Okonkwo Prelims

valuation and forecasting. It aims to remove the ambiguity that surrounds

celebrity appeal and acts as a guideline for celebrity choice in advertising.

Celebrity endorsement is not rosy at all times. Several risks are associated

with this brand communications strategy; therefore luxury brands should

meticulously evaluate all the inter-connecting elements related to this strat-

egy. The following list covers some of the potential hazards involved in

celebrity endorsement:

1 Celebrities can get into public controversies that might harm the brands

they endorse.

2 The image of celebrities can be damaged as a result of professional or

personal circumstances. This is automatically transferred to the brands

they represent.

3 Celebrities can disappear from the spotlight of their careers even before the

advertising campaign is over.

4 Celebrities can become over-exposed and lose their star appeal as a result

of endorsing multiple brands in different categories. For example, Kate

Moss has represented luxury brands Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Dior, Yves

Saint Laurent and Chanel but also mass cosmetics brand Rimmel, which is

sold in supermarkets.

As a model, Kate Moss is performing her professional duties by endors-

ing various brands but when her status transcends to that of a celebrity,

then the luxury brands’ image balance with her celebrity status should be

checked.

5 Celebrities can also decide to change their image, which might sometimes

be a contradicting image to the brands they currently endorse.

6 Celebrities can decide to intentionally damage a brand if they feel that the

brand did not meet their (sometimes extraneous) demands or did not give

them the star treatment they desired.

As earlier identified, a key aspect of celebrity endorsement is related to the

issue of the over-exposure of celebrities who endorse multiple brands within

a short time period. This is often found among celebrities that are in ‘popular

demand’ at a particular time. The multiple brand endorsements could lead to

an over-exposure of the luxury brand or an undermining of its brand percep-

tion. This is because consumers could associate the luxury brand with the

overall package that the celebrity and the multiple endorsements represent. If

the multiple brands that the celebrity represents constitutes of mass-market

brands or ‘low-value’ brands in other product categories, the damage on the

luxury brand’s equity could be worse. For example, the talented musician

Madonna has represented luxury brand Versace as well as mass-premium

brand H&M. Do her multiple endorsements affect the brand equity of the

luxury brands she represents? In the evaluation of these endorsements, it is

important to understand whether the two brands and adverts address the same

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luxury fashion branding