Like it or not, celebrities are a brand and therefore a business. There is a quantifiable amount of revenue that comes from their name being attached to a product, a song, a movie, or an appearance.
The Japanese got on the bandwagon early, which is why you see stars such as Robert DeNiro and Brad Pitt in ads for economy cars over there, hoping they’d never be seen here.
The trend of the spokesman is long gone however, and has been replaced by companies actually hiring celebrities into “creative roles”, whether they act as brand ambassadors (ahem, spokespeople), or are actually involved in helping to design products.
According to Arun Gupta of AlterNet/Salon, however:
Before you roll your eyes at celebs getting more power, though, The Guardian writes about how they could be a “win-win” situation for fans, consumers and corporations:
“It’s obvious that this sort of arrangement has a mutual benefit – the companies know that kids will react more strongly to, say, Lady Gaga than a balding divisional conglomerate head, and the celebrities can flatter themselves to think that they’re anything other than a last-ditch attempt to save a firm from bankruptcy.”
Okay, feel free to roll your eyes…now.
It’s absolutely true. Celebrities are the most marketable people out there. And as they branch out into industries that interact directly to people, you can’t begrudge companies for wanting a little star power to advertise their products.
