Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 45

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Hall, and with sports figures including quarterback Fran Tarkenton and former Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson. Since Yallen also is an entertainment lawyer, he gets intimately involved with the business and negotiating ends of hiring celebrity spokespeople. But always, he says, the first question is, does the campaign for a particular product need a celebrity at all?

Do You Need One?
It is probably easiest to define the kinds of DR products that don’t call for a celebrity – the categories for which a famous spokesperson probably will be an unnecessary expense. For instance, Yallen says, a celebrity is unlikely to pay off if the product is intended to be a shortterm phenomenon. Is it something that will sell on TV and perhaps in retail for

awhile, “but even if it’s a hit it won’t be long lasting, it won’t become a brand?” That is a strike against the idea of paying for a celebrity spokesperson, he says, because celebrity affiliations are most valuable when you are building a brand. Do you really care only about immediate sales figures, or do you also look at metrics involving, say, awareness levels? “If your awareness goes up from 80 percent to 92 percent [because you used a celebrity], I’d argue that over time that will pay,” Yallen says. “But if you’re looking strictly at DR numbers, you don’t think so.” As for product categories unlikely to benefit much from celebrities, Yallen points to the classic example of highly demonstrable products that can sell themselves if only you show the viewer how they work: stain removers, “hardcore slicer/dicers” and other products that produce visible, dramatic results. Barbara Kerry, president of DRTV production house Script to Screen of Santa Ana, Calif., makes a similar point by drawing a distinction between exercise program P90X and exercise machine Total Gym. Script to Screen now handles the Total Gym campaign – and its celebrity hosts Chuck Norris and Christie Brinkley – for marketer American Telecast. Both Total Gym and P90X are longlasting hit DR products, Kerry points out. “But P90X didn’t need celebrities because it’s a very intense program that results in quick, formidable transformations that you can see.” Total Gym, especially when it first launched, “wasn’t about hard-core transformation,” Kerry says. It is an easy, fun device for people who want to get or stay in shape – one they are likely to keep using as part of an ongoing fitness regimen. That requires more explanation along with the visuals, she says.

A Trusted Pal
If you have to explain the product, instead of just showing it, the explanation must be believable. At the most basic level, this is why a celebrity can be worth a few hundred thousand 45

Courtesy of Inter/Media Group of Companies

September 2011 | electronicRETAILER



Electronic Retailer - September 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Electronic Retailer - September 2011

Calendar of Events
Your Association, Your Bottom Line
Industry Reports
FTC Forum
eMarketer Research
IMS Retail Rankings
Jordan Whitney’s Top Categories
Lockard & Wechsler’s Clearance & Price Index
Letter from the Chairman
The Future of TV?
I’m Famous, And I’m Here to Help ... Maybe
A good celebrity spokesperson is authentic and believes in the product.
I Gotta Have That!
Get Ready for the Next New Thing
Guest Viewpoint
DRTV
Legal
Member Spotlight
Advertiser Spotlight
Bulletin Board
Advertiser Index
Classifieds
Rick Petry
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - cover1
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - cover2
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 3
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 4
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 5
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 6
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Calendar of Events
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Your Association, Your Bottom Line
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 9
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Industry Reports
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 11
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 12
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 13
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 14
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 15
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 16
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 17
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 18
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 19
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 20
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 21
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - FTC Forum
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 23
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - eMarketer Research
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 25
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 26
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 27
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - IMS Retail Rankings
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 29
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 30
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 31
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Jordan Whitney’s Top Categories
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 33
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Lockard & Wechsler’s Clearance & Price Index
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 35
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Letter from the Chairman
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 37
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - The Future of TV?
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 39
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 40
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 41
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 42
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 43
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - A good celebrity spokesperson is authentic and believes in the product.
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 45
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 46
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 47
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 48
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 49
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - I Gotta Have That!
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 51
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 52
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 53
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 54
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 55
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Get Ready for the Next New Thing
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 57
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 58
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Guest Viewpoint
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 60
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 61
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - DRTV
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 63
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 64
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 65
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Legal
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 67
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Member Spotlight
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 69
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 70
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 71
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Advertiser Spotlight
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Bulletin Board
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 74
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Advertiser Index
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Classifieds
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - 77
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - Rick Petry
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - cover3
Electronic Retailer - September 2011 - cover4
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