fuse youth culture_celebrityspokespeople
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ABOUTFUSE
Fuse has developed an ongoing
Youth Culture Insights Series to
educate those who wish to speak
more effectively to teens and young
adults. The series includes
information on media behavior, social
media, design, web strategy, the
future concerns of millennials, and
other relevant topics for marketers
trying to reach this demographic.
Founded in 1995, Fuse is a leading
youth culture marketing agency that
connects brands with teens and
young adults. Fuse provides brand
strategy, event marketing, PR,
design, social media, and digital
services to brands and companies
that include Mountain Dew,
Gatorade, Harley-Davidson, P&G,
Gillette, Nike, and others.
YOUTH CULTURE INSIGHTS SERIES
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EMAIL US [email protected]
MAIN OFFICEP.O. Box 4509Burlington, VT / 05406
SATELLITE OFFICE12 Desbrosses StreetNew York, NY / 10013
VT
NY
MythHire a popular celebrity spokesperson to promote or sell something, and teens will follow in droves,
right? Not so fast. Many factors impact the relevance and positive impact a spokesperson has on
perception and behavior, including credibility, relevance, appeal, trustworthiness and expertise.
Marketers often make the mistake of connecting their brand to the latest celebrity trendsetter without
ensuring that their spokesperson of choice naturally and seamlessly fits with the brand’s personality
and objectives. This, combined with the mistake of ignoring a multitude of influential factors outside of
paid endorsements, can lead to unfocused efforts and wasted marketing dollars.
TruthIt’s true that celebrities can help build awareness of a product or brand at a rapid rate, but celebrity
endorsements rarely affect the bottom line. A 2011 Harris Interactive Poll of teens 13-18 revealed that
only 1-3% say that celebrity endorsements influence their purchase decisions. And once that initial
spokesperson-fueled luster wears off, other factors such as product quality and price begin to play a
vital role in converting awareness to preference and purchase. In fact, when teens are identifying their
favorite brands, decision-makers such as price, recommendations from friends, advertising, a brand’s
website and third-party online reviews all significantly trump celebrity endorsements. The bottom line:
teens are savvy enough to rely upon multiple sources of information — and if they don’t like your
product, it won’t sell.
Again, celebrities do serve the purpose of attracting significant attention to a new product launch or
brand, but it’s critical to ensure the partnership is the right fit. When teens embrace a product
endorsed by a celebrity, it’s because they relate to them, aspire to be them and/or see them as a
credible and reliable source. Therefore, it’s important to tap celebrities that align with the target
audience’s goals, aspirations, wants and needs. Failure to do so could alienate these teens from the
get-go.
Implications for BrandsThere is a place for celebrity endorsements within a marketing plan, but this tactic should be a small
piece of the bigger strategy. A brand’s ability to leverage a celebrity in their marketing efforts on-line, at
live events, in broadcast media, and ultimately at retail will dictate success or failure.
A longer-term, multi-faceted approach is more likely to yield lasting relationships and results. Ultimately
encouraging teens to try a product via tactics such as price incentives, product-focused advertising
and in-store demonstrations makes the experience more tangible, likely resulting in repeat use and
encouraging growth via word of mouth.