New Zealand Advertising Practitioners' Views on Celebrity and Athlete Endorsers, Jan Charbonneau and Ron Garland
Marketing Bulletin, 2005, 16, Article 3
Talent, Looks or Brains? New Zealand Advertising Practitioners’ Views on Celebrity and Athlete Endorsers
Jan Charbonneau and Ron Garland
“They add a whole heap of value to the communication … the bigger the personality the better.” (New Zealand advertising practitioner) The established practice of using celebrities and professional athletes as endorsers shows no sign of abating. While a substantial body of literature exists researching effective celebrity and athlete endorser characteristics, little research has been conducted from the advertising practitioner perspective. This research investigating New Zealand advertising agencies found they use celebrities/athletes primarily to achieve ‘cut through’ and believe their use is generally effective provided there is a tight fit between celebrity/athlete, brand and message. This study confirmed previous practitioner research concerning selection factors but found that priority given to each factor varies with brand, target audience and campaign objectives. Interestingly, for New Zealand practitioners, the risk of negative publicity and hiring costs were the most important factors considered. Keywords : Advertising, Celebrity, Athletes, Endorsement
Introduction
Celebrity endorsers, including professional athletes, provide several important benefits over unknown endorsers. Celebrities break through media clutter and hold viewers’ attention (Dyson & Turco 1998, Erdogan & Baker 1999). This is especially true for athletes at the peak of their performance and media/consumer visibility (Shilbury, Quick & Westerbeek 1998). They contribute to brand name recognition, create positive associations transferring qualities such as physical appeal and likeability, and assist in the deve lopment of distinct and credible brand personalities (Kamins 1989, Ohanian 1990). Athletes provide particularly compelling testimonials for products that have contributed to their sporting performance
Talent, Looks or Brains? New Zealand Advertising Practitioners’ Views on Celebrity and Athlete Endorsers
Jan Charbonneau and Ron Garland
“They add a whole heap of value to the communication … the bigger the personality the better.” (New Zealand advertising practitioner) The established practice of using celebrities and professional athletes as endorsers shows no sign of abating. While a substantial body of literature exists researching effective celebrity and athlete endorser characteristics, little research has been conducted from the advertising practitioner perspective. This research investigating New Zealand advertising agencies found they use celebrities/athletes primarily to achieve ‘cut through’ and believe their use is generally effective provided there is a tight fit between celebrity/athlete, brand and message. This study confirmed previous practitioner research concerning selection factors but found that priority given to each factor varies with brand, target audience and campaign objectives. Interestingly, for New Zealand practitioners, the risk of negative publicity and hiring costs were the most important factors considered. Keywords : Advertising, Celebrity, Athletes, Endorsement
Introduction
Celebrity endorsers, including professional athletes, provide several important benefits over unknown endorsers. Celebrities break through media clutter and hold viewers’ attention (Dyson & Turco 1998, Erdogan & Baker 1999). This is especially true for athletes at the peak of their performance and media/consumer visibility (Shilbury, Quick & Westerbeek 1998). They contribute to brand name recognition, create positive associations transferring qualities such as physical appeal and likeability, and assist in the deve lopment of distinct and credible brand personalities (Kamins 1989, Ohanian 1990). Athletes provide particularly compelling testimonials for products that have contributed to their sporting performance
References: Marketing Bulletin, 2005, 16, Article 3 Jones M & Schumann D (2000) nd Shank M (1999). Sports marketing: A strategic perspective 2 edn. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. nd Shank M (2002). Sports marketing: A strategic perspective 2 edn. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Marketing Bulletin, 2005, 16, Article 3 Tripp C, Jensen T & Carlson L (1994)