in: Public Relations
by: Sabina Hitchen
Oh the elusive yet ever-powerful celebrity product placement opportunity. Nearly every product-based brand (and some services) spend a lot of time, energy and brainpower trying to make it happen, yet some don't realize that they're actually making it more difficult for themselves, and less authentic in terms of their brand story, by making a few mistakes in the "celebrity selection" process. We're here to help you make sure you don't do that again. You see, the "insiders", and by that I mean PR agencies, big businesses with long-term celebrity relationships (or the money to create them) and other celebrity relationship builders know a few secrets that small business owners learn the hard way, until know.
Below find four things the pros are doing to get their celebrity endorsements and create relationships with public figures that are mutually beneficial for years to come. Read 'em, commit them to memory and start acting on them the next time you wonder "how can I use a celebrity go get visibility and sales for my business?"
Want access to even more in-depth tips and a step-by-step strategy to help you land celebrity or stylist relationships? Check out this podcast! Oh and here's another! Plus, we're talking about it in our private member forum!
GET YOURSELF OFF THE A-LIST HUNT
Sure we all want Angelina Jolie or Selena Gomez or Jimmy Fallon to endorse our product or service, but these are tough nuts to crack (and some will even charge you to tweet or be photographed with your product. Try what I like to call "lower hanging fruit". How about an up and comer? A celebrity that is less buzzed about at the moment but on their way to super stardom? [Insider Trick: You can check IMDB.com or do a simple Google search to ascertain which shows, movies and so forth are coming up and who stars in them!] How about someone who isn't on a hit show or doesn't have a top ten single but still has a passionate and avid following. Maybe a younger or older celebrity less often featured in Us Weekly or Star Magazine. Though they aren't followed by a gaggle of paparazzi they can still give you validation, buzz and make a great plug on your website! These are often celebrities - especially the newcomers, who are easier to get to now, and will become long term supporters of your business as you both grow! It's a win-win for both of you!
GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF HOLLYWOOD
Sure, actors and singers and so forth are exciting, visible celebrities but guess what? So are athletes, race car drivers, well known chefs, Instagram "celebrities", on-air anchors, politicians...you get it. The key here is to think about who would be a natural and authentic match for your product or service, and who has fans or followers who would be a fan of what you do as well. Find those authentic connections in a well known person and it doesn't matter if they're in a summer blockbuster. In fact, sometimes getting love or acknowledgement from these other types of celebrities can be even more powerful! So expand your reach. Figure out what types of well known men and women (and those who love them) are great matches for your brand.
DON'T FORGET THE POWER OF CELEBU-TOTS
These days the American public eat up not only what the celebrities are wearing, eating, playing with, doing in their spare time, reading and so forth but they also follow what their kids are doing. This means if you have products to market to the children of celebrities, you can send them over to them and have the same impact. I once worked on a campaign that was for an apparel company, and instead of gifting only the adult celebrities, we gave apparel to their non-celebrity kids. Within months the children of Heidi Klum, Reese Witherspoon and more were getting this small business more buzz than all the adult celebs wearing their products did combined.
DON'T THROW PRODUCT OUT HOPING SOMETHING "STICKS"
I don't know about you but most businesses I know don't have the time or money or extra product available to mass ship my products (or offer free services) to scores of celebrities. Instead, do your research, determine a budget (or set amount of product "gifts" you'll be sharing) and really filter your celebrity outreach list to those that are good matches (see above for help with that). The strategy of "let me just throw a lot of things at a wall and hope something sticks" is not a winning strategy, and will not get you the results you want. It's also a massive waste of time and money, which you don't want to make a part of your business.
GET FEEDBACK
Another way you can get insider tips and "what works" advice about getting your product on celebrities is by talking to other small biz owners who are doing it already, or have the answers to your questions. Join the live conversation about it in our member forum!
