Lamborghini chalaayi jaane oh
Lamborghini chalaayi jaane oh
sanu vi jhoota de deyo
kithe kalle-kalle jaayi jaane oh
sanu vi jhoota de deyo
kithe kalle-kalle jaayi jaane oh
The contemporary generation would know this song and the mentioned car… But definitely not
THE Ambassador.
The first of its kind manufactured fully in India by Hindustan Motors, Ambassador car was truly known as the “King of roads”. It celebrated its 56th birthday before it went out of roads in the year 2014. Known to play very pivotal roles as government official carries to the yellow taxis of then Calcutta, Amby, as affectionally named, was truly the real Swadeshi car of India.
Now that we have know what the Ambassador stands for, let us know about Brand Ambassador.😊
Brand Ambassador / Celebrity Endorsement is a powerful communication strategy in the Branding and Marketing space… They have been used by companies extensively to establish, promote their product line.
So, what is it!!!
It is a referral marketing strategy where a product communicates/ talks with its consumers in a human form. These humans are influencers, creditable / renowned person of their field. They can be a sports person, a film celebrity, a social entrepreneur etc…
In layman terms, it’s is an association of like-minded people… friends with benefits 😊. But in reality, it is significantly much more than that… a marriage for benefit…
The product harps on the creditability, trust and the popularity of a famous personality in the mind of its target consumers. The individual is the brand ambassador. They become the custodian of the brand in the long run.
Some of the most successful and long associations worth mentioning are of Hyundai with SRK, Nike with Michael Jordan and Cristiano Ronaldo., Tag Heuer with SRK.
What goes into it? The process.
The process encompasses various stages just as a marriage would have :
Once a decision is been taken to go with the celebrity endorsement way, one of the most important aspects is to select the ambassador.
| Relevant Profile |
| Reputation in the eyes of the audience |
| High Creditability |
| Has trust in the brand |
Let’s look at Nike.
Logo – Swoosh
Tagline – Just Do it.
Product line – Sports shoes (Sneakers)
An athletic brand who illustrated itself has a go getter, achiever. So, it was natural for the brand to have these individual achievers as their brand ambassadors. All of them champions in their respective turf.
Let’s look at Lux.
“Filmy sitaaro ka manpasand sabun”, the tag line which made its presence from 1941 with its first brand ambassador Leela Chitnis. From there the baton has been carried by generations of Bollywood actresses.
Lux by this association had created a premium space amongst its competitors which signified a glamorous life style in the minds of its consumers. Those days getting a Lux endorsement meant the star has arrived.
Lux positioned itself as “Luxury soap affordable to all”.
Let’s look at Pepsi
PepsiCo entered India with the desi name “Lehar Pepsi” and positioned itself as a drink for youngsters. It reflected in its communication when they roped in Aamir Khan, Mahima Choudhary and the very young Aishwarya Rai to conceptualize one of the finest commercial till date with the tag line “Yehi hai right choice baby”.
90s kids will certainly remember the 2 sec cameo appearance by Aishwarya Rai, which made the hearts of many young boys (including myself) wobble. She is still AD for me. 😊
The image illustrates various campaigns done by the company with different iconic superstars banking on their image of smartness, young and fun.
Ironically Aamir khan only did one of these ads and went on to endorse the competitor Coca-Cola. (Remember Thanda matlab…)
So, an endorsement can be for a short period of time but a brand ambassador is for a longer duration say may be 5 to 10 years. SRK – Hyundai being the longest 24 years and counting…
Nike has made Cristiano Ronaldo their life time brand ambassador.
A million-dollar question is that after spending million or billion dollars does the company achieve ROI? If yes, what is the timeframe? More importantly does the consumer really buy the product which are endorsed by these celebrities.
I had done my capstone project in my final year MBA “Does celebrity endorsement affect customer buying pattern?” So, let’s talk about it in detail…
The Good, the bad and the Ugly.
The Good
Celebrity endorsement does work. The fact which is hard to be measured statistically, but it keeps working in the subconscious mind of the consumer. It helps to break the clutter and brings the consumer closer to their purchase decision. Though the ultimate truth is the product quality and experience. 😊
Many at times it inspires the consumers to buy products endorsed by their celebrity (Specially the younger audience).
Nike was so successful with Michael Jordan that it introduced an entire range of sneakers “Air Jordan” which was an instant it.
Rayban Aviators sunglasses sales shot by 40% when Tom cruise wore them in 1983 “Risky Business” and the 1986 cult original “Top Gun”. Before that both Wayfarers and Aviators sales were low. In 1981 the company was selling 18000 pairs annually whilst in 1988 after Tom cruise wore it sales shot up to 4-5 million.
These brand custodians are also there to help the company when they are going to rough patch. The 2003 Cadbury crises you all must would have read. The company roped in Amitabh Bachchan as their brand ambassador. His immense popularity and trust among his fans brought about the sales of the chocolate normal in 6 months.
The Bad
It is very expensive strategy, noshes up majority of the marketing budget of a company, which effects the bottom line eventually. Nike – Jordan deal was estimated $10 billion+ the Air Jordan share. (Year 1984)
Many a times, the brand ambassador overshadows the product, ex Syska is known more for Irfan Khan than its products. The “Vampire Effect” … Any other that you can remember. Let me know…
A brand can take a hit when the BA and the product have no real connect… it also affects the reputation of the ambassador. Dhoni and Amrapali Builders, Vimal Elachi and Zuban Kesari trio, – even my 11-year-old son makes mockery out of it. There any numerous such examples…
Byju’s and Lionel Messi is another bad example where the celebrity has no direct connection with the product offering. Also, Byju’s have SRK as the brand custodian in India and there was no real need to have one another specially at time when they are firing their employees.
The Ugly
It really gets ugly when the celebrity does something unlawful, the classic example is of Tiger woods.
Due to his highly publicized personal scandal, Nike lost approximately 105,000 customers. Gatorade, Accenture, and AT&T dropped him amounting to losses about $50 million. Snapdeal and Aamir Khan yet another example.
There are many examples to reinstate the fact that celebrity endorsement can turn ugly if care is not taken at both company and ambassador level.
The Ambassadors are here to stay… yes even the car… Hindustan motors have confirmed that in coming
2 years they will introduce the new design and engine.
So, we are in for a new looking “Amby” soon and that is the right choice baby…
Till that time,
Have a safe ride!!!
Thx.