As companies cut their marketing budgets amid recession and many others review their strategies carefully, it is becoming increasingly important to review the influence of star power and celebrity spokespeople.
While celebrities can be seen in virtually every facet of society selling everything from fast food to designer handbags, the effectiveness of such endorsements is often uncertain. To further understand the influence of celebrity endorsements and product placement, Mintel conducted a comprehensive study of star power that includes a proprietary survey of 2,000 American adults. The study addresses the following questions:
- What demographic segments tend to have the most interest in celebrities? - What segments are most likely to purchase a product because they have seen it used in a television show or movie? - How quickly are high value segments growing and will that growth create a context within which celebrity endorsements are likely to succeed in the future? - Are there certain types of celebrities that are generally regarded as more trustworthy than others? - What effect do celebrity endorsements have on the likelihood one will purchase a product from a TV shopping network such as QVC or HSN? - How do consumers learn about celebrities and which segments are most likely to read celebrity news and/or participate in celebrity blogs? - What aspects of celebrity lives are consumers most interested in? - What attributes are most often associated with one’s favorite celebrity?
