A celebrity spokesperson is an exciting addition to any public relations or marketing campaign. Celebrities can lend consumer experience to a brand, as well as personality, credibility and a good story. Finding the right spokesperson might be a challenge, but when you finally connect with the right one, the results can be worthwhile. A relevant and relatable spokesperson can build awareness, enhance the brand’s “rep”, and make for a very successful marketing campaign. However, a spokesperson can also backfire, if you aren’t careful to ensure proper media training and campaign execution.
Pollock Communications has successfully worked with many celebrity spokespeople to promote brand building and enhance our nutrition communications campaigns. Based on our experience, here are some tips for finding and working with an effective spokesperson.
1. Know your budget.
It’s important to always consider your budget when researching spokespeople. Not every campaign can support an A-list celebrity and not every campaign truly needs one. There are other celebrities and credible spokespeople out there to fit any campaign’s needs. It’s all about finding the right fit – someone who meshes well and is relevant to your campaign – and then work closely with them to reach your goals.
2. Like anything else, do your research.
Know your audience and your spokesperson. In order for a campaign to be a success, it is important that your spokesperson be the right fit. Are they relevant to your target audience? Can they relate to you product, brand or cause? If the answer is yes, then you are on the right track! For one of Pollock’s food PR campaigns, we were challenged by our client to reach a younger audience and educate them on the emerging science supporting the health benefits of their product, while also raising awareness about their support for educating America’s young. Pollock PR decided to launch a scholarship competition and partnered with a popular recording artist and American Idol runner-up, who was an avid consumer of our product. He also supported the client’s platform on educating young Americans, so he was a successful, relevant and relatable fit.
3. An interesting spokesperson-brand relationship.
It’s important that the relationship between your brand and your spokesperson is believable and interesting to media. In the campaign mentioned above, it was interesting that our spokesperson used our product to warm up before recording his songs. Not only was he liked by consumers, he had a natural connection with the product that made the partnership genuine.
4. Media training is crucial.
Although spokespeople are typically comfortable with being interviewed by media, it is essential that the spokesperson is on-board with a branded media training session. Reporters usually have limited time and might only want to talk to about a celebrity’s personal life, their latest book or the latest news scandal. It is important to work with your spokesperson prior to the interview to master how to flawlessly switch topics, deflect unrelated questions and accurately bring in your brand messaging in a credible manner!
5. Practice Patience.
Have patience throughout the process, not only it this important when selecting and working directly with the spokesperson, but also when working with the spokesperson’s team. What is priority for the brand, might not be for the spokesperson, so b clear, plan ahead and communicate often to avoid any conflicts. Remember that everything done well takes time.
At Pollock Communications, we specialize in food, health and wellness public relations and through our experience we know that choosing and working with the right spokesperson for a brand can be an extremely valuable tool to help reach our client’s goals. For more information on how we can help you find the right spokesperson and build your media relations strategy, contact us below.