ADVERTISING & BRAND MANAGEMENT (HONS.)

CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENT & BRAND

EXTENSION

DEFINING A CELEBRITY

Celebrities are people who enjoy public recognition by a large share of a certain group of people.

Whereas attributes like attractiveness, extraordinary lifestyle or special skills are just examples and specific common characteristics cannot be observed, it can be said that within a corresponding social group, celebrities generally differ from the social norm and enjoy a high degree of public awareness.

The term Celebrity refers to an individual who is known to the public (actor, sports figure, entertainer, etc.) for his or her achievements in areas other than that of the product class endorsed (Friedman and Friedman, 1979).

This is true for classic forms of celebrities, like actors (e.g., Amitabh Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan, Rani Mukherjee, models (e.g., Mallaika Arora, Lisa Ray), sports figures (e.g., Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khanentertainers (e.g., Cyrus Broachaand pop-stars (e.g., Madonna, David Bowie) ,groups like businessmen (e.g., Donald Trump, Bill Gates) or politicians.

CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENT

McCracken's (1989) definition of a celebrity endorser is, "any individual who enjoys public recognition and who uses this recognition on behalf of a consumer good by appearing with it in an advertisement (marcoms), is useful, because when celebrities are depicted in marcoms, they bring their own culturally related meanings, thereto, irrespective of the required promotional role."

BENEFITS OF CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENT

The ability to build brand equity is a valuable asset.  Jet-Air's brand power is acquired through the name

recognition, which allows the company to achieve larger sales and profits. To a consumer, brand equity creates product/brand differentiation over the other competitors in the market.

 Another benefit to celebrity endorsements is that it increases consumer's remembrance of the ad.

studies that showed consumers are more apt to remember an ad that is linked with a celebrity endorsement.

This can translate into a consumer search and purchase for the specific product, which can result in additional sales.

One of the strongest reasons for using a celebrity as a product endorsement is that it can link the product to the celebrity's skills. 

For example,  target market of teenagers will want to purchase the new sneakers because they believe that wearing them will help their own basketball skills. This product transference of a celebrity skill works for any product.

SELECTING A CELEBRITY FOR A BRAND

Brands are important company assets. Advertisers need to select celebrities who represent the image and promise of their brands. Not all celebrities fit with all the brands.

SPREAD OF CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENT

Markets in which advertising coordinates consumer purchases, celebrity endorsements are more likely chosen for products that have either of the following :-

HIGH PRICE-COST MARGINS LARGE POTENTIAL CUSTOMER POOLS

IMPACT OF CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENT

The concept of celebrity endorsement has become a rage in India as well, with every company trying to rope in a brand ambassador of sorts for their brands.The increasing number of endorsements throws a valid question to the consumers.

Through research and analysis, this paper develops a 14 point model, which can be used as a blueprint criteria which can be used by brand managers for selecting celebrities, and capitalizes the celebrity resource through 360 degree brand communication, since our research proposes it as the foundation brick of the impact of celebrity endorsement. Our study reveals that the impact of celebrity endorsement is proportional to the 14 factors discussed in the model.

USAGE

Celebrity branding can take several different forms, from the appearance of a celebrity in advertisements for a product, service or charity, to a celebrity attending PR events, creating his or her own line of products or services, or funher name as a brand.

The most popular forms of celebrity brand lines are for clothing and fragrances.

The use of a celebrity or of a sports professional can have a huge impact on a brand. For example, sales of Nike golf apparel and footwear doubled after Tiger Woods was signed up on a sponsorship deal.

Celebrities also provide voice-overs for advertising. Some celebrities have distinct voices which are recognizable even when faces are not visible on a screen.

Celebrity branding is a global phenomenon and it assumes paramount importance in countries like India,where the public may treat celebrities as virtual demi-gods.

 More recently, advertisers have begun attempting to quantify and qualify the use of celebrities in their marketing campaigns by evaluating their awareness, appeal, and relevance to a brand's image and the celebrity's influence on consumer buying behavior.

However, in some cases the celebrity did not give permission to be associated with the brand and was wrongly attributed to the brand.

Brand extension Brand Extension is the use of an established brand name in new

product categories. This new category to which the brand is extended can be related or unrelated to the existing product categories.

A renowned/successful brand helps an organization to launch products in new categories more easily. For instance, Nike’s brand core product is shoes.

But it is now extended to sunglasses, soccer balls, basketballs, and golf equipments. An existing brand that gives rise to a brand extension is referred to as parent brand. If the customers of the new business have values and aspirations synchronizing/matching those of the core business, and if these values and aspirations are embodied in the brand, it is likely to be accepted by customers in the new business.

Extending a brand outside its core product category can be beneficial in a sense that it helps evaluating product category opportunities, identifies resource requirements, lowers risk, and measures brand’s relevance and appeal.

Brand extension may be successful or unsuccessful.

Instances where brand extension has been a success are-

Wipro which was originally into computers has extended into shampoo, powder, and soap.

Mars is no longer a famous bar only, but an ice-cream, chocolate drink and a slab of chocolate.

Instances where brand extension has been a failure are-

In case of new Coke, Coca Cola has forgotten what the core brand was meant to stand for. It thought that taste was the only factor that consumer cared about. It was wrong. The time and money spent on research on new Coca Cola could not evaluate the deep emotional attachment to the original Coca- Cola.

Rasna Ltd. - Is among the famous soft drink companies in India. But when it tried to move away from its niche, it hasn’t had much success. When it experimented with fizzy fruit drink “Oranjolt”, the brand bombed even before it could take off. Oranjolt was a fruit drink in which carbonates were used as preservative. It didn’t work out because it was out of synchronization with retail practices. Oranjolt need to be refrigerated and it also faced quality problems. It has a shelf life of three-four weeks, while other soft- drinks assured life of five months.

Advantages of Brand Extension Brand Extension has following

advantages: It makes acceptance of new product

easy. It increases brand image. The risk perceived by the customers reduces. The likelihood of gaining distribution and trial

increases The efficiency of promotional expenditure

increases. Advertising, selling and promotional costs are reduced

Cost of developing new brand is saved. Consumers can now seek for a variety. There are packaging and labelling efficiencies. The expense of introductory and follow up

marketing programs is reduced. There are feedback benefits to the

parent brand and the organization. The image of parent brand is enhanced. It revives the brand. It allows subsequent extension. Brand meaning is clarified. It increases market coverage as it brings new

customers into brand franchise. Customers associate original/core brand to new

product, hence they also have quality associations.

Disadvantages of Brand Extension Brand extension in unrelated markets

may lead to loss of reliability if a brand name is extended too far.

There is a risk that the new product may generate implications that damage the image of the core/original brand.

There are chances of less awareness and trial.

If the brand extensions have no advantage over competitive brands in the new category, then it will fail.

NEED OF BRAND EXTENSION

To influence customer’s choice. Reduces the risk associated with launching a

product under new brand in the market. Customers use brand name as an indirect

measure of quality. It increases the visibility of brand. It is the best strategy available in times of

intense competition. It is helpful in catering lower or premium

market segment. They convey quality associations.

It helps in bringing clarity in brand meaning

It contributes to parent brand’s association by either adding or strengthening this association.

Competitor react back, which creates dynamic environment in market.

Brand extension dimensions

HORIZONTAL EXTENSIONS :- When an existing product’s name is assigned

to a new product in the same product class or to a product category altogether new to the company.

VERTICAL EXTENSION :- Vertical extension means introducing related

brand in the same product category in either of two directions, i.e., upscale extension & downscale extension.

Effect of brand extension on brand equity

Brand extensions can effect the brand & its equity in one of the four different ways :-

Certain brands exploit the brand capital. Certain extensions destroy the brands

equity. Certain extensions have a neutral effect.

CERTAIN BRAND EXTENSIONS HELP DEVELOP AND NURTURE THE MEANING OF THE BRAND.