In this episode of the State of Economy podcast, we speak with Chitra Narayanan, Shiv Shivakumar, managing partner of Advent International, and Naresh, co-founder and managing partner of Van in the Middle, a full-service independent creative agency. Mr.Gupta is a famous name in the advertising industry.
Brands continue to invest heavily in celebrity endorsements, despite the risks of overexposure and lack of effectiveness. Recent Super Bowl commercials are a prime example of this phenomenon.
Shivakumar begins by highlighting empirical evidence suggesting that celebrity endorsements often produce similar results as non-celebrity advertising. However, he emphasizes that many brands still cling to the idea that celebrities guarantee success. He provides historical context, tracing the origins of celebrity advertising back to Ginger Rogers’ endorsement of Lux soap.
Mr. Gupta echoed Mr. Shivakumar’s sentiments, adding that while their agency does feature celebrities in its campaigns, it does so with careful consideration and purpose. He criticizes the general tendency for celebrities to be exploited indiscriminately by vanity and laziness within his marketing team.
This conversation explores the commodification of celebrity endorsements, with examples of celebrities endorsing numerous brands simultaneously, leading to brand dilution and consumer confusion.
The podcast also touches on India’s narrow celebrity, which is dominated by cricketers and film stars and overlooks potential supporters in other fields.
Both Shiv and Naresh warn against outlandish marketing moves like Poonam Pandey’s, and stress the importance of aligning celebrities with a brand’s core values.
However, there are also good examples of brands and celebrities benefiting through associations. For example, long-term partnerships between brands and celebrities, such as Shahrukh Khan’s partnership with Hyundai and Aamir Khan’s collaboration with Cola, to name a few.
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