According to a new report, consumers are showing signs of fatigue towards celebrity marketing. The cult of celebrity has reached a crossroads – over-exposed celebrities have saturated the market and aging populations mean that the growth audience is shrinking. Marketers must therefore pursue new tactics to avoid the pitfalls associated with celebrity-backed campaigns or celebrity-branded consumer packaged goods.Within our modern consumer societies, the celebration of fame has witnessed a dramatic upsurge in recent years. Reality TV, celebrity gossip magazines and the Internet as a round-the-clock source of celebrity information have fed consumers’ celebrity hunger. This has converged with entertainment and sport industries eager to feed that hunger, creating a fertile ground for consumer packaged goods (CPG) marketers to convey their messages via the celebrity medium.

However, this explosive phenomenon faces growing challenges. Many consumers are reaching saturation point, suffering from so-called “celebrity fatigue”. Consumer cynicism is piqued by celebrities endorsing too many disparate products, undermining both the individual’s and the brands’ credibility. Falling celebrity brand equity and scandals can directly hit endorsed brands’ fortunes and sometimes celebrity endorser’s own personal brand strength can overshadow that of the brand they are meant to be endorsing.

Products are emerging as the next generation of celebrities. Apple’s iPod and especially the iPhone have transcended mere product status and become iconic, with globally recognized identities and, indeed, personalities of their own. Consumers’ relationships with these celebrity-like branded products are based heavily on participation and interaction, two behaviors that are desired, but rarely achieved by everyday people in their relationships with actual celebrity idols.

For celebrity branding to remain effective, marketers must make sure that celebrity campaigns are underpinned by a strong brand message or story – the celebrity can then add value rather than be used to make up for a lack of substance in the actual product.

Consumers are also increasingly viewing authenticity as a key determinant in their consumption behaviors and thus the most authentic celebrity-marketed brands are those where a celebrity themselves created them. Also, avoiding the craze for so-called “nonebrities”, the reality TV-fuelled breed of celebrity essentially famous for being famous who embody Andy Warhol’s comment that “in the future everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes”, is crucial for brands looking to achieve longevity and avoid looking opportunistic or short-term in their strategic positioning.

Related Research: The Cult of Celebrity: Exploring the implications for effective consumer packaged goods branding