Marketing
Few of the big celebrities are endorsing numerous brands that are causing mayhem among the brands. Amitabh Bachchan endorses Reid and Taylor, which is a high end suiting brand, and on the other hand, a hair oil brand, which is a mass-market product. Shah Rukh Khan endorses Tag Heuer watches, which is a luxury lifestyle brand targeting only the higher socio-economic class, and on the contrary, endorses Fair and Handsome and Lux Cozi, which are products targeted at the mass market. In contrast, a few companies play it safe with Mascots, and have done justice to the brand. A mascot like the "Maharaja" for Air India has been the face of the company in their minds for years. It has been quite a task for Coca Cola to brain-wash the consumers and establish a new connection, which must have been a difficult and expensive exercise. Similarly, Kareena Kapoor endorsed Clinic Clear Shampoo when she was in a relationship with Shahid Kapoor. Post her break up with Shahid Kapoor; she endorsed for Head & Shoulders with Saif Ali Khan. Consumers wouldn't bother about the brand ambassador, but the changing faces show instability, which is bad publicity for the organization. Some brands lack in co-relating with celebrity endorsements. Recently, M. S Dhoni signed a contract with Ashok Leyland India. Ashok Leyland is into manufacturing of trucks and small commercial vehicles, which has no connection with the game of cricket or M. S Dhoni.
for nearly half a century. Similarly, the "Pug" from Hutch's advertisements gained immense popularity in India, so much so that Vodafone adopted it. Later, Vodafone introduced the “Zoo Zoo” concept, which was successful too. The popular brand Amul introduced "baby" as their mascot in the year 1967, and has been the same ever since. It is a symbol of current news with a streak of humour, which is based on creative ideas. These Mascots have not only created the buzz, but have also given justice to their brands at a cost which is negligible to that of endorsing a celebrity. So, is it really worth to hand over your company’s image to a celebrity? Now that’s a question which the endorsers really need to ask themselves!
iNM - Magazine
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