The famous saying goes ‘there is no such thing as bad press’ but is this true? We now live in a society obsessed by celebrity culture. And celebrities are more than just ‘well known names.’ They’re carefully crafted, aspirational brands, as famous for the products they endorse as they are for their ‘talents’. The question is, what effect does negative press have on these  celeb brand business.

As you know, over the last few weeks, celebrity scandal has been everywhere. Even the highbrow broadsheets have been dedicating serious column inches to the state of Cheryl and Ashley Cole’s marriage.

In a recent article, Guardian reporter Deborah Orr wondered what Cheryl would now do with the tattoo on the back of her neck, the one that brands her ‘Mrs Cole’ for life? She concluded it would have to be painfully removed and noted: “the pain of breakup can be great to bear. And sometimes it’s the thought of all that rebranding that hurts most of all.”

Cheryl and Ashley – the truth

Divorcing Ashley may not damage Cheryl’s career, but it will certainly be a costly affair removing him from it. After all, the whole Cheryl Cole brand is based on her married name. That’s how she’s best known: as an X-Factor judge, on her album covers, even in magazines. Simply no one refers to her as Cheryl Tweedy anymore – just doesn’t have the same ring to it now, does it?

You could argue that Cheryl has got off lightly. After all, she never set out to base her career on being in a successful relationship, or by portraying herself as the perfect stay-at-home wife, endorsing mops and cookery books.

I am sure Tess Daly wishes she had taken this tip. When the news broke that her husband Vernon Kay had been indulging in a spot of ‘sexting,’ with as many as 5 other women, Tess was in the middle of promoting her new book ‘The Baby Diaries: Memories, Milestones and Misadventures’. Unfortunately the main theme of her book is her wonderful family life. In light of this, her husband’s infidelities have left her red-faced and her book pretty discredited.

Vernon’s texts leave Tess vexed

Of course, both Cheryl and Tess’s problems pale in significance to the biggest celeb scandal of 2010. Post Christmas, Tiger Woods was seen as a reliable, steady, family kinda guy. The kinda guy who could (and did) earn in excess of $110Million as the world’s number one golfer. He was a sponsor’s dream, the world’s most marketable athlete – glamorous, cool and successful – whose big money endorsements included Nike, Tag, American Express, AT+T, Accenture, Titleist and Gillette Champions. But then, disaster.

Following a strange car accident came the revelations about Woods’ extra-marital affairs. His sponsors started getting nervous. Woods was no longer the upstanding American golfer who sold thousands of products purely by having his face on their marketing material. Now he was a disgraced husband, and an embarrassment to the brand. To date Gatorade have discontinued his soft drink Tiger Focus and subsequently dropped him; Gillette has limited his use in all marketing including the Gillette Champions campaign; while Accenture have also terminated their partnership.

The wholesome brand of Tiger Woods is no more. He has even had to take an indefinite break from pro golf to ensure the survival of his marriage.

How to survive a scandal

So, is it possible to survive such a scandal? Can a career be revived or do these celebs become outcasts, their brand names in tatters?

Some celebrity brands cling for dear life to their brand image and will not let go no matter how bad things get (Katie Price anyone). Others weather the storm with silence and become even more popular.

On 15^th of September 2005 the Daily Mirror ran one of the most shocking headlines of the year, branding Kate Moss ‘Cocaine Kate.’ The proceeding article revealed graphic images of Kate and her then boyfriend Pete Doherty snorting lines of the class-A drug.

In just a few days Kate was in hiding, having lost major international contracts with H&M, Roberto Cavalli, Chanel and Burberry. She hurriedly issued a statement of apology, albeit one in which she did not admit to using drugs. Then after this initial statement, nothing. She didn’t do any interviews or speak publically about the scandal.

Taking Class A’s can be good for your career

This only added to the mystery and intrigue the public had for Kate Moss. You could say the scandal made her the definition of a rock and roll model living an outrageous lifestyle. Indeed Rimmel, one of the contracts that stuck by her (on the condition she attended rehab), used her party girl image in their next TV advertising campaign.

The ad showed the catwalk queen partying all night before applying their new foundation – called Recovery – in a taxi before arriving at work looking fresh and stunning. Sales of the foundation rocketed. Could it be that the ‘Cocaine Kate’ scandal actually enhanced Kate Moss’s career?

It definitely didn’t hinder it. 12 months after the headlines broke she was the face of 18 top modeling contracts including Roberto Cavalli (again), Stella McCartney, Virgin Mobile (who used the scandal in their campaign), Burberry (again) and Louis Vuitton to name a few. Despite the potential for catastrophe the Autumn/Winter 2006 season was one of Kate Moss’ most successful – and profitable.

Celebrities have the power

So with many celebrities unable to uphold the clean living brand image needed for endorsing products to the world, why do marketers ever risk using them? Well, as Red C copywriter Joseph Reaney pointed out in his article, The Peaks and Troughs of Celebrity Endorsement “aligning your product with a celebrity gives it a human face, voice and personality. A particular person’s attributes (sex appeal, athleticism, charm…) can rub off on the brand, allowing an inanimate object to take on a life of its own…the  right celebrity brings strong, relevant characteristics and associations that engage consumers and affect buying behaviour. In short, using the right celebrity in an appropriate brand campaign can instantly transform them into the perfect salesperson.

Trouble is, if the celeb’s credibility takes a bashing, this can have major implications for your brands integrity and image. It leaves you with a choice: end the relationship or hope the storm will blow over.

Ultimately, adopting a celebrity face can be a risky business so you need to ask yourself whether it’s a risk worth taking. Celebrity scandal will always be filling the pages of our newspaper and magazine. Some celebrities keep quiet and weather the storm (even increasing their appeal), others slip out of the public eye forever and others simply rebrand. Maybe rebranding is worth considering as the simplest solution.

Tags: Advertising Agency, Ashley Cole, Aspirational Brands, Burberry, Celebrity endorsement, Cheryl Cole, Cocaine Kate, Direct Marketing Agency, Direct Response Advertising, Gatorade, Gillette Champions, Kate Moss, Katie Price, Milestones and Misadventures, Rimmel, Roberto Cavalli, Stella McCartney, Tess Daly, The Baby Diaries: Memories, Tiger Woods, Vernon Kay, Virgin Mobile

This entry was posted on Monday, March 15th, 2010 at 2:21 pm and is filed under Blog, Branding, General Interest, Inside Information, Marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.