News
Celebs Collect Cash For Product Plug$
A New York Post article about Ashton Kutcher praising small online companies in media appearances is a case in point. The actor, who became the first person with more than 1 million followers on Twitter, owns stock in the plugged companies Tnychat, Foursquare, Airbn and others but doesn’t disclose his insider interest to fans. An expert cited in the New York Post article says lack of disclosure risks running into trouble with securities laws.
Two weeks ago, I wrote a Variety story about celebrities moving from using cyberspace to simply connect directly to fans to making money on their cyberspace activites. A Beverly Hills agency Ad.ly lines up sponsors who pay famous athletes and Hollywood types to send ad messages to followers, which are labeled as paid message.
“Marketers have quickly come to realize that celebrities are magnets for corralling eyeballs in social media” such as Facebook and Twitter, says the Variety article. “In the flip of a Twitter hashtag, Ashton Kutcher, Oprah Winfrey, 50cent and Sheen each can deliver millions of followers.” Nielsen research indicates that consumers who are interested in celebrities are also very brand conscious, which means Hollywood stars have a strong influence over a prime demographic. Of course, celebrities are scandal prone, which is a drawback to having them serve as product presenters.
The Variety article notes the celebrity-owned websites generate miniscule traffic, but the same persons have big followings on Twitter and can be a magnet on Facebook. So using third-party platforms with built-in audiences works.
Celebrities use their following to plug their own branded products where perfumes and colognes are particularly successful. “Big-selling scents from Celine Dion, Tim McGraw and Sarah Jessica Parker (all with Coty), Hilary Duff (Elizabeth Arden), Paris Hilton and Queen Latifah (Parlux Fragrances) and Justin Bieber (Give Back Brands)” are hit products, the Variety article notes. “Industry newsletter “The Licensing Letter” estimates that North American retail sales of licensed fragrances rose 7.1% in 2010 -- an impressive increase when compared with an average 4% recession-induced decline for 32 categories within the entire licensed-merchandise business, which is defined as products carrying identification of third parties.”
www.nypost.com/p/news/national/ashton_hard_sell_with_feds_UZ4eeUkWTmYXe8GIRMgWWJ
www.variety.com/article/VR1118040965
www.marketingmovies.net/news/wsj-sees-star-power-return-in-film-ads/
www.marketingmovies.net/news/nicolas-cage-risks-bad-boy-perils/
www.marketingmovies.net/chapters/chapter-4-tieins-prod-placement/