving negative impact on the consumer’s mind. The oldest reason for using stars in commercials is that it builds credibility for the brand. But does the consumer really believe that Shahrukh drives a Santro?

Research conducted by Subhash Kamath of Bates in India that tracked consumer opinion on the ‘relevance and effectiveness of celebrity advertising in building brands’, urged brands to focus on ideas. Concluding that ideas, and not celebrities, build brands, the study identified the optimum celebrity ‘fits’ and the cases where celebrities overshadowed brand-building performance. Whatever the reasons, the reality is that celebrities can—and do—play a role in building brands. However, there are factors that brand marketers need to bear in mind while choosing an ambassador:

Personality: It is critical that the personality of the celebrity must match with that of the brand. For instance, Thums Up has action-star Akshay Kumar performing death-defying stunts, which is a perfect fit between personalities of the brand and the star.

Values & emotions: Preity Zinta, known for her bold and courageous nature, endorsing the Red & White Bravery Awar-ds is a perfect example of synergy in the values of the brand and the ambassador.

Code of conduct: If a celebrity reputed for having not-so-positive reputation is roped in to endorse a no-mischief product (like say Rakhi Sawant for a financial product), it’s sure to spell doom for the brand.

Creative execution: Creative teams would do well to remember that it is the star who is endorsing a product and not vice versa.

Finally, making the right choices in terms of personality, values, associated emotions, code of conduct and creative execution is critical. A wrong choice could be suicidal for the brand. Behaviour, performance and reputation, are critical.