Eclipse Celebrity Endorsers Who Moon

One meaning of the word “eclipse” is to make something less important or popular. I’ll use the word in that sense when pointing out how having a celebrity endorser who pulls down their pants in order to moon the crowd—or does something else scandalous—can hurt your store image. You’ll want to dissociate yourself from such behavior and such celebrities.
     Research findings from University of Technology-Sydney, HEC Montréal, and Avon Canada Inc. document the extent of possible damage: A scandal involving a celebrity endorser for a store competing with yours in a similar market can have carryover effects to your store. This argues for communities of merchants encouraging each other to exercise caution when selecting celebrity endorsers. It can be better to develop your store staff as endorsers or, if you want sports celebrity, to have a team rather than an individual.
     There’s an important exception in all this: The ability of the celebrity to violate expectations might be what shoppers consider to be attractive. This argues for using edgy celebrities and for featuring the edginess in ads.
     Another meaning of “eclipse” is to emphasize one thing at the expense of another. I’ve that meaning in mind when talking about a research study from University of Adelaide and Macquarie University. The danger of celebrity endorsements pointed out in these studies is when your audience will be so taken with the celebrity, they’ll forget about who the endorsement is for.
     The researchers found that when viewers of an ad knew the celebrity well and felt an attachment, there was little chance the celebrity would eclipse the brand. However, with lesser-known celebrities—who might be used by small to midsize retailers because of the lower endorsement fees—it’s important to keep the major emphasis on your store brand.
     Attract attention with the celebrity, show how what the celebrity says is logically linked to the benefits of shopping with you, and then stay with talking about your store for the rest of the ad. Research finds that celebrity ads are weaker if you start by showing the brand and end by showing the celebrity.
     The degree of danger with this one depends on the fit between the personality of your store and the personality of the celebrity. If the fit is very high, the danger grows. It also grows with a low fit, since the incongruity draws attention toward the endorser.

For your profitability: Sell Well: What Really Moves Your Shoppers

Click below for more: 
Select Celebrity Endorsers Who Fit 
Take Stock of Celebrity Endorsement Value 
Tease with Incongruities 
Get Endorsements from Groups 
Prepare Your Staff to Endorse Products