How Celebrity Endorsements Really Work
Social Media, Consumerism & Celebrities in relation to millennials
“The world of Instagram marketing is ready and waiting…” (Brown, 2016)
In addition to the rapidly modernising technology of the twenty first century, access and interaction between followers and people of fame have become easier than ever. With the decline in traditional outlets for advertisements of products such as television broadcast and radios in addition to the variety of platforms, emerging for people to connect with one another, such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and other social media outlets, companies and brands have seized the opportunity to advertise their products through celebrity endorsement. (McCormick, 2016)
I aim to understand how celebrity endorsements really work and how social media is being used as a marketing tool to engage with millennials through celebrity endorsements. To do this, I will use resources such as published articles, essays and books. I intend to research brands’ endorsement of celebrities. I hope to discover why this works as a marketing tool to engage with millennials, as well as understand the current relationship between a brand’s marketing and their consumers. My goal is to produce an artefact that will address my findings from extensive research that I will be gathering.
What do famous people post?
Regardless of the status or their fame in the present, all celebrities have a following and will continue to as a result of their past and present actions. This power is highly sought after by companies as it has the capability to sway and swoon their admirers to follow their actions in trying new products or lifestyles and diets.
Now that social media has become a viable advertising platform, companies and products can now gain traction and popularity with the endorsements from these celebrities. The price of these many products differ extensively, but there is a large focus on beauty products as they can be effectively advertised alongside celebrities’ recognisable faces and desired attributes
The endorsements from these famed personalities often are simply pictures and posts of themselves (selfies) and the product in frame. Although that is enough for many, the addition of text in their endorsements with a personalised message allows their patrons to sympathise and connect with the celebrity’s endorsement and as a result, they are swayed to accepting the endorsement. The connection is the driving force for the advertisements. The transparency in these posts can also vary. These celebrity endorsed ‘advertisements’ tend to create a sense of confusion among consumers as to whether the celebrity is genuinely pleased with the product, or rather merely being paid to advertise it. (Brown, 2016)
Targeting the millennials and technique used
In the modern day of the twenty-first century, Millennials are now the dominant consumers of luxury goods and services. As Millennials are hardwired to their mobile phones, the ease of access to the internet and social circles has become closer and more important to social standings. The opinions, influences and endorsements from friends, family and idols such as these stars plays a large factor on whether a person should purchase a product or not. If a product such as a skin care product has been endorsed by their friends, they may be more aligned to purchase it over another brand selling a similar product. This applies to the endorsements from their idols even more, as people tend to try to be closer to people that they look up to, physically and mentally.
A rather defining characteristic of the Boomers generation was their work ethic, whereas the Millennial’s most defining feature is the use of mobile technology. The advertisements would very rarely be seen by any other demographic. Millennials are also of an age where they have the purchasing power for most of these luxury goods, and will buy them out of fashion rather than practicality. Depending on the targeted audience of the promoter, the age range of purchasers will vary. (Barton, Koslow, & Beauchamp, 2014)
As a result of the modernisation of technology and the accessibility of social media through phones and the internet, Millennials play a large part in ‘celebrity following’. Doing so, their goal is usually to be like them through physical enhancements and mental attitudes. (Bradic, 2016)
As technology advances, the expansion of online shopping has become a mainstream platform for consumers. This goes hand in hand with sponsored advertisements nowadays as posts often now contain links to where consumers may purchase their endorsements. This contrasts with traditional advertising, where pre-Millennials are more used to the idea of browsing and shopping at an outlet store, as opposed to browsing catalogues online, which is generally associated with models and celebrities. With online catalogues, consumers are able to see their items being worn and used by real people and models, instead of seeing the item lifeless on a shelf. This may encourage people to buy the goods with the subconscious intention of wanting to be more like the beautiful and happy people shown on the screen interacting with these products (Caramia, 2014). As Nicola Caramia (2014) mentioned in his study of consumer behavior, “the more a person search for approval and recognition from the world the more consumers’ products and advertising find their path to persuade individuals to purchase products in order to feel better about themselves.”
Does it make a difference to consumers what product is being marketed?
The power of celebrity advertisements can overpower the logical thinking of a customer as to whether they need a product or simply want it. With correct advertisement strategies and knowledgeable insight into the day-to-day lifestyles, advertising agencies and companies can capitalise on the trends within society that rise and fall. Consumers are often more than willing to accept new trends, provided that there are ‘trendsetters’ who take charge and establish that the new trend is valid and popular. The placement of a celebrity as the ‘trendsetter’ has shown to be incredibly effective regardless how outrageous, plain or valid the ‘trend’ is.
An example of this is the enormous success achieved by the ‘Beats by Dre’ brand of audio wear. ‘Beats by Dre’ have become both an iconic audio piece and a fashion accessory as a result of such widespread adoption by consumers and pop culture. With the recognisable branding and promotions of other celebrities as well as Dr. Dre himself using the product, consumers flock to acquire one for themselves despite not learning and fully understanding their designated use and specifications. Whereas a logical spender would analyse and choose what piece of audio wear is best for them for their usage. An explanation of the composition of materials used to assemble a genuine set of Beats Solo HDs costs roughly $20 and are sold retail for $300 and above. A blunt but honest interpretation of this data can be said that “consumers are paying $280 for that signature ‘b’ and the knowledge that they own a pair of authentic Beats.” Interestingly, authentic Beats Solo HDs are marginally more expensive than knock-off counterfeit pairs of Beats Solo HDs, roughly a narrow $4 more expensive. (Einstein, 2015)
Consumers ought to be thorough and logical with any purchase they intend to make, the idealistic approach would be to consider both the practical use as well as the value or price which they are willing to spend. Consumers should consider how they intend or plan to use their products. In this scenario for audio wear, consumers should consider whether they are using them for professional/studio use, daily comfort use, sports, or merely as a fashion accessory. Consumers should thoroughly understand what they are looking for in their product and whether it suits their intentions, as opposed to blindly following the flock of consumers who believe in their celebrity idols for consumer advice and take their endorsements as law.
The core concept behind celebrity endorsements of a product dates far back.
“In the mid-1800s, patent medicines earned the endorsements of queens and popes. Though the times have changed and the methods evolved, the same basic concepts that were true then prove effective today.” (“Marketing-Schools”, 2016)
It is a simple and natural emotion to envy others who are better looking, smarter, more athletic or simply more successful. A direct result of this is the desire to be like them in their superior attributes. Consumers will trust and purchase products celebrities advertise as they will associate the product in question with the celebrity’s success. “For example, when Jennifer Aniston endorses a perfume, consumers tend to associate the perfume with her qualities as a person and actress. Aniston is considered one of the sexiest women on the planet, powerful, and likeable. If Aniston is endorsing a perfume, women (who view Aniston as a likeable, strong, attractive personality) in turn attribute those qualities to the perfume.” (“Marketing-Schools”, 2016)
A product relative to the field in which the celebrity is proficient/famed for is an ideal pairing as it would be an ill choice to pair a sports professional with a cooking utensil brand. “For example, it would seem random to a consumer for an Olympic medallist, such as Michael Phelps to endorse a knife set. While Phelps is a household name and is familiar to most consumers, they don’t trust his expertise in the kitchen as much as say, Chef Gordon Ramsey.” (“Marketing-Schools”, 2016)
The level of popularity is relevant even among two celerities within the same industry/profession. The celebrity with a higher level of popularity will be more successful in broadcasting the intended message to the consumer base and therefore in gaining more traction to the product.
Using techniques that can be improved and expanded onto target consumers’ expectations and demands
As the years go by, people who wish to capitalise on the potential profits behind celebrity endorsements must also follow the trends which society goes by. These may include the latest fashion trends, the talk on what entertainment broadcasts through television series and films, how consumers get their information, and who people idolise. As all these trends change, people must adapt to be able to retain fame and traction. From the threads and hairstyles of the 80’s to those popular in this current era, the ones who stay relevant will continue to flourish. The advertisements in small boxes which newspapers used to provide has transitioned to broadcasts on television in small seconds-long advertisements which has become less favoured and dwindled due to the millennial generation and their addiction a necessity of their phones which gives them access to the internet where they acquire their media. Celebrity based marketing must follow by identifying their new targeted audience and approach each audience differently, tailored to their intake (Weber, 2016). The ideal way to target and entice a consumer from the millennial generation is much different than the ideal way to target a middle aged adult working a 9–5 job.
A general overhaul of the advertisement system would be something along the lines of this:
Adjust the method of broadcast for your product
With modernisation of technology and the rapid spread of access to the internet, it would be smart to begin adjusting how you broadcast your product to the public by transitioning from paper (newspapers/fliers) and/or television (TV Ads) to the internet and its relevant fronts for advertisements. What used to fit in a column on a newspaper now fits on Instagram to advertise your product as a whole, either in use or on display, with a space for text to inform the consumer on its relevance and why they must buy it. Companies who have already picked up this trend have gained strong traction in the recent years relative to their following before it existed (Swant, 2016). Some technology fanatics claim the new trends can already be seen and will soon take over at an astounding rate. The trend of augmented reality or AR, where objects are superimposed via a device to the user’s vision has already seen major success through the recent craze of PokemonGO. As this technology develops, companies must be prepared to jump on this new bandwagon of technology. Admittedly it is difficult to predict the new method of advertisement from paper to television to devices, the faster the capitalisation, the much larger the outcome would be.
Identify trends which society follow through recommendations and trend spotting
With social connections increasing due to ease of access through social media, chatter amongst groups has become larger, and talk of new fashion, technology or ideas can gain traction significantly faster. These products and ideas can burst into a success overnight compared to what used to take months and years for a product or idea to travel worldwide and become accepted. Companies should identify these trends and either tailor their own products to match these or their ideas to appeal to a larger audience. Some services even offer the ability to identify the ‘hottest’ topics such as Twitter’s own Trends section where users can spot the latest tweets circling the web. (Milbrath, 2016)
Align with a cause to promote/encourage support targeting empathy and sympathy
Sponsoring or endorsing a charity or goodwill service is another way to enhance traction as it targets the consumer base’s empathy and allows them to sympathise with your cause/motive. A consumer who may be considering purchasing a product due to their idol advertising it may be further convinced to follow through if they find some of the funds they’ve used are being used for a good cause elsewhere through charity. Although it may be unethical from certain viewpoints to gain popularity and traction on your product through the suffering and poverty of another world, the end result is that both parties are satisfied. Consumers acquire their product with the knowledge that some of the spending has gone to help people in need, companies have made a sale and have potentially developed bonds with new consumers due to their charitable marketing strategy, and people of lower qualities of life receive aid through the company to afford better lifestyles. To successfully ensure that their company will not be the target of blame and scandalous activity due to not passing on charity funds to the unfortunate, companies should be honest and show all their processing and allow maximum transparency to gain public trust and respect which will do them good for the future. (Weber, 2016)
Final thoughts and outcome:
My final outcome chosen from the gathered research was to design an app that assemble readily available information into one hub. Therefore, I have designed a Wireframe and User Journey prototype of the Mobile App. The app conveniently helps consumers to know what products, or brands, are being endorsed by which celebrities and on which social media platforms they are trending.
I definitely would have benefited more from deeper research of the project, prototyping and data visualisation, as the final result might have been more complete and polished. However, I am pleased with the result I have achieved as I was working on multiple projects simultaneously.
Work Cited:
McCormick, K. (2016). Celebrity endorsements: Influence of a product-endorser match on Millennials attitudes and purchase intentions. Journal Of Retailing And Consumer Services, 32, 39–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2016.05.012
Brown, K. (2016). The Big Bad World of Products Celebrities Promote on Instagram. Jezebel.com. Retrieved 7 August 2016, from http://jezebel.com/the-big-bad-world-of-products-celebrities-promote-on-in-1710470780
Caramia, N. (2014). Consumerism: consumer behaviour and the manipulation of the human mind (1st ed., pp. 2–6). London: Nicola Caramia. Retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/6479218/Consumerism_consumer_behaviour_and_the_manipulation_of_the_human_mind
Jwoww, J. (2016). Instagram photo by Jenni JWOWW • May 21, 2015 at 4:00pm UTC. Instagram. Retrieved 14 August 2016, from https://www.instagram.com/p/28yvJwKS4v/
Duff, H. (2016). Instagram photo by Hilary Duff • Jan 15, 2015 at 7:44pm UTC. Instagram. Retrieved 14 August 2016, from https://www.instagram.com/p/x4wNYxtTbM/
Bradic, L. (2016). Celebrity Endorsements On Social Media Are Driving Sales And Winning Over Fans. Social Media Week. Retrieved from https://socialmediaweek.org/blog/2015/09/brands-using-celebrity-endorsements/
Google. (2016). Google.co.nz. Retrieved 14 August 2016, from https://www.google.co.nz/?ion=1&espv=2#safe=off&q=trendsetter+define
Einstein, B. (2015). How It’s Made Series: Yup, Our Beats Were Counterfeit (But They Cost About the Same to Make as the Real Ones). Medium. Retrieved from https://blog.bolt.io/how-it-s-made-series-yup-our-beats-were-counterfeit-but-they-cost-about-the-same-to-make-as-the-364cc6808d18#.nvbgw7q5p
Marketing with Celebrities | Understanding consumer psychology and celebrity endorsements …. (2016). Marketing-schools.org. Retrieved 14 August 2016, from http://www.marketing-schools.org/consumer-psychology/marketing-with-celebrities.html
Weber, S. (2016). 5 PROVEN WAYS TO GET CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS. Opendorse. Retrieved from http://opendorse.com/blog/celebrity-endorsements/
Swant, M. (2016). Instagram Is Now Giving Small Businesses a Dashboard Full of Data About Their Posts Free tools could serve as gateway to paid ads. Adweek. Retrieved from http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/instagram-launching-insights-tools-businesses-171732
Milbrath, S. (2016). 5 brands that employed transparency in marketing — and won. Visioncritical. Retrieved from https://www.visioncritical.com/5-brands-employed-transparency-marketing-and-won/