Thakur College of Science and Commerce

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"#O$%CT #%"O#T ON
&C%'%(#IT) %N*O#S%+%NT,
Su-mitted for the .artial fulfillment of *egree of
(/+/S/
(0
-hi1it h0a
T/)/ (/+/S/ (Sem 2!
(3ni4er5it0 Seat No:6816!
3N*%# T7% 83I*NC% O9
*r/ ("rof/! #icha $ain

2
DECLARATION
I, Abhijit Ahya student of Thakur College of Science
and Commerce of TYBMS (SEM V), here! declare that I
ha"e com#leted this #ro$ect on Celebrity Endorsement in
the academic !ear 2%&2'&() The information sumitted here
is true and original to the est of m! kno*ledge)


________________
Signature of
Student
(
CERTIFICATE
I, Dr. Pro. Ri!ha "ain, here! certif! that Abhijit
Ahya, student of Thakur College of Science and Commerce,
of TYBMS (SEM V), has com#leted a #ro$ect on Celebrity
Endorsement in the academic !ear 2%&2'&( under m!
guidance) The information sumitted is true and original to
the est of m! kno*ledge)
__________ __________
Signature of Signature of
Principal Project Guide
__________ __________
Signature of Signature of
External Examiner BMS Co-ordinator
+
AC#NO$LED%E&ENT
,irst I *ould like to thank the Mumai -ni"ersit! for #ro"iding the #ro$ect
section as a #art of BMS curriculum)
This #ro$ect is the lessing of man! #eo#le *ho ha"e su##orted me through this) I
*ould heartil! thank Dr. Ri!ha "ain for eing m! soul guide throughout the #ro$ect)
I *ould also like to thank famil! memers and colleagues *ho *ere there *ith me
throughout the *orking of the #ro$ect)
This #ro$ect re.uired a lot of research *ork and sur"e!s to e carried out *hich
*ouldn/t ha"e een #ossile *ithout m! friends, so I *ould like to thank them also for
#ro"iding me a hel#ing hand)
0ast ut not the least I *ould thank the 1lmight! for al*a!s eing *ith me)
2
CONTENT'
'R NO TOPIC PA%E NO
&) Im#ortance of Celerit! 1d"ertisement 345
2) Celerit! 1d"ertising is a Minefield or a
6oldfield
&%
() Celerit! Endorsement 4 Introduction &&''&5
+) 7h! Celerit! Endorsement might not
*ork888
2%'29
2) Celerit! Endorsement 4 :oes it cloud the
#roduct ;romise
23
<) :ifferent Blokes for :ifferent ,olks 25'(2
9) :oes Celerit! Endorsement reall!
*orks888
(('(+
3) Im#act of Celerit! Endorsement on o"erall
Brand
(2'+%
5) India/s To# Marketing Tool +&'+2
&%) Celerit! Endorsement 4 1 :oule Edged
S*ord
+<'+3
&&) Endorsements ! Cricketers +5'2(
&2) Celerit! ;roduct ;lacement = 1 ;rimer 2+'<%
&() Case Stud! 4 The Si!aram Celerit!
Endorsement E>#erience
<&'<3
&+) Celerit! Endorsements ? Celerit!
@omances
<5'9%
&2) Sur"e! 9('99
<
&<) Conclusion 93
&9) Biliogra#h! 95
9
I&PORTANCE OF CELE(RIT) AD*ERTI'E&ENT
In general, ad"ertising is used to con"e! a"ailailit! of a A#roductA (*hich can e a
#h!sical #roduct, a ser"ice, or an idea) and to #ro"ide information regarding the #roduct)
This can stimulate demand for the #roduct, one of the main o$ecti"es of ad"ertising)
More s#ecificall!, there are three generic o$ecti"es of ad"ertisements = communicate
information aout a #articular #roduct, ser"ice, or rand (including announcing the
e>istence of the #roduct, *here to #urchase it, and ho* to use it), #ersuade #eo#le to u!
the #roduct, and kee# the organiBation in the #ulic e!e (called institutional ad"ertising))
Most ad"ertising lends elements of all three o$ecti"es) T!#icall! ne* #roducts are
su##orted *ith informati"e and #ersuasi"e ads, *hile mature #roducts use institutional
and #ersuasi"e ads (sometimes called reminder ads)) 1d"ertising fre.uentl! uses
#ersuasi"e a##eals, oth logical and emotional (that is, it is a form of #ro#aganda),
sometimes e"en to the e>clusion of an! #roduct information) More s#ecific o$ecti"es
include increases in short or long term sales, market share, a*areness, #roduct trial, mind
share, rand name recall, #roduct use information, #ositioning or re#ositioning, and
organiBational image im#ro"ement)
E>am#les of the ideas, informati"e or other*ise, that ad"ertising tries to communicate are
product details, benefits and brand information) 1d"ertising usuall! seeks to find a
uni.ue selling #ro#osition (-S;) of an! #roduct and communicate that to the user) This
ma! take the form of a uni.ue #roduct feature or a #ercei"ed enefit) In the face of
increased com#etition *ithin the market due to gro*ing numers of sustitutes there is
more randing occurring in ad"ertising) This randing attriutes a certain #ersonalit! or
re#utation to a rand, termed rand e.uit!, *hich is distincti"e from its com#etition)
6enerall!, rand e.uit! is a measure of the "olume and homogeneit! of, as *ell as
#ositi"e and negati"e characteristics of, indi"idual and cultural ideas associated *ith the
#roduct)
3
Effecti"e ad"ertising *ill stimulate demand for a #roduct and uild rand e.uit! and
rand franchise) 7hen enough rand e.uit! is created that the rand has the ailit! to
dra* u!ers (e"en *ithout further ad"ertising), it is said to ha"e rand franchise) The
ultimate rand franchise is *hen the rand is so #re"alent in #eo#leCs mind (called mind
share), that it is used to descrie the *hole categor! of #roducts) This #henomena is
sometimes kno*n as Ah!#erranding)A Dleene>, for e>am#le, can distinguish itself as a
type of tissue or a lael for a categor! of #roducts) That is, it is fre.uentl! used as a
generic term) Ene of the most successful firms to ha"e achie"ed a dominant rand
franchise is Foo"er, *hose name *as for a "er! long time s!non!mous *ith "acuum
cleaner (and :!son has suse.uentl! managed to achie"e similar status, ha"ing mo"ed
into the Foo"er market *ith a more so#histicated model of "acuum cleaner)) The
strength of a rand franchise can e estalished to a greater or lesser degrees in "arious
markets) In Te>as, for e>am#le, it is common to hear #eo#le refer to any soft drink as a
Coke, regardless of *hether it is actuall! #roduced ! Coca'Cola or not (more accurate
terms *ould e CcolaC or CsodaC))
1d"ertising has ecome #art of the "isual realit! of our times) 7hile 2%s and <%s
ad"ertising tends to react to social and societal trends, theG lifest!le ad"ertisingA of the
5%s sets trends of its o*n) 1s societ! is increasingl! defined in terms of audio'"isual
media and their im#act, ad"ertising increasingl! sha#es the realities of our life)
5
CELE(RIT) AD*ERTI'IN%
I' A &INEFIELD OR A %OLDFIELD
Toda! CCelerit! EndorsementC has attracted immense deate on *hether it reall!
contriutes to the rand uilding #rocess or *hether it is $ust another laB! tool to make
the rand more "isile in the minds of the consumers) 1lthough it has een oser"ed that
the #resence of a *ell'kno*n #ersonalit! hel#s in sol"ing the #rolem of o"er'
communication that is ecoming more #rominent these da!s, there are fe* undesirale
im#acts of this #ractice on the rand) The theories like CSource Crediilit! Theor!, Source
1ttracti"eness Theor! and Meaning Transfer Theor!C #ro"ide a asis on *hich the
methodolog! of celerit! endorsement *orks and also e>#lains ho* the #rocess of the
celerit! endorsement influences the minds of the consumers) ,irms in"est huge amounts
as ad"ertising e>#enditure for hiring the right celerit!) Fo*e"er there lies uncertaint!
*ith res#ect to the returns that the com#an! might e ale to garner for the rand) The
issue of matching the "alues of the celerit! *ith the rand "alues is also "er! im#ortant,
i)e) getting the right celerit! to endorse the right rand) Consumers #ercei"e the rand as
ha"ing su#erior .ualit! ecause it has een endorsed ! a credile source) This makes
endorsement as one of the indictors of .ualit! for an! rand) Cor#orate crediilit! along
*ith endorser crediilit! #la!s a significant role in the attitude of the consumer to*ards
the rand and the ad"ertisement res#ecti"el!)
En the other hand, the o"er #o#ularit! of the celerit! sometimes o"ershado*s the
rand) If the celerit! is in"ol"ed in multi#le endorsements, it tends to create confusion
among consumers and hence negati"el! affects the #erce#tion of the ad"ertisement and
the rand) Fence, to sa! clearl! *hether the #ractice of celerit! endorsement im#acts
#ositi"el! or negati"el! to the rand still remains a deate)
&%
CELE(RIT) ENDOR'E&ENT+ INTROD,CTION
The societ! that *e li"e in can not onl! e called secular or democratic, it should e more
a##ro#riatel! termed as o"er'communicated these da!s) 1 t!#ical su#er'market in -S1
dis#la!s more than &2%%% rands, an 1merican famil! has at least one tele"ision set and a
consumer is e>#osed to around &%%% ads #er da!
&
) 0ike*ise, there are around &(%
tele"ision channels in India roadcasting o"er ( million tele"ision commercials each !ear
in India) The media'e>#losion can thus e easil! demonstrated) More o"er, #eo#le forget
3%H of the information in $ust 2+ hoursI Just imagine the #light of the marketer to make
his rand shout o"er the deafening clutter of all the randsI Some *here in the 3%Cs,
Indian marketers found the solution, -Celebrity Endorsin.- for the randI
,irms endorse celerit! for a "ariet! of reasons) It might e the life e>#erience of the
celerit! that fits the ad"ertising message or the endorserCs high a##eal *ith the firmCs
consumer target grou#) Studies associated *ith the market effect of celerit!
endorsement suggest that consumers #ositi"el! "alue the use of celerit! endorsers in the
ad"ertisements) ,irms in"est significant mone! in #utting together rands and
organiBations *ith endorser .ualities such as attracti"eness, likeailit!, and
trust*orthiness) But toda!Cs d!namic market conditions make these in"estments un"iale)
In this #ro$ect *e are attem#ting to discuss the #ositi"e and negati"e effects of celerit!
endorsement *ith fe* e>am#les) Celerities as #roduct'#romoters are omni#resent in our
media'moulded and e>#erientiall! minded societ!) Celerities stand for .ualit! of
#roducts and #erformanceK the! lure us into s#ending our mone!) 1d"ertising urges the
"ie*er to $udge and choose) It is oth fascinating and unsettling)
7ell'kno*n models, actors and athletes function as e>am#les to emulate, as idols, as Aa
ne* kind of saintsG) The! stand out ! to# #erformance and #resence on TV and in the
#rinted media)
&&
The! are attention'getters in the com#etition among rand names for ne* and saturated
markets) The -S1 is the gloal #acemaker in this race) 7hile celerit! endorsing e>tends
ack into the &5th centur!, onl! in the modern media dominated societ! has its use
ecome so *ides#read and so targeted) 7hich celerit! fits *hich #roduct8 7ho
#rimaril! enefits from celerit! endorsement8 Fo* is the success of ad"ertising
cam#aigns affected *hen the stars make the *rong kind of headlines8
Celerit! ad"ertising and its im#act is #resented ! the e>hiition against the ackground
of societal and media trends) The e>hiition re"eals the *a!s and means of AseductionA,
and *arns against o"errating them.
7ho or *hat enefits most from ad"ertising *ith celerities ' #roduct sales or
the celerities themsel"es8 This .uestion is still deated toda!) 7hat
ad"ertising success can e e>#ected of a celerit! and his image and his
relati"e #rominence8 Fo* is endorsing *ith a celerit! actuall! done8 7hich
celerities go *ith *hich #roducts8 6i"en the gro*ing numer of celerities
*ho #romote #roducts ' as *ell as the high cost of cross'media ad"ertising
cam#aigns ' there are more and more efforts to get ;@ cam#aigns do*n to a
science so as to make success a sure thing)
&2
OBJECTIVES:
1.To get to know the infuence of celebrities on sale of
a ro!uct.
".To sol#e the roble$s face! b% the $arketers
&(
/I'TOR) OF CELE(RIT) ENDOR'E&ENT
1lthough commercials using celerities originate mainl! in the 3%s and 5%s and
are e>#ressi"e of this #eriod, the! are not an in"ention of our times) ;ress
ad"ertising using mainl! aristocratic #ersonalities is in e"idence since the
second half of the &5th centur!) In the further stages of its de"elo#ment,
ad"ertising *ith celerities is inse#arale from the histor! of the media and
mass consum#tion) 1s in the 2%s, the s#otlight after &5+2 is #rimaril! on
cinema actors of uni"ersal charm, #resented on #osters and in ad"ertisements
as the ne* consumer models and st!le'setters)
In 7est 6erman!, ad"ertising follo*s in the footste#s of the industrialiBed
nations of the *estK in the 6:@, ad"ertising *ith celerities remains "irtuall!
unkno*n right u# to the end) ;olitical and ideological reasons alone are enough
to ensure that #roduct ad"ertising in the 6:@ generall! remains marginalK and
from the 9%s on it is restricted more and more to foreign commerce)
7ith the ad"ance and gro*ing dominance of tele"ision in the 9%s and 3%s, more and
more athletes and TV celerities are used, although the real oom of TV s#ots
egins *ith the authoriBation of #ri"ate, i)e) commercial, tele"ision in the
mid'3%s) 1nd at this #oint there is also a rea##raisal of ad"ertising) Back in the
<%s and 9%s, *hen the e"ils of consumerism came under indictment,
&+
ad"ertising nearl! fell into disre#ute along *ith it) But the situation toda! is
transformed= @eno*ned #hotogra#hers and film directors get celerities to #ose
for them) Celerities *ork for ad"ertising agencies com#eting *ith each other
for the est ad, the est #oster, the est s#ot, and the est marketing a##roach)
Ad0ertisin. establishes itsel as a ne1 art orm)
Some of the earl! celerit! endorsements=
Luxor show-card with Marlene Dietrich 1950s
(ea2ti2l 1omen and real me L23or bea2ty or yo2 too.4
L2!5y 'tri5e ad0ertisement 1ith &arlene Dietri!h6 789:s
&2
Ad0ertisement by the Dra!he !2tlery !om;any in 'olin.en< C2rd "=r.ens and
1ie>789:s
In India..
Celerities are in"ol"ed in endorsing acti"ities since late nineteenth centur!) The ad"ent
of celerit! endorsements in ad"ertising in India egan *hen Findi film and TV stars as
*ell as s#orts#ersons egan encroaching on a territor! that *as, until then, the e>clusi"e
domain of models) Ene of the first s#orts endorsements in India *as *hen ,arokh
Engineer ecame the first Indian cricketer to model for Br!l cream) The Indian cricket
team no* earns roughl! @s) &%% crore through endorsements) There *as a s#urt of
ad"ertising, featuring stars like Taassum (;restige ;ressure Cookers), Jalal 1gha (;an
;arag), Da#il :e" (;almoli"e Sha"ing Cream) and Sunil 6a"askar (:inesh Suitings))
&<
T/EORIE'
Celerit! Endorsement ga"e rand a touch of glamour and the ho#e that a famous face
*ill #ro"ide added a##eal and name recognition in a cro*ded market) In the attle for the
mind, !ou get the customer e>cited ! sho*ing him a kno*n face, and an effecti"e
demand is created) In short it hel#s increase the recall "alue of the rand) 1 #iece of
research states that the target audience age grou# of &2'(% gets influenced first !
Cricketers, then Boll!*ood stars and onl! then music, festi"als and food)
1ccording to Source Credibility Theory, acce#tance of the message de#ends on
CE>#ertnessC and LTrust*orthinessC of the source) E>#ertness is defined as the #ercei"ed
ability of the source to make "alid assertions) Trust*orthiness is defined as the #ercei"ed
willingness of the source to make "alid assertions) 1udience acce#tance increases *ith
the e>#ertness of the source and the ailit! of the audience to e"aluate the #roduct
A!!ordin. to Source Attractiveness Theory,

*hich is ased on social #s!chological
research, the acce#tance of the message de#ends on familiarit!, likeailit! and similarit!)
,amiliarit! is the audienceCs kno*ledge of the source through e>#osureK likeailit! is the
affection for the sourceCs #h!sical a##earance and eha"ior *hile similarit! is the
resemlance et*een source and recei"er)
This theor! e>#lains the message acce#tance in t*o *a!s= Identification and
Conditioning) Identification is *hen the recei"er or the target audience of the
communication egins to identif! *ith the sourceCs attracti"eness, and hence tends to
acce#t his o#inions, eliefs, haits, attitudes etc) En identification, a .uote from Bi$ou
Durien, CEE, Titan, A7e decided on 1amir ecause *e *anted someone *ho is a
iticonic, *ho is st!le'conscious himself, and someod! *ho cuts across oth se> and
age grou#, et*een uran and rural India) 1 celerit! *ho is mouldale and *ho is not
o"er'e>#osedA)
&9
Conditioning is *hen the attracti"eness of the source is su##osed to #ass on to the rand
after regular association of the source *ith the rand)
6rant McCracken has criticiBed the #re"ious t*o theories and #ro#osed the Meaning
Transfer Theory. The theor! e>#lains that a celerit! encodes a uni.ue set of meanings
*hich if *ell used can e transferred to the endorsed #roduct) Such a transfer takes #lace
in three stages 4 encoding meanings, meaning transfer, meaning ca#ture (,igure &))
I. En!odin. &eanin.s= Each celerit! has a uni.ue set of meanings, *hich can e listed
! age, gender, race, *ealth, #ersonalit! or lifest!le) In this *a!, the celerities encode a
set of meanings in their image) ,or e>am#le ;reit! Minta can e seen as a li"el!,
charming, ul!, *itt! and enthusiastic)
II. &eanin. Transer= This stage transfers those meanings to the #roduct) 7hen
skillfull! #ortra!ed, celerities can communicate this image more #o*erfull! than la!
endorsers)
III) &eanin. Ca;t2re= This assumes that consumers #urchase #roducts not merel! for
their functional "alue ut also for their cultural and s!molic "alue) The theor! sa!s that
consumers u! the endorsed #roduct *ith the intention of ca#turing some of the desirale
meanings *ith *hich celerities ha"e #assed on to the #roduct) This is more eminent in
lifest!le #roducts like clothes, #erfumes, cell #hones etc)
&3
Fa"ing a congruent image et*een the rand and celerit! does not guarantee an!
#ositi"e effect on consumers rand #references) The fundamental .uestion is *hat a
rand image reall! does to consumers8 Baran and Blasko e>#lained, ASince most
#roducts arenCt s#ecial, most ad"ertising does all that so'called image stuff))) ThereCs no
information aout the #roduct, thereCs onl! information aout the kind of #eo#le *ho
might e inclined to use the #roductA) This "ie* is echoed ! ,eld*ick (&55&) *ho has
suggested that the su$ecti"e e>#erience of using a rand can e different from the
su$ecti"e e>#erience of using an identical #roduct *ithout the rand reassurance) In the
case of using celerit! ad"ertising to uild rand images, the effects are e>amined *ith a
social #s!chological frame*ork)
&5
'I? ,'E' OF CELE(RIT) ENDOR'E&ENT'
Establishes Credibility= 1##ro"al of a rand ! a star fosters a sense of trust for
that rand among the target audience' this is es#eciall! true in case of ne*
#roducts)
Attra!ts Attention< Celerities ensure attention of the target grou# ! reaking
the clutter of ad"ertisements and making the ad and the rand more noticeale)
Asso!iati0e (eneit< 1 celerit!/s #reference for a rand gi"es out a #ersuasi"e
message ' ecause the celerit! is enefiting from the rand, the consumer *ill
also enefit)
Psy!ho.ra;hi! Conne!t< Stars are lo"ed and adored ! their fans and ad"ertisers
use stars to ca#italiBe on these feelings to s*a! the fans to*ards their rand)
Demo.ra;hi! Conne!t< :ifferent stars a##eal differentl! to "arious
demogra#hic segments (age, gender, class, geogra#h! etc)))
&ass A;;eal< Some stars ha"e a uni"ersal a##eal and therefore #ro"e to e a
good et to generate interest among the masses)
2%
$hy Celebrity Endorsement mi.ht not 1or5 @@@@
7. Im;ro;er ;ositionin.< 1ssociating *ith a star, ho*e"er ig he or she ma! e, in itself
does not guarantee sales) The most it can do is generate interest in the #roduct or create a
uBB around it) Take the case of Maruti Versa, *hich *as launched amidst a lot of fanfare
aout three !ears ago) In s#ite of Maruti signing u# su#erstar 1mitah Bachchan and his
son 1hishek Bachchan as rand amassadors for Versa, the rand/s sales remained
sluggish) To e fair, the Big B magic did *ork and the ads created significant interest,
dra*ing #eo#le into the sho*room) But #erha#s the #ositioning itself *as fault! as
#eo#le *ere e>#ecting a larger than life car, $ust like the rand/s amassador) 0ast !ear,
*e sa* Versa eing re'#ositioned as a famil! car, *ith the core #ro#osition eing, Nthe
$o! of tra"eling together)G Maruti, Versa has started doing *ell and has *itnessed an
u#s*ing since the ne* #ositioning) 0ast !ear, the a"erage sales *ere 3%'&%% "ehicles a
month) Oo* the! are selling +2% "ehicles a month)
A. (rand+!elebrity dis!onne!t< If the celerit! used re#resents "alues that conflict *ith
the rand "alues and #ositioning, the ad"ertising *ill create a conflict in the minds of the
target audience *ho ma! re$ect the #ro#osition) Take for instance To!ota, one of *orld/s
leading auto com#anies) To!ota chose teen!'#o# singer Britne! S#ears for its rand
Soluna Vios, a famil! sedan, *hich is #referred ! married men and *omen *ith
children)
B. Cl2tter Fl2tter< In recent times, there has een such a deluge of celerit!
endorsements that it has led to the "er! clutter that it aimed to reak) ,or instance,
2&
1mitah Bachchan endorses or has endorsed ;e#si, ICICI, B;0, ;arker #ens, Oerolac,
:aur, @eid P Ta!lor, Maruti Versa, Cadur! and a fe* social messages too) Boll!*ood
adshah Shah @ukh Dhan endorses Emega, Tag Feuer, ;e#si, F!undai, Clinic 1ll Clear
and 1irtel among other rands has to his credit more tele"ision commercials than feature
films since &552) This o"er'e>#osure can e ad for the rand) Each celerit! is called
u#on to #ush ma!e a doBen rands or so) 7hich is great for the celerit! ut it is #rett!
daft for the rand ecause the im#act of the celerit! reduces as the numer of rands
him endorses increases) -nfortunatel! in India, *e ha"e too man! rands chasing too fe*
celerities) 1nd the recall "alue dro#s ! a huge margin *hen !ou mo"e from an 1 Class
celerit! to a B Class)
C. Dissatisa!tion 1ith ;rod2!t ;erorman!e< You cannot sell an ordinar! #roduct $ust
! making a celerit! endorse it) In fact, if an!thing, the #roduct *ill fail faster ecause
the #resence of the celerit! *ill create a uBB and more #eo#le *ill kno* aout the
NordinarinessG of the #roduct) -nfortunatel! using a celerit! seems to e the eas! *a!
out of a #arit! #roduct situation) Sachin Tendulkar/s endorsement of ,iat ;alio *as .uite
a success initiall!) But as *ord aout the #oor fuel efficienc! of ;alio s#read, its sales
took a eating) In this case, Sachin/s #resence could/"e *orked *onders ut for the #oor
#erformance of the car in a market that is highl! #erformance conscious)
9. Con2sionD '5e;ti!ism< The use of celerities can e confusing) Some "ie*ers forget
rand that a celerit! is a##ro"ing) Ethers are so s#ellound ! the #ersonalit! of the
celerit! that the! com#letel! fail to notice the #roductQrand eing ad"ertised) The rand
is o"ershado*ed in the o"er*helming #resence of the star) In some cases, a celerit! can
gi"e rise to ske#ticism ecause it might e a it too much for the masses to elie"e that
the celerities *ho are rich and can afford the est in the *orld are actuall! using a mass
#roduct eing ad"ertised on tele"ision) En the contrar!, #eo#le might s#eculate aout
22
such things as Nho* much did the rand #a! to ro#e himQ her in as the rand
amassador8G (Journal of ad"ertising ' Vol &3, &535))
E. Ris5s asso!iated 1ith Celebrity Endorsements< ,ame is a fickle and fleeting
com#anion and can ditch the famous at the slightest #ro"ocation) Celerities, eing
human, make mistakes) But their mistakes get as much attention as their celerit! status
and this can ad"ersel! affect the rands that the! are endorsing) There are a numer of
e>am#les, oth Indian and International, *here scandals and scams in"ol"ing celerit!
endorsers ha"e caused emarrassment to the rands the! endorse) Com#anies ha"e to
make .uick decisions *hen one of their endorsers comes under fire or their o*n image
could e tarnished) 6uilt! ! association in a consumer/s e!es descries it est) If a rand
continues *ith the celerit!, it ma! ad"ersel! affect the image of the rand and
conse.uentl!, rand sales) If the rand chooses to distance itself *ith the tainted celerit!,
the huge costs s#ent on ro#ing in the celerit! and making of the ads ma! go do*n the
drain and e"en then the association of the rand *ith the celerit! might ! then e so
ingrained that the damage is alread! done)
2(
Essentials o !elebrity endorsements
Attra!ti0eness o the !elebrity< This #rinci#le states that an attracti"e endorser
*ill ha"e a #ositi"e im#act on the endorsement) The endorser should e attracti"e
to the target audience in certain as#ects like #h!sical a##earance, intellectual
ca#ailities, athletic com#etence, and lifest!le) It has een #ro"ed that an endorser
that a##ears attracti"e as defined ao"e has a grater chance of enhancing the
memor! of the rand that heQshe endorses)
Credibility o the !elebrity< This #rinci#le states that for an! rand'celerit!
collaoration to e successful, the #ersonal crediilit! of the celerit! is crucial)
Crediilit! is defined here as the celerities/ #ercei"ed e>#ertise and
trust*orthiness) 1s celerit! endorsements act as an e>ternal cue that enale
consumers to sift through the tremendous rand clutter in the market, the
crediilit! factor of the celerit! greatl! influences the acce#tance *ith
consumers)
&eanin. transer bet1een the !elebrity and the brand< This #rinci#le states
that the success of the rand'celerit! collaoration hea"il! de#ends on the
com#atiilit! et*een the rand and the celerit! in terms of identit!, #ersonalit!,
#ositioning in the market "is'R'"is com#etitors, and lifest!le) 7hen a rand signs
on a celerit!, these are some of the com#atiilit! factors that ha"e to e>ist for the
rand to le"erage the ma>imum from that collaoration)
E"en though these three ma$or #rinci#les must e adhered to ! com#anies, #racticall! it
might e difficult to find celerities that satisf! all these three conditions) :e#ending on
the nature of the rand and the kind of #roduct eing used, com#anies can selecti"el!
em#hasiBe one factor o"er the other)
2+
Celebrity endorsements F DoGs and DonGts
1ll rands must e a*are of some of the im#ortant as#ects of celerit! randing as
discussed elo*=
Consisten!y and lon.+term !ommitment< 1s *ith randing, com#anies should
tr! to maintain consistenc! et*een the endorser and the rand to estalish a
strong #ersonalit! and identit!) More im#ortantl!, com#anies should "ie*
celerit! endorsements as long'term strategic decisions affecting the rand)
Three ;rereH2isites to sele!tin. !elebrities< Before signing on celerities to
endorse their rands, com#anies need to ensure that the! meet three asic
#rere.uisites, namel! the endorser should e attracti"e, ha"e a #ositi"e image in
the societ!, and e #ercei"ed as ha"ing the necessar! kno*ledge (although it
might e difficult for a celerit! to meet all three #rere.uisites)
CelebrityFbrand mat!h< Consistent *ith the #rinci#les discussed earlier,
com#anies should ensure a match et*een the rand eing endorsed and the
endorser so that the endorsements are ale to strongl! influence the thought
#rocesses of consumers and create a #ositi"e #erce#tion of the rand)
Constant monitorin.< Com#anies should monitor the eha"ior, conduct and
#ulic image of the endorser continuousl! to minimiBe an! #otential negati"e
#ulicit!) Ene of the most effecti"e *a!s to do this is to ensure that celerit!
endorsement contracts are effecti"el! drafted, kee#ing in mind an! such negati"e
e"ents)
22
'ele!tin. 2niH2e endorsers< Com#anies should tr! to ring on oard those
celerities *ho do not endorse com#etitors/ #roducts or other .uite different
#roducts, so that there is a clear transfer of #ersonalit! and identit! et*een the
endorser and the rand)
Timin.< 1s celerities command a high #rice tag, com#anies should e on the
constant lookout for emerging celerities *ho sho* some #romise and #otential
and sign them on in their formati"e !ears if #ossile to ensure a *in4*in
situation)
(rand o0er endorser< 7hen celerities are used to endorse rands, one o"ious
result could e the #otential o"ershado*ing of the rand ! the celerit!)
Com#anies should ensure that this does not ha##en ! formulating ad"ertising
collaterals and other communications)
Celebrity endorsement is j2st a !hannel< Com#anies must realiBe that ha"ing a
celerit! endorsing a rand is not a goal in itselfK rather it is one #art of the
communication mi> that falls under the roader categor! of s#onsorshi#
marketing)
Celebrity ROI< E"en though it is challenging to measure the effects of celerit!
endorsements on com#anies/ rands, com#anies should ha"e a s!stem comining
.uantitati"e and .ualitati"e measures to measure the o"erall effect of celerit!
endorsements on their rands)
Trademar5 and le.al !ontra!ts< Com#anies should ensure that the celerities
the! hire are on #ro#er legal terms so that the! don/t endorse com#etitors/
#roducts in the same #roduct categor!, there! creating confusion in the minds of
the consumers)
These guidelines are intended to #ro"ide com#anies a useful frame*ork that the! can use
*hile deciding on the celerities to endorse their rand)
2<
Other a!tors ee!tin. the brand
E3;erien!e o 2se = This enca#sulates familiarit! and #ro"en reliailit!)
,ser asso!iations = Brands ac.uire images from the t!#e of #eo#le *ho are seen
using them) Images of #restige or success are imied *hen rands are associated
*ith glamorous #ersonalities)
(elie in ei!ien!y = @anking from consumer associations, ne*s#a#er editorials
etc)
(rand a;;earan!e = :esign of rand offers clues to .ualit! and affects
#references)
&an2a!t2rerGs name I re;2tation =1 #rominent rand name
(Son!,Dellogg/s,Ba$a$,Tata) transfers #ositi"e associations
The celerit!/s role is the most e>#licit and #rofound in incarnating user associations
among the ao"e'mentioned #oints) To com#rehend this, let us anal!Be the multi#lier
effect formula for a successful rand=
S?;S :S1V ''the multi#lier effect *here S is a successful brand, P is an effective
product. D is Distinctive Identity and AV is Added values)
The realm of the celerit!/s im#act is confined to esto* a distincti"e identit! and
#ro"ide 1V to the randK the celerit! does not ha"e the #o*er to im#ro"e or deilitate
the efficienc! and features of the core #roduct) Thus, *e are graduall! a##roaching an
e"ident #ro#osition claiming,
1n a##ro#riatel! used celerit! can #ro"e to e a massi"el! #o*erful tool that magnifies
the effects of a cam#aign) But the aura of cautiousness should al*a!s e there) The fact
to e em#hasiBed is that celerities alone do not guarantee success, as consumers
no*ada!s understand ad"ertising) The! kno* *hat ad"ertising is and ho* it *orks)
29
;eo#le realiBe that celerities are eing #aid a lot of mone! for endorsements and this
kno*ledge makes them c!nical aout celerit! endorsements)
Certain ;arameters that ;ost2late !om;atibility
bet1een the !elebrity and brand ima.e are<
Celerit!/s fit *ith the rand image)
Celerit!TTarget audience match
Celerit! associated "alues)
Costs of ac.uiring the celerit!)
Celerit!T;roduct match)
Celerit! contro"ers! risk)
Celerit! #o#ularit!)
23
Celerit! a"ailailit!)
Celerit! #h!sical attracti"eness)
Celerit! crediilit!)
Celerit! #rior endorsements)
7hether celerit! is a rand user)
Celerit! #rofession)
Celebrity Endorsement<
Does it !lo2d the Prod2!t Promise@
Celerit! endorsement has come a long *a! since 1didas gesture of encouragement
to*ards Jesse E*ens ! #ro"iding him free shoes during the &5(< Berlin El!m#ics)
25
Toda! Oike/s *ho##ing s#end of U&%% million on Tiger 7oods is onl! a small #art of its
total ad"ertising udget) In the *orld of ad"ertising and marketing communication,
celerit! endorsement has gro*n in gigantic lea#s to reach a le"el *here it has s#a*ned a
se#arate industr! in itself)
;o#ular #ersonalities *ho en$o! #ulic recognition amongst a huge slice of a articular
segment of the #o#ulation or the entire #o#ulation are celerities) In"arial!, their "er!
#resence con"e!s the message NI/m rich, famous, talented, eautiful, intelligent and !ou
as#ire to e like me) I actuall! think this #roduct is great) 7h! don/t !ou u! it and
ecome like me8G Illustrati"el!, it is unimaginale to imagine ad"ertising in India
*ithout actors like 1mitah Bachchan sentencesII(;arker, @eid P Ta!lor, Cadur!/s and
*hat not) P Shah @ukh Dhan (Videocon, Santro, ;e#si and lots more), models like
Malaika 1rora (;iBBa Fut) s#orts athletes like SachinTendulkar (;e#si, ;alio and lots
more) P Sania MirBa (Tata Tea, F; and a host of others to follo* in the near future)
entertainers like Shekar Suman (;an ;asand) and Ja"ed Jaffer! (Maggie Sauce) and #o#
stars 4 ut also for less o"ious grou#s like usinessmen ( :onald Trum#, Bill 6ates) or
#oliticians ( @ud! 6iuliani, 0ee Duan Ye*)) It/s also heartening to see #eo#le like
;rahlad Dakkar and 6a!atri :e"i endorsing #roducts rising ao"e the mundane
Boll!*ood and s#orts cro*d) Increasingl!, marketing firms and ad"ertising com#anies
are o#ting for non'human s#okes'characters) The theor! ehind this, of course, is that an
animated figure or charming logo can/t ecome emroiled in contro"ers!) 1dditionall!,
the figure itself is a marketale entit!, for sale on shel"es across the countr!
Dierent (lo5es or Dierent Fol5sJ
In India, characteriBed ! a di"ersified audience, re.uires rele"ant celerities to reach the
a##ro#riate target segments) Multinational giants like ;e#si and Coke ha"e realiBed the
im#ortance of rele"ant celerit! endorsement and ha"e gone in for regional celerities
like Vi$a!, Vikram, Sur!a and Chiran$ee"i *hile at the same time catering to the national
(%
markets *ith Shah @ukh Dhan and 1amir Dhan) ITC, *hich recentl! entered the iscuits
segment threatening to reak Britannia/s stranglehold, uses Vi$a! and Chiran$ee"i as its
endorsers) Mirinda le"erages on Trisha/s a##eal in the regional market *hile @ani
Mukher$ee is the national ad"ertising cam#aign/s endorser) This goes on to #ro"e that in
ad"ertising the most effecti"e #olic! is to use Dierent (lo5es or dierent Fol5sJ
This is *h! @eid P Ta!lor has *isel! s*itched o"er to 1mitah Bachan in India rather
than continuing *ith ;ierce Brosnan)
Celerities ha"e the ad"antage of #ulicit! and the attention getting #o*er re.uired for
an! successful ad"ertising cam#aign) Most celerities also en$o! enormous good*ill) The
associations made *ith them also hel# the #roduct the! are endorsing)
En the other hand, celerit! endorsement also has a negati"e side) 1gain, Celerities are
not e>#erts e>ce#t in a fe* situations) E#on!mous randings like those using 1mitah
Bachan, 0ata Mangeskar and Shah @ukh Dhan are among the latest trends of o"er
e>#loitation of a celerit!/s image)
The onl! differentiation en$o!ed ! these #roducts is the name of the celerit! the! carr!
*hile the #roduct #romise is com#letel! glossed o"er) ,amiliarit! egets contem#t and
after a #eriod of time, the erosion of the celerit!/s e.uit!, due to continuous usage and
di"erse associations, cannot e #re"ented) 6o"inda *as $ust *hat the doctor ordered for
Emami/s Oa"ratan Tel) But 1mitah Bachan doing it is incongruent *ith his image)
Increasing of #roducts has resulted in a filtering out of un*anted information ! the
human mind) The mind as a defence against the "olume of toda!/s communications
screens and re$ects much of the information offered to it) In general the mind acce#ts onl!
that *hich matches #rior kno*ledge or e>#erience) 0ike an o"er'saturated s#onge, it
cannot asor an! more and automaticall! defends itself like a fortress against intrusions
making the ad"ertiser/s $o more difficult) 7hat 1l @ies and Jack Trout said t*o decades
ago *as *ithout taking into consideration the incredile magnitude media fragmentation
(&
and the numerous in#ut streams that are omarding the human mind each and e"er!
minute) In the midst of toda!/s cluttering, it ecomes all more im#ortant for the ad"ertiser
to ca#ture the attention of the consumer)
Toda! Customers follo*=
Ki; mode' #ressing the ,, (fast'for*ard) utton
Ka; mode ' channel s*a##ing, gi"ing the ad"ertiser onl! a fe* seconds to gras# their
attention) Instincti"e changing of channels is #re"ented if the first fe* seconds of the
ad"ertisement manage to gri# the audience/s attention)
-ndenial!, Celerities hel# to sell #roducts) E"en on #ackaging, descried ! Dotler as
Na fi"e second commercialG, the! s#eak out for the rands from the sho# shel"e and
entice customers through their mass a##eal) Juhi/s endorsement of LDurkure/ not onl! in
the tele"ision commercial ut also through her #resence on the #ackaging em#hasiBes the
unrestricted #o*er of the celerit! to enhance !our sales time and again ! dra*ing
attention to !our rand at the most critical $uncture)
In case you are fortunate enough to have an endorser with an iconic image like
Tendulkar, and !ou ha"e managed to estalish a strong association et*een !our rand
and !our endorser in the mind of !our consumer as has M@,, there are #lent! of *a!s
!ou can le"erage on this association in addition to the commercial)
E"er! time Tendulkar *alks out to at, e"er! time he #la!s his #leasing straight dri"es or
reathtaking #ull shots, !our Brand/s logo flashes on screen in front of the millions
*atching and it doesn/t take a Brand 6uru to ascertain that !our Brand Image is gro*ing
! lea#s and ounds in the minds of !our target audience) E"er! time the maestro crosses
a landmark in his career the ine"itale ackno*ledgement is there from the Brand, saluting
the Endorser #roudl!) But here again *e should rememer that Tendulkar endorses a
"ariet! of other #roducts *hich do not in actual fact get to en$o! the #ri"ilege of
(2
le"eraging on the media e>#osure of the celerit! a#art from in the commercial sim#l!
ecause the! ha"e not indelil! estalished the connection et*een the Brand and the
endorser in the consumer/s mind)
Aamir Khan, credited with the resurrection of Coke with his flamboyant Thanda Matlab
Coca-Cola campaign, was, during the early stages of his trudge towards stardom, the
poster boy of Cokes archrival Pepsi. In a decade old advertisement for Pepsi, he dodges
heavy traffic, executes unbelievable stunts worthy of a Jedi warrior and apparently does
everything to put his life at risk to win the favour of thirsty damsels, Aishwarya Rai and
Mahima Choudry, by getting them their favourite Pepsi. Public memory being so short
((
has enabled Coke to make him their chief endorser along with the same Aishwarya for
the same company.
It is essential that there should be a logically associative connect between the
characteristics of the product and what the celebrities stand for. Preity Zinta and Rani
Mukherjee lending their vivacious and bubbly characters to Nestles Perk and Cadburys
Munch respectively is a classic example. Similarly having Sania Mirza endorse Tennis
Racquets or Sports shoes is a perfect fit. But is she completely pertinent to the services of
a reputed Oil Concern?
(+
DOE' CELE(RIT) ENDOR'E&ENT
REALL) $OR#'@
Does Celebrity Endorsement really 1or5s@ Theoreti!ally yes, ecause the .ualities
associated *ith the endorser are associated *ith the rand and the rand therefore
remains at the to# of the consumerCs mind) Fo*e"er one needs to realiBe that the im#act
of an endorser cannot e sustainale in all #roduct categories and in all the stages of
rand life c!cles) It reall! de#ends u#on the t!#e of #roduct) If it is a Cfunctional randC,
then the #roduct itself is the hero) Fere an! celerit! association *ith the rand *ithout
corres#onding #erformance of the #roduct *ill not e sustainale) 7hile incase of image
rands, like the categories of soa#s, soft drinks, cigarettes etc), *here it is difficult to
distinguish et*een the #roducts, celerit! endorsements hel# to distinguish et*een the
rands at an emotional le"el)
1 research conducted ! 'yno0ate, a gloal market research firm, re"ealed that +9H
#eo#le *ould e more likel! to u! a rand that *as endorsed ! their fa"orite celerit!)
;e#si Co) has used a "ariet! of celerities including 1ish*ar!a @ai, Frithik @oshan,
1mitah Bachchan, Dareena Da#oor, @ahul Dhanna, ,ardeen Dhan, Sachin Tendulkar
etc) 1mongst ad"ertisements featuring celerities, ;e#si to#s the hea# *ith the highest
recall of 9%H, *hile archri"al Coke is lo*er across all markets *ith 22H recall) This
#ro"es that ;e#si has reall! e>#loited the use of celerities in their ad"ertisements and
has *orked)
Findustan 0e"erCs C0u>C soa# in India has een using #o#ular film actresses to endorse the
soa# since its launch four decades ago im#l!ing that the! o*e their stunning looks to the
rand) This consistent message hence reinforces the rand "alues and has een
successfull! ale to #osition the soa# rightl! as the Ceaut! soa#C)
(2
It *ould e difficult to $udge the direct effect of celerit! endorsement on the sales or
#rofits of the com#an!) En 1mitah Bachchan endorsing @IO, an F00 s#okes#erson sa!s
that it *as too earl! to gauge the success of C@IOC in terms of sales and that though :aur
healthcare #roducts sales had im#ro"ed, the increase could not e solel! attriuted to
him) Similarl!, there are also cases *herein there *as a dramatic change in the sales
figure after the endorsements) ,or e>am#le @ahul Malhotra, 1ssociate :irector
Marketing, ;P6 India .uotes ACertainl!, it has hel#ed us #romote our rand CFead P
ShouldersC) 0ast !ear, *e *ere ranked as Oo) 2 and this !ear *e are market leaders in this
segment *ith o"er +2H market shareA)
:) 6arg, Vice';resident (Marketing), :aur India 0td .uotes, "A !elebrity does hel; in
in!reasin. brand sales6 b2t only i heDshe is sele!ted !are2lly and 2sed ee!ti0ely.
The ;ersonality o the brand and the !elebrity ha0e to !om;lement ea!h other and
the sele!tion o the !elebrity is6 thereore6 0ery im;ortant.A
(<
Im;a!t o Celebrity Endorsements on O0erall
(rand
Positi0e Im;a!ts o Celebrity Endorsement on the
(rand
1##ro"al of a rand ! a star fosters a sense of trust for that rand among the target
audience) This is es#eciall! true in case of ne* #roduct) Celerities ensure attention of
the target grou# ! reaking the clutter of ad"ertisements and making the ad"ertisement
and the rand more noticeale) 1 celerit!Cs #reference for a rand gi"es out a #ersuasi"e
message and hence, ecause the celerit! is enefiting from the rand, the consumer *ill
also enefit) There is a demogra#hic and #s!chogra#hic connection et*een the stars and
their fans) :emogra#hic connection estalishes that different stars a##eal differentl! to
"arious demogra#hic segments i)e) age, gender, class, geogra#h! etc), *hile
#s!chogra#hic connection estalishes that stars are lo"ed and adored ! their fans) Some
stars ha"e a uni"ersal a##eal and therefore, #ro"e to e a good et to generate interest
among the masses) 1nother in"aluale enefit from celerit! endorsements is the #ulic
relation o##ortunities)
:*ane Fal :ean studied the effects of three e>trinsic ad"ertisement cues "iB) third #art!
endorsement, e"ent s#onsorshi# and rand #o#ularit! on rand Q manufacturer e"aluation)
It *as oser"ed that endorsement significantl! affected onl! #roduct "ariales (.ualit!
and uni.ueness) and one image "ariale (esteem)) The third #art! endorsement hence
ma! e #ercei"ed as a signal of #roduct .ualit!)
6oldsmith assessed the im#act of endorser and cor#orate crediilit! on attitude'to*ard'
the'ad, attitude'to*ard'the'rand, and #urchase intentions) &22 adult consumers *ere
sur"e!ed *ho "ie*ed a fictitious ad"ertisement for Moil Eil Com#an!)
The! rated the crediilit! of the adCs endorser, the crediilit! of the com#an!, and
attitude'to*ard'the'ad (1ad), attitude'to*ard'the'rand (1B), and #urchase intentions) It
*as oser"ed that endorser crediilit! had its strongest im#act on 1d *hile cor#orate
(9
crediilit! had its strongest im#act on 1B) The findings suggest that cor#orate crediilit!
#la!s an im#ortant role in consumers reactions to ad"ertisements and rands, inde#endent
of the e.uall! im#ortant role of endorser crediilit!)
0ooking at the effect of celerit! endorsement on the *ealth of a com#an! a classic
e>am#le of Michael Jordan can e used) 1t the time of rumors of Michael Jordan
returning to OB1 in &552, he *as endorsing #roducts of 6eneral Mills (7heaties),
McC:onalds (Vuarter ;ounders, Value Meals), Oike (1ir Jordan), Vuaker Eats (6atorade)
and Sara 0ee (Fans -nder*ear)) Stud! conducted ! Mathur et al)
&+
associated *ith
JordanCs endorsements sho*s that the antici#ation of JordanCs return to OB1, and the
related increased "isiilit! for him resulted in increase in the market ad$usted "alues of
his client firms of almost 2 #ercent, or more than U& illon in stock market "alue) ,rom
this stud! one can oser"e that the ma$or celerit! endorser *ith rumors or other*ise has
a tremendous #otential to influence the #rofitailit! of endorsed #roducts)
Semi'#artial endorsement indicates that *hen a com#an! uses famous characters from
an! TV soa#s for rand endorsements, consumers tend to relate to the character that he or
she #la!s in the soa# and hence can attract more crediilit!) ,or e>am#le, Smriti Irani
*ho #la!s CTulsiC in a famous soa# has garnered a lot of su##ort from the middle'class
house*ife toda!) If she *ould endorse a rand, there *ould e more relati"it! and
crediilit!) Same can e said aout ;ri!a Tendulkar *ho used to #la! the character of
@a$ani)
The other enefits that celerit! endorsement are=
L2i!5 salien!y< It gets cut through ecause of the star and his attention getting "alue)
6ood lass Oerolac has ensured high salienc! for its rand *ith the inclusion of 1mitah
Bachchan in its ad"ertising)
L2i!5 !onne!t< There needs to e no insight ut the communication connects ecause
the star connects) Sachin, Shah @ukh and their ilkCs ensure an eas! connect for ;e#si *ith
the !outh)
(3
L2i!5 shorthand or brand 0al2es< The right star can actuall! telegra#h a rand
message fast *ithout elaorate stor! telling) Da#il :e" and Sachin Tendulkar seem to
ha"e done that successfull! for Boost in the earl! C5%s) 1nd hel#ed to differentiate it in
the malted e"erages market)

(oost is the se!ret o o2r ener.yG
L2i!5 means o brand dierentiation< In a categor! *here no rand is using a
celerit!, the first that #icks one u# could use it to differentiate itself in the market) Boost
did it in the malted e"erage categor!)

(5
Ne.ati0e im;a!ts o Celebrity Endorsement on the
brand
More often talked aout is the e>treme usage of a celerit! called ClaB! ad"ertisingC, that
is inade.uate content masked ! usage of a celerit! ) 1 good e>am#le is the use of Boris
Becker ! Si!aram and Ste"e 7augh ! 1O; Sanmar) 1lso as said earlier, associating
*ith a star, in itself does not guarantee sales) There is also the fear of Brand'celerit!
disconnect *hich #oints out that if the celerit! used re#resents "alues that conflict *ith
the rand "alues, the ad"ertising *ould create conflict in the minds of the target audience)
Clutter in rand endorsements is "er! #rominent these da!s and such kind of o"er'
e>#osure can e ad for the rand as the recall "alue dro#s ! a huge margin) 1 #o#ular
dra*ack of celerit! endorsement is the CVam#ire EffectC or the celerit! o"ershado*ing
the rand) Some "ie*ers forget the rand that a celerit! is a##ro"ing) Ethers are so
s#ellound ! the #ersonalit! of the celerit! that the! com#letel! fail to notice the rand
eing ad"ertised) T*o ne* dra*acks can e seen these da!s *hat marketers call
Celerit! Tra# and
Celerit! Crediilit!)
Celerit! tra# is *hen the celerit! ecomes an addiction for the marketing team and the
task to find sustitutes ecomes more and more difficult, leading to surfeit of celerities)
Celerit! crediilit! refers to ske#ticism ! the consumers regarding the celerities,
es#eciall! *hen there is an!thing negati"e regarding the celerit! associated *ith the
rand in the ne*s, then rand is ound to e affected) ,or e>am#le, 1ir JordanCs
generated re"enue sales of U&(% million in the first !ear) The sales dro##ed miseral! in
the second !ear *hen Jordan missed <2 games due to a roken foot) 1nother main *orr!
of the ad"ertisers is that their celerit! endorser *ould get caught in a scandal or an
emarrassing situation)
+%
Multi#le #roduct endorsement also has a negati"e im#act on customersC #urchasing
intentions) Tri## et al.

in"estigated the effects of multi#le #roduct endorsement !
celerities on customersC attitudes and intentions)
The! found that the numer of #roducts a celerit! endorses negati"el! influences
consumer #erce#tion of the endorser and the ad"ertising itself) It *as suggested that *hen
as man! as four #roducts are endorsed, celerit! crediilit! and likeailit!, as *ell as
attitude to*ards the ad, ma! attenuate)
Su#erstar 1mitah Bachchan endorses multi#le rands like ;e#si, Mirinda, ICICI, B;0,
;arker #ens, Oerolac, :aur, @eid P Ta!lor, Maruti Versa, Fa$mola, Tide, Cadur! and a
fe* social messages) It has *orked in some cases, *hile in some cases it has not) :) D)
Jain, Chairman and ;resident, 0u>or 7riting Instruments ;"t) 0td, the marketer of the
;arker rand said, A-sing 1mitah Bachchan as our rand amassador has hel#ed in
strengthening our rand image and recall *ithin the target audienceA) Tarun Joshi,
Communications Custodian, @eid P Ta!lor said, A1mitah Bachchan is an icon *ith
uni"ersal a##eal and has hel#ed us to reach out to the real CBharat)C In fact, agents and
retailers ha"e told us that alread! customers ha"e started asking aout the C1mitah *ali
suiting)CA Incase of Oerolac ;aints, *hich *as endorsed ! 1mitah Bachchan, around
3%H of the res#ondents *hen asked to associate Bachchan *ith an! #aint, did so *ith
1sian ;aints, *hich is the iggest com#etitor of Oerolac)
The udget or cost is an im#ortant factor for celerit! endorsement) :e#ending on the
status of the celerit!, remuneration could run into millions of ru#ees for se"eral !ears or
ma! also include a #rofit sharing #lan) ,or e>am#le *hen S) DumarCs used Frithik
@oshan for their launch ad"ertising for Tamarind, the! reckoned the! s#ent +% ' 2% #er
cent less on media due to the sheer im#act of using Frithik)
SachinCs endorsements got him U&3 million o"er fi"e !ears) 7hen 1amir first endorsed
;e#si in &552, he recei"ed @s &9 lakh for itK his Coke commercials in &555 got him @s 2
crore) Frithik @oshan in his highfl!ing da!s re#ortedl! made o"er @s) 2% crore in
endorsements and e"ents ! 2%%&)
+&
Fo*e"er, a numer of rands ha"e een uilt *ithout celerit! endorsement) ,or some of
their rands, Findustan -nile"er and ;rocter P 6amle do not elie"e in celerit!
endorsement ecause the! think that consumers, es#eciall! house*i"es, are more likel!
to identif! *ith a la! #erson on screen than a celerit!) ;rocter P 6amle launched its
C@e$oiceC rand in India *ith testimonials from ordinar! *omen in their TV ad"ertising)
,e* more e>am#les of this *ill e 0ifeuo!, 7heel, :ettol, Close -#, ,e"icol etc)
+2
India-s To; &ar5etin. Tool@ T1o &iddle+a.ed
(olly1ood 'tars
The king is dead ' long li"e the kingI This *as the s#irit of a recent announcement that
the reigning titan of IndiaCs film industr!, 1mitah Bachchan, *as eing re#laced as host
of the nationCs most #o#ular tele"ision #rogram ! the !ounger star, Shah @ukh Dhan)
More than $ust tele"ision tri"ia, the ne*s hinted at the #assing of an era, the handing of a
Boll!*ood cro*n from one generation to another) The significance of the moment *as
reflected in the front'#age co"erage and editorial anal!sis it recei"ed)
The t*o actors are megastars on a le"el unmatched ! their ri"als) Oo one others *ith
their full names ' the! are the Big B and Ding Dhan) 7hile the fortunes of most of their
#eers in Boll!*ood flare and *ane according to their latest films, these t*o ha"e an
enduring a##eal, im#er"ious to the occasional cinematic flo#)
:es#ite their age difference, *hat unites Dhan and Bachchan is their su#reme ailit! to
sell an!thing) More than mere Boll!*ood heroes, the! are gods of the marketing *orld)
Both ha"e ecome *alking illoards, and et*een them, the! re#resent a #riBed
gate*a! to the sought'after middle'class Indian s#ender)
Since it started in 2%%%, the Indian "ersion of A7ho 7ants to Be a Millionaire8A (DBD)
+(

has een hosted *ith soer dignit! ! Bachchan, <+) Oo #rogram on Indian tele"ision
(since satellite *as introduced in the &55%s) has een as #o#ular as this game sho*) 7ith
its im#licit a##roation of a"arice, it hit a chord at a moment *hen India *as ecoming
osessed *ith consum#tion and *ealth ' #romising a #ath to riches much s*ifter than the
go"ernmentCs #o"ert! eradication schemes) 1t its #eak it *as taking 92 #ercent of the
audience share)

Lo!5 #iya "aye
++
Star TV, *hose fortune in India rests on the success of this flagshi# game sho*, re"ealed
that the cheekier, !ounger Dhan, +&, *ould e taking o"er the sho* at the earliest of this
!ear))
There *as a certain logic to this Boll!*ood succession announcement) Oo other star
comes as close to the stature of Bachchan as Dhan does) The t*o men are figureheads of
middle'class India, and each re#resents the e>#eriences of his o*n generation) 7hen
Bachchan decided he no longer *anted to host the sho* (after an enforced reak from
*ork caused ! #ainful stomach surger!), Star TV e>ecuti"es decided a !ounger star
*ould gi"e the sho* a needed face'lift)
AThere is a ne*, ooming, e>citing generation out there) ,ift! #ercent of the countr! is
elo* the age of (%) Shah @ukh Dhan *ill s#eak to them,A said Sameer Oair, chief
e>ecuti"e of Star Entertainment in India) Oaturall!, the sho*Cs #roducers are guided ! a
keen usiness sense) The cost of a (%'second ad"ertising slot in the ne* series has risen
! (% #ercent as a result of signing u# Dhan as host)

FreeMe #iya "aye
Both actors endorse a "ast (and iBarrel! di"erse) arra! of #roducts)
+2
1d"ertisers descrie Bachchan as AIndiaCs most salale face)A En to# of filming nine
mo"ies, last !ear he ad"ertised e"er!thing from ;e#si, #ens, hair oil, diamonds, suits,
ank accounts, chocolate, antise#tic cream, atteries, diet su##lements and real estate, to
*ashing #o*der) These contracts took his annual income to an estimated &5% million
ru#ees, or aout U+ million)
In #er#le>ing ad's#eak, Dhan is AdiamondA to BachchanCs Agold dust)A DhanCs list of
endorsements is gro*ing ra#idl! ' emracing ;e#si, as *ell as Tag Feuer *atches,
motorikes, cell#hones, *hiske!, suits, Sunfeast :ream Cream Biscuits, To# @amen
Curr! Smoodles and ,rooti drinks ' inflating his earnings to a##ro>imatel! &(% million
ru#ees) In 2%%2, he ad"ertised a total of 2& rands on tele"ision)
A1d"ertisers go for one or the other) The! are al*a!s looking for *a!s to talk to IndiaCs
middle classes, and the! fall o"er each other to get them to sign u#,A said 1mit 1gnihotri,
co'founder of E>change+Media, a media anal!sis com#an!) ABoth these men are ale to
connect across gender, across generation, across the *hole nation) Enl! the cricketer
Sachin Tendulkar comes close to eing ale to do that)A
BachchanCs allure stems from his ailit! to transform himself as the nation changes '
s*itching from #la!ing angr!'!oung'man roles in the &59%s (at a time *hen his
contem#oraries *ere feeling frustrated at the lack of o##ortunities in a ureaucratic
nation, *ith a closed econom!) to e>em#lif!ing a comfortale older generation of
middle'class Indians, someone *ho has *orked hard to succeed in the ne* climate of a
reformed India)
1sh*ani Singla, chief e>ecuti"e of the #ulic relations com#an! 6enesis Burson'
Marsteller, *hich signed u# oth men to #romote ;e#si, said= ABachchan re#resents the
as#irations of a generation) Fe has gone from eing a reel *ith a cause, to eing
someone sua"e and so#histicated, *ho is thri"ing in the ne* econom!)A
DhanCs charm is that of a MTV kid *ho has gro*n u# into a de"oted husand and father)
Both men la! hea"! em#hasis on their commitment to famil! life)
+<
ABachchan sho*s a de"otion to his #arents and a lo"e for his famil!,A said Suhash Jha, a
film *riter) A0ike*ise S@D is a "er! domesticated su#erstar) Fe married his childhood
s*eetheart, he lo"es his *ife to death, and his children are his *orld) That makes a lot of
difference to the a"erage Indian "ie*er and itCs the ke! to their enduring #o#ularit!)A
Singla agreed= AThe! are oth good o!s, achie"ers, *holesome famil! figures) Indian
culture "alues this connection *ith famil!)A 1d"ertising anal!sts elie"e that the lanket
#resence of these stars has led to diminishing returns on their roles as rand amassadors
#ointing out that most #eo#le are haB! aout *hich #roducts the! #romote) But
com#anies remain an>ious to hire them)
The film director Vi$a! Singh e>#lained= AThis is a culture *here *e are #rone to deif!
#eo#le) In an era of raid consumerism, these gu!s are the ideal "ehicle ecause the! are
gods)A
+9
Celebrity endorsements6 a do2ble ed.ed s1ord
The! siBBle on the screens *ith their dance mo"es, larger than life image and their se>
a##eal, making them instant icons for man! in this countr! hungr! for celerit! ne*s)
Celerities ha"e al*a!s een in limelight either for reel life or their endorsements or
su##ort for causes ranging from 1I:S to child *elfare and e!e donation) But, *ith recent
@ichard 6ere and Shil#a Shett! contro"ers! generating #ulicit! rage for the #eck than
the cause '1I:S a*areness' the issue of celerit! in"ol"ement has generated a deate)
AOo dout, that celerities hel# in getting an issue highlighted) But at the same time, it is
also "er! im#ortant to choose the right kind of celerit! for the right cause,A sa!s 1n$ali
6o#alan, E>ecuti"e :irector, O1M ,oundation India, an O6E *orking for 1I:S "ictims)
Ether social acti"ist also seems to agree that celerities do hel# in #romoting a social
issue) A7hen celerities or #eo#le holding #ulic offices, lend their name and time to a
#articular O6E, #eo#le tend to take it at their face "alue) Someho*, a sense of crediilit!
cree#s into #eo#leCs mind) But then, in the end, its the O6ECs *ork *hich should s#eak
+3
for itself,A sa!s T D Mathe*, Secretar! and Chief E>ecuti"e, :ee#ala!a, an O6E
*orking for education and etterment of slum children)
Celerities *ho ha"e een and are associated *ith :ee#al!a include Oafisa 1li,
Man#reet Brar and @aghu @ai among other eminent former ureaucrats) Sources *ith
C@Y, one of the largest O6Es in India *orking for child rights #oint out that the asic
need for celerities is felt so as to gi"e the #ro$ect a *ider #ulicit!) AIt is like a chicken
and egg stor!) 7hen a celerit! comes into the #icture, there is a curiosit! element) But
then at times, the media focus might $ust end u# on the celerit! alone like in some recent
cases,A states an acti"ist from C@Y) The ao"e acti"ist #oints out that man! a time,
celerities do ask for monetar! returns) AYes, some celerities do charge for lending their
name to a #articular cause,A he #oints out *hile adding that then it is u# to the O6E to
decide on the ethical as#ect of it)
AMan! O6Es like ours donCt #romote such acti"ities ut !es, it does ha##en,A he sa!s)
7ith O6Es clamoring for *ider #ulicit!, celerities seem to ha"e got hold of a golden
hen) AIt is a fact that celerities hel# in increasing the "isiilit! of a #articular cause and
also that man! celerities charge for such acti"ities) 0ast !ear, I *as in touch *ith a noted
celerit! *ho lends her name to lot of social causes ut I *as com#letel! taken off guard
*hen she asked me ho* much *e are *illing to #a! her,A sa!s @eshmi @amakrishnan, a
social acti"ist *ho once also headed, Make a 7ish ,oundation, India and Sesame
7orksho# India)
She further adds, AOot long ago, O6Es had their o*n ad time *hen the! *ere accused
of si#honing of mone! meant for social causes) So, the! ado#ted a commercial conce#t
*here !ou ring in a celerit! to s#eak for !ou) Visiilit! and crediilit! increases and at
times the inflo* of mone! for a #articular cause increase) But one should also rememer
than some celerities reall! feel for a cause and are dee#l! in"ol"ed *ith "arious social
acti"ities)A 6o#alan su##orts her and sa!s, AYes, it does ha##en ut it is the O6ECs call
to decide *hat it *ants to do)A
+5
(a!h!han ;olio Ad
1nother acti"ist #oints out that celerities are indeed im#ortant ut e"en the! need #ro#er
co"erage and marketing) A7hen 1mitah Bachchan famousl! came out #romoting ;olio
"accination cam#aign of the central go"ernment, it ecame a national mission for the
common man) But, on the other hand *hen 1amir Dhan "oiced his concern in su##ort of
Oarmada Bachao 1ndolan, it ecame a #olitical issue,A she #oints out)
1long *ith Mathe*, 6o#alan is of the "ie* that no cause can mo"e for*ard $ust ecause
of celerit! in"ol"ement alone) AThe much talked aout ;olio cam#aign ! Bachchan and
Sachin Tendulkar ecame a success ecause it *as full! acked ! go"ernment and out
reach *orkers and not $ust ecause of celerities,A she sa!s)
E"en #s!chologists and #s!chiatrists agree that celerities do ha"e a huge influence)
AThere is an inherent curiosit! aout celerities) 7hen celerities s#eak, #eo#le tend to
listen and take notice) There is no den!ing this fact,A states 1nita Maha$an, ;s!chiatrist)
1s 6o#alan sa!s, "Celebrities are like a double edged sword and their presence
definitely helps but at times it can be the other way round too".
2%
Prod2!t Endorsements by Cri!5eters a ne!essity JJJJ
1ccusations made against the Indian cricketers aout d*indling #erformance, as the!
focus more attention on #roduct modeling for MOCs than on the s#ort, ha"e left former
Indian ski##er and star all'rounder Da#il :e" unim#ressed) Talking to The Times f
India , Da#il :e" said that the career of a cricketer is "er! short'li"ed and therefore,
making a #ersonal fortune is no misdeed)
In s#ite of all #ositi"e rationales aout cricket #la!ers turning mercenaries, s#ending ig
mone! on cricketers endorsements of #roducts and ser"ices has ecome the ne* mantra
of MOCs)
Se"eral contem#orar! cricket #la!ers like Sachin Tendulkar, Soura" 6angul!, Yu"ra$
Singh, Virendra Seh*ag, @ahul :ra"id and former test #la!ers like Sunil 6a"askar and
Da#il :e" ha"e all een signed u# ! MOCs as their rand amassadors)
Da#il :e" *ho is currentl! the rand amassador for ;une ased Dinetic Engineering
0td ma! e"en get a stake in the com#an! ' *hich is one of the largest manufacturers of
t*o'*heelers in the countr!)
2&
The latest trend set ! MOCs like ;e#si, Coca Cola, Britannia, Dinetic, moile handset
com#anies like Futch, and @eliance, to name $ust a fe*, ha"e recruited cricket #la!ers to
endorse their #roducts, admitted Mr ;unit Choudhar!, 6eneral Manager of Dinetic
Engineering 0td)
Celerit! endorsements for #roducts es#eciall! cricket #la!ers ha"e ecome a ig mone!
s#inning usiness in the ad industr! in *hich o"er @s (2% crore has een s#ent till date
! "arious t*o *heeler com#anies, a"ers Choudhar!) S#orts, and for that cricket, has
al*a!s signified #ositi"e results and thus, s#orts related ad"ertisements ha"e recei"ed an
encouraging res#onse from the consumers, Choudhar! said) This rand uilding trend has
made the image of Indian cricketers igger than life)
In the #ast @a$ Singh :ungar#ur, former ;resident of the Board of Control for Cricket
(BCCI) had endorsed this trend, sa!ing NEf late there has een more mone! in it than
runs scored ! the Indian cricket teamGK
@eacting to the ad #erformance in the recentl! concluded 7orld Cu#, Da#il :e" said=
NThe Indian team continues to e one of the est teams in the *orld ut the onl! thing in
*hich it lacks is a##arentl! #h!sical fitness *hich has turned into a ma$or *eaknessG)
The general #erce#tion that India/s Ndefeat *as on account of Ca#tain Soura" 6angul!/s
thoughtlessnessG e"en after *ining the toss against 1ustralia in the 7orld Cu# final and
o#ting to field has no rele"ance to the ultimate outcome sa!s Da#il) Fe goes on to add,
22
NThe toss is sheer luck and the alance de#ends on the strong *ill of atting, o*ling and
fielding) 1ccording to me the 1ustralian team is one of the fittest teams in the *orld and
India fell short of effecti"e o*ling cou#led *ith asence of all'rounder in com#arison to
the Indian team in the earl! eightiesG)
It is a fact that in"estment in s#orts related ad #romotions ha"e een gro*ing at a fast
#ace and these ha"e made cricket #la!ers some of the highest #aid #eo#le, e"en
sur#assing cine stars)
D/ONI PO$ER
&ahendra 'in.h Dhoni is the latest ;oster boy o Indian Cri!5et
7hen the Indian cricket team arri"ed in Bangalore recentl! it *as the man from
Jharkhand ' Mahendra Singh :honi *ho graed all the attention *ith the #ress #ack
hounding him) The tele"isions didnCt get their sound !tes though, ecause the man has a
contract *ith one ne*s channel, *hich gets e>clusi"e access to him) This meant the #rint
media got :honi all for themsel"es T a rare #ri"ilege at a time *hen celerities are hard
to get if !ou donCt *ield a tele"ision cameraI
2(

So, *hat does he think aout India agreeing to the 2%'2% cricket conce#t8 AAap starting
hi !aro contro"ers! hata!e) 2%'2% math pucho yaar,A :honi re#lied, making it clear this
con"ersation *as going to ha"e some "er! clearl! defined oundaries) But after
#ersisting he said AE"er!thing goes) Test match bhi, one da!ers and e"en 2%'2%) It is an
interesting conce#t and is good for the s#ectators)A
E"er the last season, due to his e>#loits *ith the at, :honi has emerged the latest #oster
o! of Indian cricket) This e"en led to him eing cro*ned the MTV Youth Icon of 2%%<)
AI think it is a #restigious a*ard) The !outh are the ones *ho #oll and decide *ho is the
icon,A he reflected) AMost others (contestants) *ere from different fields, and thatCs *here
I feel cricket #la!ed a role in me *inning the a*ard)
But it *as also aout ho* !ou are off the field) Cricket is not e"er!thing, it is not life)
The #erson !ou are off the field and ho* !ou eha"e *ith others matter) You ha"e to e a
good human eing and that is a challenge, a tough challenge)A
@ecentl! an ad"ertisement has featured :honi dri"ing a ike and it has no* emerged that
the man is a hardcore ike enthusiast) @umours ha"e it that he has laid his hands on a
SuBuki Fa!ausa, the most #o*erful ike in the *orld) But :honi said the truth is far
2+
from it) AOo, I ha"enCt got a Fa!ausa) I ha"e a Da*asaki MW &+) But I like dirt iking
the most) So, TVS is uilding a customiBed dirt ike for me ecause one is not a"ailale
in the market) This has een ke#t confidential till no*)A
1nother face of :honi not man! kno* aout is a #assion he shares *ith @onaldinho T
their lo"e for gaming) 7hile #la!ing too much on a #la! station is eing cited as a reason
for the BraBilianCs #oor #erformance at the *orld cu#, :honi made his #riorities "er!
clear) AEff the field it is one of the things I do most of the time) But I like to #la! onl! if I
get a stretch of t*o to three hours) I donCt like to lea"e the game in the middle, go for a
training session and then come ack)A :honi *ill also feature in a com#uter game, the
ne>t edition of Brian 0ara Cricket) But he said he much #refers cricket in real life) AI am
into asicall! first #erson'shooting games) Counter Strike, Black Fa*k :o*n, Men Ef
Valour)))A
:honi must come across as the stuff of nightmares to o*lers, ut in #erson, he is far
from that image) Fe sa!s he elie"es in eing #ositi"e and controlling his aggression)
AThere are times *hen it is reall! hard to control !ourself ut !ou ha"e to) Because itCs
cricket, not o>ing)A
Com#arisons ha"e een made to 1ussie hero 1dam 6ilchrist) Though the t*o #la!ers are
*orlds a#art, :honi does seem to ha"e some of that 1ussie grit and aggression in him)
AThatCs a real hard thing to $udge) I ha"enCt $udged m!self) But one thing is for sure,
*here"er I am #art of T cricket, soccer or an! other game T I am serious) I gi"e &%% #er
cent) I ma! succeed or lose) But *hen the da! ends and *hen I go to m! room, I should
e confident I did *hat I could)A
22
Celebrity Prod2!t Pla!ement< A Primer
7ith more and more com#anies *anting to integrate their #roducts into the li"es of
celerities, no* seems like a good time to take a closer look at celerit! #roduct
#lacement) Fere are three common a##roaches and a descri#tion of *hat ste#s !ou can
take to encourage results)
2<
The term Acelerit! #roduct #lacementA is used to descrie se"eral related techni.ues, ut
its definition a##lies to each= free #roducts are distriuted to celerities in e>#ectation of
a #romotional enefit) -nlike the more o"ert, #aid'for endorsement, it offers a distinct
ad"antage) 1 #roduct a##ears as a #roduct choice made ! a celerit! according to
indi"idual #reference)
Most marketers are una*are of their o#tions in this categor! (one form features contracts
*ith celerities, guaranteeing #erformance and allo*ing marketers to acti"el! le"erage
celerit! #atrons in the media) and therefore man! o"erlook a "er! #o*erful influencer'
marketing techni.ue)
In this *e *ill descrie each of the three main a##roaches and discuss their relati"e
merits ! listing their #ros and cons) 1lso ho#e to .uash an! misconce#tion that celerit!
#roduct #lacement has to e a gamle, and sho* ho* est to secure a return on
in"estment) But first, a little histor!)
Celerit! #roduct #lacement (sometimes called Acelerit! seedingA) has een *ith us
since the da*n of marketing) Centuries efore 1rnold Sch*arBenegger ste##ed into his
first Fummer, an &3th centur! #otter named Josiah 7edg*ood egan su##l!ing his *ares
to EnglandCs Vueen Charlotte) @ecei"ing the title A;otter to Fer Ma$est!A led to a huge
amount of #ulicit! for 7edg*ood, *hich he took ad"antage of ! using the term
AVueenCs 7areA to descrie his #roduct)
Those efforts that did succeed, ho*e"er, *ere so successful that inde#endent s#ecialists
emerged to hel# com#anies achie"e etter results) But the ser"ices the! offer "ar!, and so
do the results)
$hat-s It All Abo2t@
Marketers ha"e long kno*n the #o*er of celerit! to influence consumer'#urchasing
decisions) The term Aorro*ed e.uit!A has een used to descrie ho* a celerit!
endorsement can esto* u#on a #roduct s#ecial attriutes and cachet that it might not
other*ise ha"e)
29
The same conce#t a##lies to celerit! #roduct #lacement) But unlike celerit!
endorsements, *here a highl! com#ensated #ersonalit! a##ears in commercial
ad"ertising, celerit! #roduct #lacement offers marketers a more sutle and highl!
effecti"e means of reaching the #ulicT"ia the media the! consume ! choice)
Indeed, celerit! #roduct #lacement is as much aout #lacing #roducts *ith celerities as
it is aout getting stories aout those relationshi#s into the #ress) @egardless of the
a##roach, celerit! #roduct #lacement strategies ha"e a common aim= to tie celerities
(thought leaders, influencers) *ith consumer #roducts in the #ulic consciousness)
Three techni.ues offer three le"els of control o"er that #lacement=
&) 6ifting the talent (this usuall! in"ol"es su##l!ing #roducts for gift ags at li"e
e"ents)
2) ;roduct seeding (#roducts are distriuted more *idel! in ho#es of securing a
#romotional enefit and kicking off a trend)
() Barter relationshi#s (indi"idual celerities agree to #artici#ate in custom #rograms
in e>change for "aluale #roducts))
0etCs take a look at each one in greater detail)
%itin. the Talent
AE"er!od!A kno*s that celerities o*n all the coolest stuffTand the! o*n it *ell efore
e"er!od! else) Celerities tra"el the *orld, and the minutest details of their dail! li"es
#er"ade the media) 1s st!le leaders, the! are #erha#s our most #o*erful influencers) ItCs
no *onder that com#anies are lining u# to gi"e them the latest gifts and gadgets for free)
23
Ene method of doing this is called Agifting the talent)A This generall! in"ol"es su##l!ing
free #roduct for insertion into Agood! agsA that are handed out as thank'!ou gifts to
celerit! #resenters and a*ard nominees at the no*'countless a*ards sho*s and charit!
enefits that dot the entertainment landsca#e)
1t last !earCs 1cadem! 1*ards, for e>am#le, one of t*o Best 1ctress gift ags featured
6ucci sunglasses, a S#rint ;CS #hone, Christian Tse &3'carat gold Iris earrings and more)
The Best 1ctor ag featured 6ucci e!e*ear, a Maurice 0acroi> S*iss *atch and assorted
other goodies) 1ccording to ne*s re#orts, the retail "alue of one such grou# of ags at the
Escars e>ceeded U&&%,%%% eachI
But ho* effecti"e is this #ractice8 If the goal of celerit! #roduct #lacement is to get
#ress co"erage, can *e measure the "alue of gift'ag #lacements8 7hat t!#es of #roducts
are suitale and *hich are not8 1nd *hat le"el of control does this strateg! offer
marketers oth in terms of demogra#hics and reach8
There is no den!ing the "alue of eing associated *ith these glitB! e"ents and, !
e>tension, the celerities *ho #o#ulate them) En the #lus side, the! offer a rare
o##ortunit! to get close to the iggest stars in the *orld) En the minus side, the marketer
has no control in matching u# celerities *ho hold s*a! o"er their #articular
demogra#hic) The! ha"e to #la! the cards the! are dealt)
6ifting the talent at a*ard sho*s "irtuall! guarantees mentions in the celerit! #ress at
the time of the e"ent) But *ithout #ermission to associate the celerit!Cs name and
likeness *ith the #roduct, marketers donCt ha"e the lee*a! to trul! le"erage those
relationshi#s in their o*n #ress acti"ities)
6ifting the talent in this *a! has other limitations= first'mo"ers sna# u# desirale
categories, and of course not all #roducts are deemed a##ro#riate) You *onCt find an
energ! drink in these ags)
Prod2!t 'eedin.
25
;roduct seeding offers marketers more control o"er *hom to #lace #roducts *ithK ut,
con"ersel!, the! ha"e less control o"er ho* (or *hether) those #roducts get used) 1nd
*hile "irtuall! an! #roductTfrom ottled *ater to consumer electronicsTcan e seeded
*ith celerities, marketers are #la!ing the odds here) But the #a!off can e huge if the
seeding is su##orted ! a creati"e strateg!)
;roduct seeding is the oldest form of celerit! #roduct #lacement) ;roducts are
distriuted more *idel!) The! can e aimed at celerities *ho are most com#elling to
!our demogra#hic) 1nd the! can e deli"ered directl! to the celerit! *ithout the filters
im#osed ! e"ents) Ef course, *orking *ith a s#ecialist *ho can get !our #roduct
directl! to celerities ecomes #aramount here) ,ilm and tele"ision #roduct #lacement
agencies are OET set u# for this #ractice)
Taken ! itself, #roduct seeding is a gamle) If !ou send enough freeies to Foll!*ood
ut donCt ha"e a creati"e strateg!, a celerit! might e #hotogra#hed using !our #roduct
or e"angeliBing it on a talk sho*) But if one looks at #roduct seeding as one tactic in a
larger celerit! #roduct #lacement effort, it can #a! ig di"idendsT#articularl! in
identif!ing celerities *ho ha"e a true affinit! for !our #roduct)
Energ! Brands, makers of the 6laceau Vitamin 7ater line, disco"ered) 1s a result of its
long'time strateg! to Ahome'deli"erA the "itamin'enhanced drink to celerities (including
Sean A;uff!A Coms and Tom Cruise), the com#an! gained a fan in 2% Cent)
Fa"ing mentioned his #reference for the #roduct in a series of inter"ie*s, the Fi# Fo#
starT*ho is *ell kno*n for his fitness'centered lifest!leTecame an o"ious choice for
rand s#okes#erson)
S#eaking to 1d 1ge magaBine, Energ! Brands V; of marketing, @ohan EBa, said, A7eC"e
seen that *hen 2% Cent incor#orates XVitamin 7aterY into his dail! routine)))the rand
gets on the air*a"es, and *e create a lot of trial)A Making "itamin *ater a "isile #art of
the ra##erCs health! lifest!le *orked so *ell that the com#an! launched a ne* A,ormula
2%A "ariet!, named for the artist) Such AorganicA relationshi#s can gro* from #roduct
seeding) Oot onl! do marketers enefit from #ress mentions, ut the #rocess can also e
<%
used to unco"er #romotional o##ortunities and (in some cases) identif! the most ideal
#roduct endorsers)
;roduct seeding remains a gamle) But, if e>ecuted #ro#erl!, itCs one *ell *orth taking)
@elati"el! s#eaking, it is a lo*'cost marketing #rogram) 1nd the return on in"estment
though difficult to forecast com#ared *ith arter relationshi#s (discussed elo*)Tcan e
ig)
But *hat if !our goal is limited to getting #ress mentions8 Can a #ulicist hedge his or
her ets in this categor!8
Ene of the great things aout #roduct seeding is ho* creati"e !ou can get) ,or Trident
7hite che*ing gum, the com#an! commissioned a Farris #oll asking the #ulic to "ote
on the est Acelerit! smiles)A Com#an!, *hich s#ecialiBes in celerit! #roduct
#lacement, deli"ered gift askets of the #roduct to the to# si> *inners, allo*ing Trident
to #lug the celerities in their #ress materials)
En another occasion, Electrolu>Tmaker of a ne* high'end, su#er'.uiet "acuum cleaner
T*anted to align their #roduct *ith celerities) 7e identified si> celerit! moms *ho
had recentl! gi"en irth andTtouting the fact that these "acuums *ould not *ake a
slee#ing a!Tmade gifts of the #roduct to each) Fere again, the com#an! *as ale to
use celerities to dra* #ress co"erage for its #roduct) 1nd the! *ere ale to reference
these celerities ecause the! *ere stating facts (a gift *as made to)))))
But *hat if !ou *ant tighter integration *ith celerities8 Su##ose !ou need to forecast a
return on in"estment in order to get a##ro"al for a celerit! #roduct #lacement
cam#aign8 1nd *hat if !ou *ant celerities to #ro"ide feedack aout !our #roduct and
authoriBe use of their names and likenesses as #art of !our #ress cam#aign8
(arter Relationshi;s
Barter is, #erha#s, the onl! *a! to guarantee #erformance on the #art of the celerit!)
-nlike other forms of gifting, this is a .uid #ro .uo relationshi#, *here! the celerit!
<&
agrees in ad"ance to #artici#ate in the marketerCs #romotional acti"itiesTin e>change for
"aluale #roduct)
Celerit! #roduct #lacement cam#aigns of this t!#e *ork est for ig'ticket items such as
consumer electronics and (the loan of) cars) But *ith creati"e a##roaches, s#ecial #roduct
.uestionnaires and generous Aright of #ulicit!A agreements, marketers can use the
celerit!Cs name, likeness and o#inion as #art of their #ulic relations cam#aigns)
Celerit! #roduct #lacementT"ia arter agreementsTis also among the most affordale
*a!s to use celerities) ,or the #rice of a fe* #roducts, and sometimes a token
honorarium, com#anies can integrate testimonials into their ;@ materials and create
customiBed celerit! content for their 7e sites)
The! can in"ol"e numerous stars in a #ress cam#aign for less than the cost of a single
#aid celerit! s#okes#erson) It is one of the most undere>#loited tactics a"ailale to
marketers toda!)
FereCs an e>am#le) The Son! C: Ma"icaTat the time, the onl! digital camera offering a
uilt'in C:'@EMThad failed to #enetrate the increasingl! cro*ded market for digital
imaging #roducts) This *as trouling for Son!, ecause the C: Ma"ica offered a clear
ad"antage o"er its com#etitors= freedom from *ires) But that message had failed to reach
the #ulic)
Son! *anted to in"ol"e celerities *ith its #roducts and *anted that in"ol"ement to
influence the #ulic in a meaningful *a!) The! sought a high'#rofile e"entT#referal!
enefiting charit!Tu#on *hich to launch a !earlong #ress cam#aign in time for the
Christmas sho##ing season) The focus *as to #romote the sim#licit! of C:'ased
#hotogra#h!)
The udget *as limited ut, ha"ing learned that the latest Son! #roducts could e made
a"ailale to gift the talent, *e #ro#osed a celerit! #roduct #lacement cam#aign) Each
celerit! *ould e asked to take a #icture of *hat A,reedomA means to them, and those
#hotos *ould e auctioned off for charit!)
<2
Such an artistic challenge, cou#led *ith the #ros#ect of recei"ing free Son! #roducts, not
onl! ser"ed to induce celerities to #artici#ate ut also offered us an e>traordinar!
o##ortunit! to frame these #ictures and mount an e>hiition that raised mone! for charit!)
Indeed, the charit! com#onent attracted higher'calier celerities and #ro"ided the
AhookA to dra* media attention)
7e successfull! #laced the Son! C: Ma"ica digital camera *ith &2 to# stars, including
Eric McCormack, 1l!ssa Milano and :ennis Fo##er) The #hotogra#hs *ere then offered
for sale on eBa! as #art of 7ired magaBineCs annual charit! auction and also #ut on
dis#la! at a star'studded e"ent in 0os 1ngeles)
,ifteen to# celerities demonstrated the #ractical use of Son!Cs #roduct and authoriBed
the use of their names, likenesses and o#inions aout the #roduct for #ress and marketing
#ur#oses (for one !ear)) Son! recei"ed free ad"ertising for its #roduct in #rint and online
for three months (*orth an estimated U&%%,%%%), as *ell as ()< million *e #age
im#ressions (auction as a *hole) and national #ress co"erage, including Entertainment
Tonight)
CA'E 'T,D)
The 'iyaram Celebrity Endorsement E3;erien!e

"#e have enough of film stoc! for a whole year. $nfortunately we can%t use them
anymore.&' O 6angadhar, 6eneral Manager (Marketing), Si!aram Silk Mills,
commenting on the *ithdra*al of the J Fam#stead ad"ertisement cam#aign, in 1#ril
2%%%))
T/E CRON"E 'CANDAL
<(
In 1#ril 2%%%, the Oe* :elhi #olice unearthed one of the iggest scandals e"er to hit the
*orld of cricket) 7hile in"estigating a local corru#tion case, officials recorded #hone
con"ersations et*een Fansie Cron$e (Cron$e), the ca#tain of the South 1frican cricket
team, and San$ee" Cha*la, a 0ondon'ased Indian usinessman) The con"ersation in the
ta#es seemed to im#licate oth men in illegal etting on a match #la!ed in ,eruar! 2%%%
in India) 1fter initial denials, Cron$e conceded that he had acce#ted U &2,%%% to fi> the
matchX&Y ) The ne*s shocked oth cricket fans and the media alike ' Cron$e/s face *as
smeared *ith lack #aint on #osters across the countr!)
Si!aram Silk Mills 0td) (Si!aram), one of India/s leading te>tile com#anies, *as also
affected adl! ! this contro"ers!) Fansie Cron$e *as one of the ke! celerit! endorsers
for Si!aram/s J)Fam#stead rand of clothing) The cam#aign featuring Cron$e had een
running on the #rint, electronic and outdoor media from March 2%%%) Si!aram and its
ad"ertising agenc!, ;erce#t, *atched in disma! as their celerit! endorser turned into an
internationall! hated s#ortsman o"ernight)The issue raised a heated deate in cor#orate
and media circles regarding the #erils of using celerit! endorsement) ;erce#t sources
commented,NThis mess is horrile)G
Si!aram #ulled do*n all the illoards featuring the entire South 1frican team across the
countr!) The J)Fam#stead cam#aign *as com#letel! *ithdra*n, almost 2% da!s efore it
com#leted its scheduled run on hoardings and tele"ision) The Lmatch'fi>ing/ scandal
seemed all set to force Si!aram 4 and other Indian com#anies 4 to re*rite the rules of
using celerit! endorsement as an integral #art of their media #lans)
(AC#%RO,ND NOTE
Si!aram *as a #art of the Si!aram ;oddar 6rou# of com#anies, *hich had a turno"er of
U 2%5 illion in 2%%%'%&) The grou#, founded in &52+, *as into the te>tile (!arns, farics
and garments), #a#erQ#a#eroards and t!re (ruer t!res and tues) usinesses) 7hile
6o"ind @uer 0td) (6@0) *as into the auto and ic!cle t!res and tues usiness,
Balkrishna Industries 0td) (BI0) *as into the manufacturing of #a#eroards, t!resQtues
and s!nthetics) Si!aram/s usinesses com#rised farics and read!made garments) Its
#o#ular rands included E>emerg (shirts, trousers and $eans) and J)Fam#stead (*ool
<+
faric))
Si!aram *as incor#orated in June &593 as a #ri"ate limited com#an! and *as con"erted
into a #ulic limited com#an! in &53%) Si!aram ,inance, its susidiar!, *as into the
financial ser"ices usiness) Si!aram manufactured and marketed te>tiles, cotton, *oollen
s!nthetics and s!nthetic lends 4 the main #roduct eing #ol!ester lended *orsted
faricsX2Y) In Jul! &55(, Si!aram came out *ith a @s &2( million rights issue to #art'
finance a @s &<2 million e>#ansion'cum'moderniBation #ro$ect) 7hile the famil! held
2(H of the @s 2& million e.uit!, foreign collaorators, ,Is and the #ulic held 2<H, 22H
and 3H res#ecti"el!)
Si!aram had a strong #resence in the lo*er and medium segment of the domestic suitings
market) The com#an! had three manufacturing #lants situated at Thane and @aigad in
Maharashtra and Sil"assa in the union territor! of :adra P Oagar Fa"eli, #roducing o"er
29)2 million meters of farics annuall!) Si!aram had a +H market share in the @s 2%
illion suitings and shirtings market) The other #la!ers included Vimal, Ma!ur, @a!mond,
:ig$am, 6*alior and @eid P Ta!lor etc)
Si!aram retailed its #roducts through 22 e>clusi"e sho*rooms, esides its distriutor
net*ork of aout +%% *holesale dealers and 2%,%%% retailers across the countr!) (The
numer of e>clusi"e sho*rooms *as to e increased to 92 ! 1ugust, 2%%2)) The
com#an! also e>#orted its #roducts to Euro#e, South 1merica, South 1frica, the ,ar East
and the 6ulf countries) Si!aram/s sales increased from @s 2% million in &593 to @s
(222)< million in 2%%%'%&)
Si!aram *as one of the fe* non',MC6 com#anies in India that *as kno*n for its la"ish
ad"ertisements) The LComing Fome To Si!aram/ cam#aign *as re#orted to e one of
Indian ad"ertising/s costliest cam#aigns) The LComing Fome To Si!aram/ ad"ertisements
*ere much talked aout for eing of much longer duration than the usual
ad"ertisementsX(Y , and also for the huge udgets Si!aram set aside for them) The
com#an! elie"ed that good commercials hel#ed it to effecti"el! #osition its suitings on a
<2
gloal #latform) Si!aram officials said the com#an!/s focus on marketing *as
res#onsile to a great e>tent for its gro*th o"er the !ears)
;erce#t had conce#tualiBed the LComing Fome to Si!aram/ cam#aign in the earl! &55%s)
E"er the !ears, the cam#aign estalished the rand/s association *ith Ltrue lo"e for the
motherland,/ ! sho*ing successful men maintaining lasting, strong ties *ith their
families) 1nal!sts commented that the cam#aign *as largel! res#onsile for Si!aram/s
high rand recall and #ositi"e consumer feedack) 1s #art of its rand'uilding
initiati"es, Si!aram also organiBed ma$or s#orting e"ents like the triangular cricket series
4 Si!aram/s Cu#, &559 and Si!aram/s Celerit! Soccer &553) The com#an! also held
Si!aram faric sho*s, aimed at increasing a*areness among its target audience aout the
com#an!/s range of #roducts) ,or 2%%&'%2, Si!aram had increased its ad"ertising and
#romotion udget to @s (%% million from the 2%%%'%& le"el of @s 2%% million)
T/E "./A&P'TEAD 'TOR)
J)Fam#stead *as a "er! #o#ular suiting rand in Euro#e, reno*ned for its #remium
&%%H *ool suitings *o"en from rich natural fiers like merino *ool, cashmere and
*oolsilk) In &552, Si!aram tied u# *ith J)Fam#stead for marketing its suitings in India)
The com#an! im#orted the faric from Ital!) It *as #riced in the range of @s &,2%%'&,<%%
#er meter) In Se#temer &559, Si!aram decided to egin manufacturing the rand at its
#lants *ith technical assistance from J)Fam#stead) The #roduct *as slightl! different
from the im#orted "ersion and *as #riced in the range of @s 292'&%%% #er meter)
E>#laining the reason for the decision, 6angadhar said, NThe im#orted J Fam#stead
faced t*o #rolems= that of maintenance and #rice) The im#orted #roduct had to e dr!'
cleaned and steam'ironed) The Indian faric can e hand *ashed)G
<<
Si!aram earmarked around @s 2% million for the marketing, sales and #romotion of J
Fam#stead) The first #hase of this #romotion *as in the form of commercials featuring
Indian tennis su#erstars 0eander ;aes and Mahesh Bhu#ati) These commercials *ith the
#ositioning line, LThe finest faric in the *orld,/ *ere aimed at #ositioning the rand in
the #remium segment)
In Se#temer &555, Si!aram held a tennis carni"al to #romote J)Fam#stead, *here
se"eral Findi film stars *ere in"ited to #la! tennis *ith the rand amassadors) Soon
after, Si!aram faced #rolems *ith the tennis duo *hen the! decided to reak their
#artnershi#, re#ortedl! due to #ersonal #rolems) Fo*e"er, the com#an! continued
running the ad"ertisements) Com#an! officials $ustified this, claiming that the Ls#ort *as
igger than the #la!ers)/
In ,eruar! 2%%%, Si!aram signed the South 1frican cricket team for #romoting the
rand) The multi'media #romotion *as s#read o"er tele"ision, satellite channels, #rint,
outdoor and #oint of #urchase ad"ertising) 6angadhar said, N7e ha"e taken this
o##ortunit! to associate oursel"es *ith the numer one ranked cricket team as the! *ill
e #o#ular in the coming series of cricket matches)1nd this *ill enale the rand to e
gloall! focused) The idea of such a cam#aign is also to send the message that the
#roduct is of international .ualit!) In India *here cricket is almost a religion, these
models can e easil! identified ! oth the masses as *ell the classes)G
Si!aram had decided to use the South 1frican team on the recommendation of ;erce#t)
6angadhar said, N1ll along, the South 1frican team had a clean image) So *e had signed
u# the entire team and not $ust one indi"idual) 7hen the! *ere coming to Boma! (for
the match), *e thought it *as a "er! good o##ortunit! and so decided to shoot *ith them
for the ads)G Shailendra Singh, Joint Managing :irector, ;erce#t, said, NEur rief is to
#ro$ect J Fam#stead as a gloal fashion rand) It is a high fashion rand that is successful
and sincere) Consciousl!, *e thought that Fansie Cron$e has a 32H success rate and nine
!ears/ e>#erience as a ca#tain)G The ad"ertisements featured the entire South 1frican
team *earing the J Fam#stead #remium suitings) 7ithin a month of the cam#aign eing
released in the national media, the Cron$e contro"ers! surfaced) Si!aram continued to run
the ad"ertisements in ne*s#a#ers for a fe* da!s after the scandal roke) Fo*e"er, the
<9
com#an! decided to *ithdra* the cam#aign com#letel! soon after) 6angadhar denied
that the Fam#stead rand image had een affected) Fe said, NI ha"e had calls from *ell'
*ishers *ho sa! that no one could ha"e antici#ated this) 7e do things right and in the
right s#irit) 1nd if something goes *rong all *e can do is make amends for it) The rand
is igger than an! indi"idual)G
1 ;erce#t official said, NThankfull!, the cam#aign *as not centered on one single #la!er
ut the entire team) Fence it is not so ad after all) 7e are also reco"ering from the
incident)G Fe added, N7e ha"e used multi#le #ersonalities for the ad) 7e ha"e not
focussed $ust on Cron$e) It is the entire &+'memer South 1frican team that *e ha"e
signed u#) So, *e ne"er let the #ersonalit! ecome the rand itself)G
Si!aram/s strateg! of o#ting for multi#le rand endorsements seemed to ha"e diluted the
im#act of the scandal on the rand) The com#an! egan *orking on a ne* series of
commercials featuring the 0eanderQMahesh duo, ut dro##ed them as the rand
amassadors in Ectoer, 2%%%) Though com#an! sources denied that the! had gi"en u#
the celerit! endorsement route for J)Fam#stead, the #erils of celerit! endorsement
egan to e seriousl! e>amined ! Indian com#anies and ad"ertising agencies)
T/E CELE(RIT) ENDOR'E&ENT I'',E
Celerit! endorsements egan *a! ack in the &5th centur! *ith -D/s Vueen Victoria
endorsing Cadur!/s Cocoa) -sing celerities for #romotion has een a common
marketing communications strateg!, #racticed gloall!) Marketers elie"e celerit!
endorsers are more effecti"e than non'celerit! endorsers in generating actual sales from
the customers, and #ositi"el! influence the consum#tion of the #roducts the! are
associated *ith) The fact that celerities remain in constant media focus hel#s create high
recall rates for the commercials that feature them) Their attracti"e .ualities are transferred
to the #roduct eing #romoted) Some of the main reasons for com#anies using celerit!
endorsers)Fo*e"er, selecting the right celerit! endorsers is usuall! a tough task) 1
*rong choice can ruin the image of a rand) The acce#tance of an ad"ertisement message
<3
is largel! determined ! the attracti"eness of the celerit! #resenting the message) 1lso,
the message con"e!ed ! the celerit! must match the #roduct message) @ele"ance is a
"er! im#ortant factor in celerit! endorsements) If there is "er! little fit et*een the
celerit! and the rand #ersonae, the ad"ertisement could #ro"e counter'#roducti"e)
Interestingl!, the selection of Fansie Cron$e for J)Fam#stead *as criticiBed on these "er!
grounds ! an e>ecuti"e from the ad"ertising agenc! Egil"! P Mather) Fe said, NCron$e
is such a casual cha# and he looks so a*k*ard and uncomfortale in a suit)G The man
ehind the #o#ular ;e#si ads, filmmaker ;rahlad Dakkar said, NJ Fam#stead is a #erfect
e>am#le of using a celerit! *ithout a scri#t)G
In India, celerit! endorsements are elie"ed to e #articularl! useful as the a"erage
consumer re#ortedl! identifies more strongl! *ith celerities than in other countries)
,ilm stars and s#orts #ersonalities (es#eciall! cricket #la!ers) are immensel! #o#ular
among the masses) This has encouraged the *ides#read use of celerities in
ad"ertisements o"er the decades)
Fo*e"er, celerit! endorsements could ecome a Ldoule'edged s*ord/ for most
com#anies) 1 #o#ular star can hel# immensel! in im#ro"ing rand image and recall) But
the same star can cause ma$or #rolems for the rand if he or she lands in troule 4 either
in their careers or in their #ersonal li"es) ;e#si faced this #rolem *ith t*o of its most
#o#ular celerit! endorsers 4 #o# singers Michael Jackson and Madonna) In &535, right
after ;e#si aired the first Madonna commercial, the singer released her se>uall! e>#licit
and re#ortedl! anti'Christianit! music "ideo L0ike 1 ;ra!er/ on Music Tele"ision) The
"ideo led to *ides#read #rotests against the singer and ;e#si had to #ull out the
ad"ertisement after airing it $ust t*ice) Michael Jackson *as signed ! ;e#si in &53( in
*hat *as the largest indi"idual s#onsorshi# deal in histor!) In &55(, Michael Jackson *as
charged *ith child ause) Though the charges *ere not #ro"ed, ;e#si had to #ull out of
the contract after un#recedented media outrage against the rand/s association *ith the
singer)
1nother #eril associated *ith celerit! endorsement is the L"am#ire effect,/ *hen the
celerit! o"ershado*s the rand) 1lso, *hether the celerit! endorsing a rand actuall!
uses the rand or not is an issue of concern) ,or instance, if a celerit! endorsing ;e#si is
<5
seen drinking Coke, it can reflect "er! adl! on the rand eing endorsed)
T/E AFTER&AT/
Cron$e had to resign from the South 1frican team and *as arred from #la!ing cricket
e"er again) In South 1frica, the S#ur @estaurant Chain in Johannesurg ended a multi'
million randX+Y 'ad"ertising contract *ith Cron$e) The contro"ers! heated u# in the ne>t
fe* *eeks, *ith man! more Indian and international cricket #la!ers eing named as
#arties to illegal match fi>ing) It *as re#orted that the Board of Control for Cricket in
India (BCCI) and the MumaiQ:uai under*orld *ere also in"ol"ed in the scandal)
There *ere e"en rumors of South 1frica and India sus#ending di#lomatic ties)
The Indian com#anies *ho s#onsored cricket matches and utiliBed cricket #la!ers as
endorsers *ere ho*e"er, re#orted to e unfaBed ! the de"elo#ments) 1sserting that the
J)Fam#stead association *ith s#orts (and cricket) *ould continue, Singh commented,
N0et/s not kill the s#ort for one moronic gu!)G B! the end of the !ear, the Cron$e scandal
seemed to ha"e died a natural death and cricket s#onsorshi# ! Indian cor#orates
continued) Si!aram mean*hile, re"ealed its #lans to achie"e a turno"er of @s + illion for
the fiscal 2%%&'%2) J)Fam#stead/s contriution to the turno"er *as e>#ected to rise from
@s +%% million in &555'%% to @s 92% million) In Se#temer 2%%&, the com#an! launched
a ne* cam#aign for J)Fam#stead, *ith the ne* aseline LEne 7orld Ene ,aric)/ The
cam#aign did not feature an! s#ort or celerit!) Instead, international models *ere
featured to reinforce the faric/s gloal a##eal)
Media anal!sts *ere .uick to #oint out that ha"ing learnt its lessons from the
0eanderQBhu#ati and Cron$e issues, Si!aram *as delieratel! tr!ing to L#la! it safe/ this
time around ! a"oiding celerit! endorsements for J)Fam#stead)
9%
Celebrity endorsements are j2st as interestin. as
!elebrity roman!es
'ing 'ong star Oaomi 7atts made a #oint of telling @!an Seacrest on EI that sheCd een
chauffeured to the Escars in a ne* h!rid 0e>us) In her lo"el! sing'song 1ustralian
accent, 7atts said that it *as e"er!od!Cs res#onsiilit! to look after the en"ironment and
*h! not start *ith an eco'friendl! car8 It seemed o"ious that sheCd een #aid for the
endorsement, *hich she deli"ered *ith enthusiasm and a touch of a*k*ardness) Seacrest
had, after all, $ust asked 7atts aout her est friend, Oicole DidmanCs romance *ith
countr! singer Deith -ran)
9&
E0a Lon.oria or L-Oreal hair !olo2r ad
Celerit! endorsements are $ust as interesting as celerit! romances, if onl! ecause the
endorsements seem to last longer than Foll!*ood unions) 1nd sometimes the "enture is
hard to figure out ' did a star choose a #roduct or did the #roduct choose them8= 1
shrinking Dirstie 1lle! is ehind gro*ing #rofits at Jenn! Craig (she courted the *eight'
loss com#an!)K Desperate (ousewives star E"a 0ongoria does the song and dance for
0CEreal hair colour, Brad ;itt and -ma Thurman ha"e endorsed Tag Feuer *atchesK
Jessica Sim#son sells chicken *ings and #iBBa for ;iBBa Fut and on it goes)

92
I kno* ICd e tem#ted to in"est, if, sa!, these stars #ut their name ehind the follo*ing
#roducts=
0indsa! 0ohan could go on a national s#eaking tour for the effects of :e>atrim) (The
ulimia *onCt sell as *ell))
Britne! S#ears could ad"ertise her lo"e for ;am#erCs dia#ers ' the! donCt leak e"en *hen
momm! is clutching a! in her la# and dri"ing like a mad*oman in Maliu to outrun
the #a#araBBi)
To; Celebrity .ad.et endorsements
:es#ite studies that sa! consumers arenCt s*a!ed ! celerit! endorsements, celerit!'
dri"en gadget ad cam#aigns are at an all time high)
7hether celerit! gadget sightings are unintentional (take for instance 1licia De!s
#la!ing *ith her Samsung Camcorder at a Dnicks game, or 0auren Conrad taking her
Blackerr! *ith her e"er!*here), others are "er! intentional and *ell #aid for) The
reemergence of F;Cs The Com#uter is ;ersonal 1gain staring Serena 7illiams got me
thinking aout the to# celerit! gadget endorsements of the last cou#le of !ears and *h!
com#anies continue to use famous names and faces to re# their #roducts)
IC"e #icked a selection of sum cam#aigns that made me sto#, re*ind and #a! attention,
e"en if I didnCt end u# u!ing an! of the items) (Fo* cute *as 0ittle Miss Sunshine star
9(
1igail Breslin T seen at right T in her F; #rinter commercial *here she talks aout
moments in her life ca#tured *ith #ictures8I)
&aria 'hara;o0a or Canon < I kne* *ho Shara#o"a *as efore the Canon
ads, ut the cle"er smile!'faced tennis all gimmick *as the first thing she did
that got m! attention)
'ha5ira or Panasoni!< Fer hi#s donCt lie, so she must not either, right8 ShakiraCs
;anasonic ads are as eautiful and mesmeriBing as she is) The com#an! gets
onus #oints for letting Shakira sho* off her dance mo"es and music and not $ust
their cameras)
9+
Da0id (e!5ham or &otorola < 7e gi"e :a"id Beckham a hard time for his
.uestionale gadget accessor! st!le, ut his ads for the @1M@2 and Moto@1M@
are all chic) Becks $ust does #rint ads in the -S for Motorola, ut this ehind the
scenes of him on a Euro#ean Motorola set is *orth sharing)
" ay+K or /P< Fi# ho# mogul and entre#reneur Ja!'M e>udes cool so it *as no
sur#rise F; #icked him as *ell for the The Com#uter Is ;ersonal 1gain
cam#aign) I lo"e that the ad sho*s his resume) 0ike he needs one)
',R*E) ON CELE(RIT) ENDOR'E&ENT'
;E@IE: E, S-@VEY = :ecemer 2%%9
;01CE E, S-@VEY = College, ,amil! memers Effice P
,amil! Memers)
92
Sam#le SiBe = &%%
16E 6@E-; = &3 P 1BEVE)
$hi!h o the ollo1in. has the hi.hest im;a!t on de!ision o b2yin. a
;arti!2lar ;rod2!t @@@
&OTOR *E/ICLE F
0-W-@Y 4 2+H
ST1T-S 4 2+H
B@1O: O1ME 4 &%H
CE0EB@ITY 4 &2H
&O(ILE P/ONE' F
9<
ST1T-S 4 (+H
CEST 4 (%H
B@1O: O1ME 4 (2H
CE0EB@ITY 4 +H
CLOT/IN%' F
ST1T-S 4 &%H
CEST 4 &+H
B@1O: O1ME 4 ++H
CE0EB@ITY 4 (2H
FOOD PROD,CT' F
V-10ITY 4 (3H
B@1O: O1ME 4 &2H
CE0EB@ITY 4 2%H
99
1TT@1CTIVE ;1CDIO6 4 (%H
The &oti0atin. Fa!tor d2e to 1hi!h yo2 ;2r!hase the ;rod2!t@@@
V10-E ,E@ MEOEY 4 2+H
1TT@1CTIVE 1:VE@TISEMEOT 4 &+H
V1@IE-S :ISCE-OTS P E,,E@S 4 &%H
01TEST T@EO:S 4 &3H
CE0EB@ITY EO:E@SIO6 TFE ;@E:-CT' (+H
Do yo2 thin5 a ;resen!e o a !elebrity in the ad0ertisement en!o2ra.es
yo2r thin5in. to1ards ;2r!hasin. the ;rod2!t @@@@
YES 4 +2H
OE 4 (3H
C1OT S1Y 4 2%H
Does a Celebrity hel; in in!reasin. the mar5et share o the Com;anyGs
(rand @@@@
YES 4 (<H
OE 4 &3H
C1OT S1Y 4 +<H
$hat do yo2 thin56 do the Celebrity themsel0es 2se the ;rod2!ts 1hi!h
they endorse @@@@
93
YES 4 &2H
OE 4 23H
C1OT S1Y 4 (%H
On a ;ersonal note 1hat 5ind o Celebrity do yo2 ;reer the most @@@@
C@ICDETS 4 (2H
;E0ITICI1OS 4 +H
MEVIE ST1@S 4 +<H
,1ME-S ;E@SEO10ITIES 4 &2H
OEOE E, TFE 1BEVE 4 <H
Do yo2 thin5 Celebrity Endorsement is an im;ortant thin. in
;romotion o a ;rod2!t @@@@
YES 4 +3H
OE 4 22H
C1OT S1Y 4 (%H
$hat do yo2 thin5 !an be the reason d2e to 1hi!h !om;anies !hoose
!elebrities or endorsin. their ;rod2!ts @@@@
OE OE7 I:E1S'(3H
CEM;1OY :ESI@E'&2H
TE IOC@E1SE S10ES P ;@E,IT'2%H
TE ,E00E7 CEM;ETITIEO'(%H
95
CONCL,'ION
Fa"ing a *ell'kno*n celerit! endorse !our #roduct used to e the est *a! to ensure
that consumers e"er!*here *ould rush to u! it) But the trend of celerit! endorsement
is starting to fiBBle like a flat soda)
7hether Celerit! endorsement has a #ositi"e or a negati"e im#act on the rand is a
deate that is o#en to inter#retation) But till the time the cor#orate *orld continues to foot
3%
fanc! ills of celerit! endorsers and till consumers continue to e in a*e of the stars, the
#art! is not likel! to reak u#)
(I(LIO%RAP/)
***)google)com
***)hinduusinessline)com
***)rediff)com
***)iht)com
***)coola"enues)com
***)lonnet)com
***) india times)com
***)randchannel)com
3&
***)fores)com
***)timesofindia)com
Economic Times
Business 7orld
32