The Finch Post

The Falling Star of Celebrity Endorsement - Part 1 of a 4 part series

Legendary art director, George Lois,  mused that “enlisting a celebrity to sell cat food, an airline, off-track betting, an analgesic, or a lube job would seem to be a delusionary strategy fraught with irrationality. But let’s face it, it’s a star-struck world.”

Sure, it’s a star-struck world, but with exorbitant high costs, bad behavior, and questionable credibility plaguing celebrity endorsements, is it any wonder that businesses are starting to look within to inspire campaigns and develop brands? 

This four-part blog examines the changing face of the spokesperson from gregarious celebrity to unassuming everyman, and how this shift in audience preference allows businesses to bolster their brand by celebrating the people behind their products.

Celebrity Losing its Fizz

 According to recent marketing research, one out of every four advertising campaigns in the US features famous faces. From magazine spreads to Twitter, television commercials to Facebook, the advertising industry is clogged with celebrity and is in desperate need of Draino.

Although most of us believe that our voracious appetite for celebrity is a relatively recent speedbump in social evolution, actors and athletes, musicians and models have been peddling products to eager audiences for centuries.

In ancient Rome, popular gladiators received handsome sums to endorse various products and services. In the 1700s, Josiah Wedgwood capitalized on the popularity of his products with royalty by promoting himself as “Potter to Her Majesty.”

At the height of the Cola Wars, PepsiCo also used ties to aristocracy to promote their carbonated product. The history-making partnership with the King of Pop made Michael Jackson the richest pitchman on planet Earth. With his unmistakable flair, Jackson touted the beverage to his fans as the choice of a new generation, resulting in Pepsi earning $7.7 billion in sales and edging out its competitor as the King of Soda Pop for 1984.

Throughout the ten-year commitment, Jackson earned tens of millions of dollars, while Pepsi enjoyed sole sponsorship of his concerts. Allegations of child abuse in 2003, however, burst the campaign’s bubble, and Jackson was quickly released from his contract.

Pepsi’s ill-fated promotion is one of many examples of star powered endorsements losing their shine. Although hitching an advertising campaign to a Hollywood cash cow can prove beneficial at first, it is wise for businesses to remember that if the spokesperson gets stuck in the mud, then so too does the brand tied to them.

Two-ply or not two-ply, that is the question

We at Finch Brands are a curious bunch. Like Socrates, we ask the really big questions, such as “what’s the point of single-ply toilet paper?” We imagine that the manufacturers’ intent is to create a perception of value achieved through savings—reducing consumer cost by cutting product characteristics.

This “no frills” approach is an interesting premise, and one that achieved wide adoption by many companies scrambling for footholds during the world economy’s descent into Recession. Can this method, however, be taken too far? How many features can be stripped in order to justify cost-cutting before a brand becomes blemished?

When too much is taken away, the “savings” achieved is often more illusion than reality. After all, who uses only one square of toilet paper? Firstly, eww! If you can see through it, we’re fairly certain that you can feel through it! Secondly, the moment you fold over at least two squares, you might as well be using two-ply.

We won’t go so far as to claim that pursuing price-pruning to establish your product’s key promotable benefit is the equivalent of flushing it down the toilet—several major businesses, including high-end brands like Vera Wang’s, have launched cost-conscious collections successfully—but we do think there are limits and that this topic warrants some discussion.

Where do you stand on this issue? Please comment and share your thoughts.   

Bottoms Up!

Amidst all the gloomy news out there, it’s important to remember there’s much to celebrate. Here’s to all of our clients who give us the opportunity each day to support their success in times that are tough for many.

Hello Brand? It’s me, your consumer.

As consumer behavior shifts, major brands such as Coke must keep up not only with heavy competition but also the changing nature of their core market.  According to recent reports, sales of carbonated beverages have been decreasing for 6 years straight.

That’s one of the reasons why we’ve seen Coke and other category leaders move so aggressively into alternative beverage categories in recent years. 

Coke is now exploring another strategy to address this by offering a smaller sized bottle for 89-cents, attempting to appeal to today’s budget conscious marketplace.  Additionally, with the attention of health advocates turning to soda, the consumer may permit him/herself an indulgence if the portion is controlled. 

Read the full article found here.

Will this strategy succeed?  Time will tell.  Ultimately, some degree of re-packaging can help energize a brand and reawaken a consumer base.  With issues like cost, health, environmental sustainability, etc. all weighing on the beverage industry, the trick is to unlock the triggers that really drive consumer behavior.  When it comes to new products or strategies, the answer is usually that those companies with the best consumer insights win.