In a recent consumer survey, it was revealed that celebrity endorsements are no long considered trustworthy. They are considered to be only a little more trustworthy than leaflets left on your door. This doesn't bode well for advertising agencies as they have been going in this direction signing up the A-listers to barely known reality show contestants to market their products and services.
The survey asked what the most trustworthy source of information was, and the response was packaging, reviews from consumer watchdog groups and finally, personal testimonies of family and friends.
Advertisers will need to take a special look at this, as of now one-in-four advertisements involve a celebrity in contrast to one-in-eight 10 years ago.
Why is the concept of celebrity-endorsed products starting to drop in value? One of the major reasons is that the market has become saturated. It seems like everything is being endorsed by a celebrity with strange product/celebrity combinations.
There has also been a drop in the loyalty of consumers to brands; a much more cynical attitude among people. Now customers are searching for brands that are connected with ideas that involve trust and companies being responsible in their actions.
Probably the most important reason is that many of the brands are no longer being enhanced by the celebrity because they are invisible behind the persona of the celebrity. It has been the strategy by the publicists of the celebrities to have them do outrageous actions or speak outrageous things to keep their name in the endless tabloid gossip. As a result the image of the celebrity has become so strong, that it draws away from the brand itself.
A recent example was when Pepsi dropped Britney Spears and Beyonce Knowles for that very reason. Strangely, the very popularity and "bigness" of the celebrities is becoming their downfall. Some of them even endorse so many things that there is no connection to one brand at all, but only a growing awareness of the celebrity endorsing it.
We're going to see a large drop in these days ahead of celebrities being used in marketing campaigns. They are starting to become liabitlities and drains up resources. People don't care much anymore about what celebs have to say about products or brands, they are moved by what the company itself represents. The silly, stupid actions of celebrities is no longer something people take seriously.
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