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Hence, we see depending on the product and aspect of brand, the choice of the celebrity is important so that the celebrity can reflect that and not go against the brand.

Getting back to the basic of branding after such exhaustive examples can make us reflect on our choices of celebrity and the impact on the brand.
We talk about Brand Equity, Brand Identity and Position. It is worthwhile to see the effect of a celebrity on these critical elements. Brand equity essentially made up of loyalty, awareness, perceived quality, associations, and other proprietary brand assets. The celebrity should be chosen in such a way as to reinforce and strengthen the brand in all these elements but the question is, can he? Take an example of another star Fardeen Khan, who endorses Provogue. Snazzy fashionable apparel from an Indian manufacturer with the backing of a star son was a great idea for the brand image. It was able to attract new customers who were fashion conscious but unable to afford high price international brands.

Awareness of the brand was phenomenal as fashion shows, print and media advertising was booming and Fardeen and Provgue had become a national phenomenon. Quality was given utmost importance and, hence, from the manufacturer side, the commitment to the customer was complete. Competition was present but sales figures showed Provogue reaping handsomely. Then the image of the so-called Bad Boy Fardeen emerged with the drug and brawls in night clubs. This did lead to a certain discontent amongst fans of the star and the brand. But remarkably not much effect on sales. It seemed that the consumers had forgotten Fardeen's issues and remained loyal to the brand. Today Fardeen is still the mainframe picture of every advertisement and the brand has not lost any of its shine.

Conclusion

Celebrities have always been the easiest way for a new product launch (consumer goods) and will remain to do so in the near future on account of their mass appeal and a world full of star stuck loyal fans. But the impact on the brand is much greater than just an advertisement showing a celebrity.

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* Contributed by: -
Naveen Blazey & Shashi Kanth Ganti,
Goa Institute of Management, Goa.