Endorsement deals & influencers: cons & pros

By Gonzalo López Martí    Creative director, etc. /  LMMIAMI.COM

• As you well know, dear reader, I’m a firm believer in the power and traction of social media influencers.
• Back in the pre-social media age, when we used to call them celebrity endorsers, they tended to be frowned upon under the logic that they could outshine the actual hero of an ad campaign: the product.
• It was not unusual to end up with aided and unaided recall surveys of campaigns in which the celeb was more remembered than the brand.
• During my years at BBDO, early 00s, we used to hire lots of celebs to pitch our client Visa’s various financial & credit products.
• What a prodigious waste of time and money it was.
• When the post test reports came in, we found out once and again that consumers were mixing it all up: they’d think our ads were for AmEx.
• I’m pretty sure AmEx had the same problem in reverse.
• Meantime, Mastercard was kicking our asses with the Priceless push.
• Why did we keep doing it?
• Well, never underestimate the human tendency to be a pathetic groupie.
• Plus, who doesn’t like to fly biz class to LA, check in at a 5-star suite overlooking the Hollywood hills and spend a week hanging out on set in the fancy trailer of some A-lister or other?
• I’ve seen Hollywood royalty show their best acting chops at pretending they are super interested in how potato chips are made.
• More so, never ever underestimate the need to cover one’s ass: hey, I hired David Copperfield to endorse our product, if the campaign bombed go blame him, not me.
• There were exceptions to the norm, of course: Nike.
• Sports gear is a different game though (wink wink nudge nudge) in the sense that the endorser actually wears the product in real life, not just on TV commercials.
• Honestly, who gives a rat’s ass if Seinfeld or Tina Fey use Visa or AmEx to get gas for their car?
• In any case that was then.
• This is now.
• We live in the age of brutal attention deficit and hyper fragmented media consumption.
• In this context, celeb influencers have dramatically regained traction and currency as brand endorsers.
• The barrage of celebs that populated this year’s Super Bowl commercials is proof enough of this reality.
• Their unique ability to obtain permission and engage with audiences is, now more than ever, of utmost value for marketers.
• In 2016, an influencer with a loyal fan base on various social feeds is virtually a one-man (or one-woman) media conglomerate.
• Beyoncé, for instance.
• Now, if you have been in this godforsaken business long enough you also know that dealing with celebs, their handlers, their agents, their managers, their lawyers, publicists, stylists, nutritionists, hair & makeup artists, crews, posses, entourages, extended family, personal trainers, personal healers, masseuses, lifestyle coaches, tea leaf readers et al is a royal pain in the sphincter.
• Cutting an endorsement deal can easily become a protracted, annoying string of misunderstandings, stupid bargaining tricks, inexplicable whim, power plays and ego trips.
• Contracts and riders can read like the Xmas list of a deranged child.
• How come there isn’t a company employing marketing, advertising and legal pros to streamline this process and mediate in these deals?

To be continued…….