Celebrity Endorsements

Celebrity Endorsements In the Beauty sector industry, L’Oreal ranks on the top amongst the other brands, and has also undertaken many celebrity endorsements (Wang W.S, 2006). To comprehend the influence of celebrity endorsement on â€Å"L’Oreal Paris† a methodical study is required. This chapter has been divided into two sections, the first begins with a brief description about celebrity endorsements, in addition the previous and the current scenario of celebrity endorsements, whereas the second section talks about the brand L’Oreal, its performance in the industry, the celebrity endorsements it has undergone, furthermore any risks it has faced while endorsing and lastly how has it been influenced by celebrity endorsements   A key challenge that marketing agencies face today to get noticed in the highly competitive market is that of designing an â€Å"advertising execution†. There are many ways through which agencies can secure consumers, amongst them one form is celeb rity endorsement (Robert van Der Veen analysis of celebrity endorsement as an effective destination marketing tool, 2004).The concept of â€Å"celebrity endorsement† has been increasing over the decades and now is a widespread advertising strategy. Celebrity endorsement since ages has been used as an effective source of marketing to promote products and services. (Nathan Klaus, and Ainsworth Anthony Bailey, Celebrity endorsement: an examination of gender and consumer attitudes, American Journal of Business, 2008 vol.23 no.2). At present, one will find almost every advertisement involving a celebrity, these celebrities act as spokespersons so as to advertise and promote products, services and ideas. (Cited in Kambitsis et. al 2002, Rajakaski JJ, Simonsson R.2006). Now Celebrity endorsement is a well established form of advertising strategy, especially in the U.S where approximately twenty percent of all the television commercials present a celebrity or a famous person and in a ddition, approx ten percent of dollars spent on television advertising are consumed in celebrity endorsement. (Cited in advertising age Sherman 1985, Agrawal & Kamakura, 1995). The celebrities when are endorsed for a product they are expected to accomplish a number of objectives such as increasing the brand image, brand name, product creditability, and also the likability of the advertisement.(Brunett et all 1993 cited in Marin 1996). Firms use celebrity endorsement not just for increasing revenues but also its importance lies in the fact that how celebrity endorsement add value to company, brand and product.(Clinton Amos, Gary Holmes, David Strutton, Exploring the relationship between celebrity endorser effect and advertising effectiveness, International Journal of advertising , 27(2), 209-234, world advertising research center) Using celebrities for advertising helps the brand by acquiring better and more attention from the consumers, they add glamour to the product/brand and make it more credible, desirable and trustworthy. (Spielman, 1981 cited in Renton , 2006).According to Friedman and Friedman (1979) â€Å"a celebrity is an individual who is known by the public for his achievements in area other than that of the product class he is endorsing†. Famous people achieve a high degree of attention from the public and media. As a result of their celebrity status they create a positive image of the product they endorse. Murdoch argues that Belch and Belch has written   â€Å"Marketers recognize that people are more likely to be influenced by   a message coming from someone with whom they feel a sense of similarity, and that advertisers recognise the value of using spokes person who are admired: TV and movie stars, athletes, musicians, and other popular figure † (Murdoch, Creativity in advertising).There are a variety of reasons why a firm might go for celebrity endorsement some reasons may be the experiences that the celebrity faced in his l ife may be similar to the message to be conveyed in the advertisement and if you are a fan of the celebrity you might trust them..(Kulkarni and Gaulkar,   2007). Hence, Choosing a celebrity should be done with at most care and importance since it is more than a marketing strategy as it is a decision that has an impact on the prospect of the brand. Choice of celebrity should be on the basis of factors like appeal, popularity, etc.(Naveen Blazey and Shashi Kanth Ganti, Goa institute of management Goa, Impact of celebrity endorsement on overall brand)