Celebrity Influencers Aren't Cheap

As the digital era progresses and more and more children replace their toys for the new iPhone 6s, the realm of marketing is progressing as well. The overwhelming usage of smartphones, tablets, etc., allow for marketers to reach their consumers in a whole new way. In my promotional strategy class with Professor Costanzo, Chapter 6 discussed source, message, and channel factors, and more specifically, the usage of celebrities. Belch & Belch argue that marketers recognize the value of using admired spokespeople, like celebrities. The digital era produced the usage of social networking sites and thanks to Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc., fans can connect with celebrities on a whole new level these days.

Social media allows for fans to dig into the personal lives of our favorite celebrities like Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, and Kendall Jenner. It is not surprising that marketers quickly jumped onto the idea to market to consumers using the likability of everyone's favorite A-list celebs. From my own experiences, I cannot remember the last time I scrolled through my Instagram feed without seeing a celebrity promote a teeth whitener or a waist-trainer (I follow a lot of celebrities on Instagram, guilty!). But, how much goes into these Instagram posts that receive over an average of 500,000 likes. That means that 500,000 people viewed the ad, and that is just the people who "liked" it! That number does not include the number of people who viewed it!

I remember doing a blog post over the summer for my internship at Schneider Associates. I wrote about an article that E! News posted about how celebrities hire social media managers who stage the perfect social media posts. These posts have the lighting on them perfectly, the angle makes them look good, there is extensive make-up, etc. It is incredible!

So lets use the example represented by the picture provided above. To some, that Instagram picture Kendall Jenner posted is just a picture of her drinking coffee or tea. However, the thought that most likely went into that post is astonishing. Near the bottom left corner of the picture, Kendall is wearing the newest jewelry phenomenon known as the Lokai Bracelet. This is a perfect example of a product placement using celebrities for the message. Marketers hope that if Kendall Jenner wears a Lokai Bracelet, then I want to wear one! So, how much does it cost for Lokai to get an A-list celebrity to post about their brand on social media? Well, it definitely is not cheap. AdWeek finds that that simple Instagram post with Kendall sipping her coffee wearing a Lokai Bracelet costs a whopping $230,000. That is crazy! No wonder celebrities make most of their money off endorsement deals.

Is it really worth all of that money? In my opinion, yes. If you can afford it, why not? Social media is a huge influencer these days, especially to young girls who look up to their favorite celebrities and live vicariously through their social media posts. As the digital age progresses, I do not see that price decreasing anytime soon.