Month: February 2013

It’s becoming more and more common to see advertisements or marketing campaigns featuring celebrities. But, how effective is celebrity endorsement? Do sales really increase by having a familiar face on a billboard? I was recently browsing through a magazine and noticed myself stopping my page flipping on certain pages, but not because of a celebrity on the page; rather, I was intrigued by the brand name, the visuals on the page, and the product itself.

I’m not saying that celebrity endorsement is never effective. However, celebrity endorsement alone cannot compensate for a weak brand or ineffective marketing.  The ‘star power’ must  be accompanied by other elements that contribute to the overall effectiveness of the advertisement. As Richard Burgess highlights in his blog, the celebrity must be “relevant and on-brand”. Companies cannot rely solely on a famous face to sell their product.

The multi-national retail clothing company, H&M, recently launched an advertisement for a men’s underwear line, featuring David Beckham. Yes, the campaign features a celebrity, but in this case, the advertisement had other features that made it effective…at least for me! Check out video below and see if it appeals to you. H&M’s primary customer is young women, so David Beckham shirtless is bound to get the customers’ attention. But that’s not it! The catchy music, the fast pace of the ad, a bit of humor and my personal interest in the H&M brand all played a role in the success of the one-minute clip. H&M understands its primary segment (young women) and what this segment values: hip music, David Beckham and a strong brand.

H&M David Beckham ad 

Overall, celebrity endorsement can be an effective complement to  other elements in advertising that appeal to the consumer’s affective attitude (such as music). After segmenting the market, a company must understand the values, interests and needs of the target market. So, no, I probably won’t be going into H&M to buy men’s underwear, but that’s beside the point. The company’s ad caused me to think about the H&M brand by effectively utilizing celebrity endorsement, supplemented by fun music, and a fast pace story: all of which align with the company’s target market’s values.

There are few things more annoying than scrolling through your Facebook newsfeed only to find it saturated with irritating ads. I often wonder if those ‘in–your-face’ ads encourage customers or turn customers away! Sometimes I scroll right past the ad without registering what the ad is about. I’m sure I am not the only one who thinks this way. There must be a better way for businesses to effectively advertise using social media. Given that social media is becoming a core element of society, it is vital that businesses learn to effectively use the various social media channels avaliable. With the use of simple, highly visual and most importantly, relevant advertisements, businesses could use targeted social media effectively to reach target markets.

Crest sets a great example of how to “cultivate engagement around dynamic imagery” by posting funny, and cute images on their customers’ Facebook newsfeeds. One would typically not be intrigued by a toothpaste ad, but take a look at the advertisements below: the children’s facial expression in the first image jumps off the page and lures the Facebook user to read the ad. To me, advertising is a two-step process: 1. Capture the audience’s attention, and then, 2. Deliver your memorable message. Crest does this successfully: the reader is attracted by the expression on the boy’s face, which then leads the audience to read the text.

In the second image below, Crest captures the audience with an adorable child who has obviously used a bit too much toothpaste. The ad capitalizes on the simple moments in life and targets parents who may have a “too much toothpaste” story to share.

With social media becoming an essential element of any marketing campaign, it is vital that advertisers effectively leverage its power. Crest demonstrates how an advertiser can draw in the audience thereby building a relationship with an ad and a simple statement. I was drawn to their Facebook page and had to stop myself from looking through all their intriguing posts. Kudos for Crest!

Source:

https://www.facebook.com/crest