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Which active athlete would you use to endorse your brand?
While pro athlete product endorsement has been tarnished a bit recently (cough, Tiger), there are still plenty of upstanding citizens in jerseys out there ready and willing to endorse razors, soda and consulting companies. Who would you choose to represent your business?
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7 Answers
Good but boring - Phil Mickelson
Good but not an elite player - Andy Roddick
Good but on the downside of his career - Derek Jeter
Perfect for alternative brands - Brian Wilson and Tim Lincecum
Destroyed by taking their talents to South Beach - Lebron and Dwayne Wade
If I had a brand, I would stick the top NFL QB's that don't like dogfighting - Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees
I don't necessarily agree that one must be an upstanding citizen to receive brand endorsement deals. I think it has a lot more to do with matching message to an authentic persona. Tiger simply wasn't authentic. Plenty of athletes with off-field mishaps are perfect for the message they are asked to promote. Conversely, the public often finds the angelic athletic stars to be boring (see: Tim Duncan, David Robinson).
Antonio Cromartie isn't the greatest human being alive, but if Pampers had hired him...man, that could have gone viral.
I agree with Chris' comments in general but it also depends on the product category.
1. Precision time pieces - Roger Federer/Maria Sharapova
2. Beer, snacks and OTC pain medication - Shaq
3. Men's hair product - Troy Polamalu and Clay Matthews
4. Trucks and minivans - Jeff Gordon / DEJ / Danica Patrick
5. Healthy food - Michael Phelps / Mia Hamm
6. Pharma research/drugs - Lance Armstrong
7. Cologne - Beckham
8. Retirement/financial services - Jack Nicklaus
9. Hip electronics - Shaun White
10. Coke and a Smile - Williams Sisters
Right now, I'd be very careful about using any athletes in advertising without an extensive background check first. We all thought Tiger Woods was living up to the squeaky-clean image he was portraying until the truth came out, but some detective work might have uncovered enough of the truth to allow an advertiser to distance themselves in time.
Brian, I don't think one has to be an upstanding citizen to get endorsement deals, but a brand needs to know what it's getting involved with when it signs an athlete. If I'm going to spend millions of dollars to tie my brand to an athlete with "Reputation A" and it turns out that I'm getting the exact opposite, then that money is wasted and my brand's reputation is potentially compromised. Cromartie and Pampers would have been great...because Pampers would have known exactly what it was getting.
With the 2012 golf season getting underway a great answer to this question is Tiger Woods. He's gotten over the hump of finally winning and his head might be back in the game. Remember, golf is 90% mental and 10% physical. Over the last 2 year Tiger has lost many sponsorships due to his personal life (which carried over into his professional success). With that now in his past, he's going to become the Tiger of old, or so I hope.
Seriously, no pick for Tim Tebow! Was I the only one who saw the amazing snipet on Tim Tebow's before and after game contributions with real people.
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