Jul 12 2009
The Use of Celebrity Endorsements in Marketing
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By Mrs. Killeen Gonzalez
This article will attempt to discuss the use of celebrity endorsements in marketing. We will touch upon the assorted theories of why they are used, how they are used, as well as some of the advantages and disadvantages of their use.
In part, the reasoning behind celebrity endorsements harkens back to the principal that humans are by nature social creatures. We all, even at a very young age, take cues about how to behave by both observing the actions of and striving to please those whose opinions we value. These people we seek to please and imitate are known in many disciplines as “reference groups”. It has been found that reference groups exert either a normative or comparative influence on a person.
Normative influences involve setting and enforcing standards of conduct whereas comparative influences involve decision making about specific activities and or branding choices. In addition, normative influences tend to come from small informal groups like our families whereas comparative influences tend to come from larger more formal groups. An example of comparative influences at play is when a teenager pleads with his parent that he just has to have a new iphone because all his friends have one.
Another widespread application of the power of reference groups is affinity marketing. This strategy allows consumers to underscore their identification with a celebrity or organization by attaching aspects of the group’s identification to their own personal life. Examples of an affinity marketing strategy being used are the bank issued credit cards which are tied to either a membership or symbolic group, such as a credit card that ties into membership with the Worldwide Wildlife Fund.
The use of celebrity endorsements is a popular way to differentiate among similar products when consumers do not perceive many actual differences among the products competitive set as well as during the mature stage of the product’s life cycle. An example of celebrity endorsements used in this way can be seen by examining recent ads from both Pepsi and Coca-Cola. Both have seemingly run out of things to say about their products so they rely heavily on celebrity endorsements.
Celebrity endorsements can come from either direct endorsements (on-site placements, spokespeople) or indirectly via creative placement such as Reese’s Pieces candy in the blockbuster movie E.T.
There are a variety of methods used to assess a celebrities marketing value, like the “Q” rating. “Q” rating is a widely used marketing technique to pre-qualify a celebrity’s eligibility for product endorsement. This technique takes into consideration the consumers’ levels of both familiarity and favorability with the celebrity in question.
The effectiveness of celebrities as spokespeople often depends on whether they are credible, attractive or both as well as what they are famous for.
Not all consumers trust a celebrity’s motives for endorsing a product or they may question the celebrity’s ability to effectively evaluate the product itself. Credibility can be enhanced if the source’s qualifications are perceived as somehow relevant to the product being endorsed. Like in the case of master golfer Tiger Woods endorsing a certain brand of golf balls.
To be credible the celebrity also has to show that their knowledge of the product or topic is accurate. If the celebrity falters in their display of the topic or product knowledge it can have a serious negative impact. A recent example of this is Alaskan Governor Sara Palin’s 2008 Vice Presidential campaign. Palin’s marketing team was trying to position her as being knowledgeable about world affairs. Her much covered statement about knowing about Russian politics because she could “see Russia from her house” did nothing to help her credibility.
A celebrity’s lack of credibility is referred to in marketing as the credibility gap. Two classic examples of credibility gap that occurred between the celebrity endorsing the product and the product itself are when Michael Jackson endorsed drinking Pepsi when he admittedly did not drink it his self and when actress Cybill Sheppard publically endorsed beef consumption when she was privately a Vegan. This kind of credibility gap can not only hurt the image of the product being advertised but the image of the celebrity as well.
To avoid credibility gaps some companies employ animated characters as spokespeople. This too can be as effective as the use of a human or animal celebrity. Some examples of effective uses of animated characters would be the California Raisins, Count Chocula, Toucan Sam, Geico Gecko and the Jolly Green Giant. When discussing animated characters it should also be stated that myths are also embodied in many aspects of those types of commercials. Certain figures such as Comic book super heroes being used as celebrity endorsers plays upon people’s love of myths. Some comic book characters are actually considered mono-myths. A mono-myth is a myth that is common to many cultures such as Superman. Superman is seen as a messianic figure that resists evil temptations and restores harmony to the world. Therefore, a product that would want to create that kind of image for it self would employ a Superman like figure as its’ spokesperson.
A spokesperson’s attractiveness is tied to his or her perceived social value. It should be noted that different cultures tend to vary in their definition of what is “beautiful”. Even so, many societies tend to place a very high premium on physical attractiveness. “Beautiful people” are often seen as better than everyone else. Marketers refer to this principal as the halo effect. But are these “beautiful people” truly ads effective?
Not necessarily so. Though it is true that an ad with a “beautiful” spokesperson may be looked at more often, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the ad is read more often or that the ad’s message is more readily recalled and acted upon. The effectiveness of highly attractive spokespeople in ads appears to be largely limited to those situations wherein the advertised product is overtly related to attractiveness or sexuality. Under the right circumstances however, a spokespersons level of attractiveness can function as a source of information that serves as a catalyst to change consumer behavior. An example of this would be a “beautiful” actress selling make-up that she claims to actually use herself.
It is generally imperative that the celebrity have a clear and popular image. Consumers often like to publicize their connections with celebrities or organizations to enhance their own standing among their reference groups. If there is any doubt about America’s love of celebrities all you have to do is look at the number of active fan clubs in the U.S. There are over 1,200 fan clubs all whose sole purpose is to show their devotion to an individual.
Celebrities are often idolized to the point where they become set apart from the masses. They in essence become almost sacred and their fans will do almost anything to have a piece of them. Hence the popularity of celebrity auctions, celebrity impersonators and celebrity memorabilia. Within this concept of idolization is the notion of Para-social interaction. Para-social interaction is when people actively relate to television and movie stars so much so that they seek to vicariously experience and emulate the different lifestyles portrayed by their idols. Para-social interaction can quickly accelerate into obsession as seen by the countless accounts of overzealous fans stalking or even killing their idols.
The idea that people want to create a perceived link between themselves and a celebrity who is positively valued by society is sometimes called balance theory. Balance theory works in conjunction with congruity theory which essentially states the same thing.
The principals of congruity theory are often used by marketers to address how attitudes are affected when a celebrity is linked with a product. The theory states that the value of the more negatively valued element will rise when linked to a positively valued one such as a favorite celebrity. It is important to note that this relationship between positive and negative elements is reciprocal. The positive rating can also be diminished by its’ association with the negative element. An example would be an instance wherein the celebrity is endorsing something that the public perceives as counter-culture to his or her image either directly or indirectly. For instance the recent news coverage of singers Chris Brown and Rhianna’s public display of physical abuse had a negative effect on their image and thus caused several companies to dismiss Brown as their celebrity spokesperson. Another example is when Pepsi used the self-proclaimed “King of Pop” in their ads. Market researchers at Pepsi later discovered that the King’s image did not appeal to their 25 to 45 year old African American demographic who interpreted his excessive use of plastic surgery and eccentric behaviors negatively. Instead of boosting Pepsi’s image, the use of Jackson actually decreased Pepsi’s image in the eyes of certain target market segements.
There is however an exception to the rule that celebrities serving as spokespeople must be well-liked. There are times when people who are obnoxious and down-right aggravating can be effective pitch people. This exception takes into consideration what is known as the sleeper effect. The sleeper effect states that in instances where consumers’ differences in attitudes waiver between positive and negative, certain negative differences seem to get erased overtime. Examples of the sleeper effect at work can be seen in ads that featured the annoying Wendy’s “Where’s The Beef” spokesperson “Clara” and the equally annoying “Mr. Whipple” chastising his grocery store patrons with his patented phrase “Don’t squeeze the Charmin”.
Some celebrities are effective as spokespeople because they are perceived to have what is called social power. Someone with social power is said to have the capacity to alter the actions of others. It is a theory that runs in tandem with both balance and congruity theory. The idea of a spokesperson having social power is one of the primary reasons that marketers use celebrity endorsements.
There are several dimensions of social power and classifications of power bases. Examples of the various power bases are; referent, information, legitimate, expert, reward and coercive.
Though there are several different power bases, the power base of celebrity endorsements tends to fall in the referent arena. It is believed that people with a referent power base can cause a consumer to try and imitate them through their buying decisions. The theory states that because Michael Jordan is believed to have referent power over those basketball players who aspire to be like him, those “aspiring fans” will in turn be more apt to buy Air Jordan sneakers.
In summary there are many theories, techniques, advantages and disadvantages when it comes to the use of celebrity endorsements in marketing strategy. In the end the basic things that make a celebrity endorsement work are the celebrity’s perceived credibility, attractiveness and overall “star power”. They are also the very same things that can make a celebrity endorsement fail. With that said marketers must use caution and remain ever vigilant to the changes in public opinion when using celebrity endorsements. For more information on this or other business related topics consult your local marketing professional.
