Lesson 14 — Activity 2: Celebrity Endorsements and Product Placement
Completion requirements
Lesson 14 — Activity 2:
Celebrity Endorsements
and
Product Placement
As you have learned, advertising is a big business, involving billions of dollars every year.
Advertisers often spend money on celebrity endorsements. A famous person agrees to wear certain clothes or jewellery, drive a certain car, or use some product to promote a particular product, brand name, or service. In exchange, the company pays the celebrity a fee and you pay for that in the price of the product.
One well-known example of a celebrity who endorses products is Lebron James, who plays basketball for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA. It is estimated that James will earn $44 million in 2015 while endorsing products for Samsung, Nike, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, and Kia to name just a few.
We need to realize that an athlete, actor, or other famous person is not necessarily endorsing a product because it is the best product available. Usually a celebrity endorses a product because the company that sells it is paying a lot of money for that person to do so!
Also, remember that celebrities are not necessarily experts about the products they endorse. For example, Wayne Gretzky, a famous hockey player, sold Ford cars. Although Gretzky may be thought of as one of the greatest hockey players in history, we may not be so sure what qualifies him to tell us that Fords are the best vehicle to buy.
Advertisers often spend money on celebrity endorsements. A famous person agrees to wear certain clothes or jewellery, drive a certain car, or use some product to promote a particular product, brand name, or service. In exchange, the company pays the celebrity a fee and you pay for that in the price of the product.
One well-known example of a celebrity who endorses products is Lebron James, who plays basketball for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA. It is estimated that James will earn $44 million in 2015 while endorsing products for Samsung, Nike, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, and Kia to name just a few.
We need to realize that an athlete, actor, or other famous person is not necessarily endorsing a product because it is the best product available. Usually a celebrity endorses a product because the company that sells it is paying a lot of money for that person to do so!
Also, remember that celebrities are not necessarily experts about the products they endorse. For example, Wayne Gretzky, a famous hockey player, sold Ford cars. Although Gretzky may be thought of as one of the greatest hockey players in history, we may not be so sure what qualifies him to tell us that Fords are the best vehicle to buy.
Watch these videos that show celebrity endorsements.
Now that you have viewed the videos, answer these questions for yourself:
1. Which celebrities are being featured?
2. What products are they endorsing?
3. Why might the advertising executives have chosen these particular celebrities? (In other words, why would THESE celebrities make the audience MORE LIKELY to buy or use the products?)
1. Which celebrities are being featured?
2. What products are they endorsing?
3. Why might the advertising executives have chosen these particular celebrities? (In other words, why would THESE celebrities make the audience MORE LIKELY to buy or use the products?)
A less obvious advertising tactic companies use to promote their products is product placement.
This is the practice of paying television and movie producers, video and computer game creators, and even writers to use certain products onscreen or in stories. For example, a soft drink company may pay thousands of dollars to have its product sitting on the table in the background of a scene in a TV show.
While it is not wrong to buy a product because a famous person appears in ads for it or because it was used in a movie, if we are aware of these marketing strategies, we may make better consumer choices.
This is the practice of paying television and movie producers, video and computer game creators, and even writers to use certain products onscreen or in stories. For example, a soft drink company may pay thousands of dollars to have its product sitting on the table in the background of a scene in a TV show.
While it is not wrong to buy a product because a famous person appears in ads for it or because it was used in a movie, if we are aware of these marketing strategies, we may make better consumer choices.
Now watch this video. How many products can you spot in these clips from TV shows?