In today’s highly competitive market, advertising has become an indispensable tool for brands to establish relevance. Various strategies are constantly put in place in order to reach the desired audience most effectively.
Across brand promo, the use of celebrity branding or endorsement is predominant. This is a form of advertising campaign wherein a company utilizes star power to promote a brand, product, or service, and to raise awareness of certain advocacies or causes.
The Philippines is no stranger to using celebrity as a promotional strategy. Over the years, various companies have even brought in foreign stars as endorsers or presenters for Filipino brands.
In the business of celebrity branding in the Philippines, one PR agency dominates the field: PUBLICITYASIA.
While the use of local stars have been practiced in marketing and advertising for decades, PUBLICITYASIA has leveled up the playing field by bridging local brands to some of the world’s biggest stars.
“It works because global celebrities can instantly reach the widest audience possible,” says Joyce A. Ramirez, Celebrity Acquisition Head and Lead PR at PUBLICITYASIA.
“Celebrity dominates pop culture while pop culture dominates the world. It is the most impactful way for brands to capture attention versus plain product advertising.”
The Power of Celebrity Branding
Take the partnership of Smart Communications Inc. and the world’s biggest pop sensation, BTS.
During the height of the lockdown, Smart set out to create an inspirational campaign that would resonate with the younger generation affected by the global pandemic.
“We wanted the right ambassadors who can help deliver a most positive message,” explained Jane Jimenez Basas, CEO/President of MediaQuest Holdings. “And there was only one act capable of doing just that.”
In June 2020, Smart enlisted the services of top celebrity PR agency, PUBLICITYASIA.
Their mission: secure BTS’s first brand endorsement in the Philippines, a gargantuan feat.
Seven months later, the campaign “Live Your Passion with Purpose” was announced on January 18, 2021. Social media was on fire. The hashtag #SmartBTS became the no. 1 trending topic in the Philippines and worldwide; powered by a horde of loyal Filipino ARMY willing to purchase anything that had the stamp of Smart + BTS on it.
Worth its Weight in Gold
That same year, the Journal of Business and Management Studies at the University of Santo Tomas released an independent study called the “Role of Korean Endorsers on Philippines’ Telecommunication Brands.”
The objective was to determine the impact of BTS on Smart and how the market reacted to the partnership.
The results were significant: the study showed that the partnership with BTS further enhanced the consumers’ brand perception of Smart. It also helped convince the market about the quality of Smart’s products and services after the partnership was launched.
Looking Beyond the Stars
“The value added by an international star to a local brand is instant and palpable,” explains Ramirez. “Once a global celebrity agrees to partner with a local brand, an element of supremacy and legitimacy is guaranteed.”
Securing a star, producing the material then activating the campaign may seem to be all there is, but Ramirez cautions that there is still so much more for the initiative to be considered a resounding success.
“While the power of celebrity can create impact in the short-term, it is still just a portion of the bigger marketing effort needed to truly maximize the long-term effects on the brand,” she says.
“Relying on celebrity alone does not guarantee success. Rather, it is the combination of different factors in the overall marketing play that must be tied together for the investment to work.”
The work, Ramirez says, doesn’t end with just getting the deal past the door. For the campaign to succeed, it needs a “well-planned and well-executed strategy” to continually generate interest and support.
Sustaining a campaign’s momentum ensures that all the hard work put into a acquiring the celebrity’s nod are not wasted and continues to push the brand even further and beyond the stars.
To know more about how PUBLICITYASIA can help elevate your brand campaign, visit their website at https://publicityasia.com or email pr@publicityasia.com
ADVT.
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