BRAND REVOLT™
From revolting to revolutionary

April 2008

Famous Sales Rep Wanted

Leveraging celebrities to promote products is an old trick. It can, of course, be very powerful. However, the downside risk is not so much about current associations with the star (we assume the deal was made when the idol was up-coming or already ‘hot’), it is more about future associations.

What happens when the luminary goes ‘awol’?  Sure, any publicity is ‘good’ publicity, but it can be hard for a brand to shake off negative associations with temperamental A-list egos. Sometimes the hype can be manageable. Zidane's infamous head-butt incident during the 2006 World Cup final is a case in point. The then French president Jacques Chirac hailed Zidane as a national hero. His sponsors stuck with him. And ultimately it could be argued, it created even more of a legend.

Brand 'ambassadors' are popular. Sports people often make good brand reps. But how sustainable are they? Their value often needs to extend beyond simply being at the top of their sport/discipline (which is often relatively short-lived) to wider values - such as community-building, charitable causes (a UN ambassadorship is always useful) and other warm, fuzzy activities.

Perhaps, just as with trading equities, a cute furry animal might do the job just as well?

© Copyright Hira Verick, Sweden 2008