Ambassadors can indeed help a brand because brand ambassadors are also influencers. Companies have started to use them and this strategy to promote a brand and it has been very effective ever since.
Throughout the years, people can spot a big change on how this became very relevant most especially to the local brands stepping up their game in the international scene. In today’s highly competitive market, advertising is your strongest tool to establish its relevance. Celebrities in the international scene dominate pop culture and this is one of the biggest factors. It serves the largest impact in this country which focuses on trends and the advantage of capturing attention through this kind.
One of the greatest examples we can attest to is the time where Smart Communications Inc. had BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan) as their brand ambassador. During the pandemic, Smart’s strategy is to create a campaign in which it could pass messages to the younger generations since the pandemic. According to Publicity Asia’s Celebrity Acquisition Head and Lead PR, Joyce Ramirez, their mission was to secure BTS’s first endorsement in the Philippines. The campaign was on fire and the rest was history.
“Once a global celebrity agrees to partner with a local brand, an element of supremacy and legitimacy is guaranteed. Relying on celebrity alone does not guarantee success. Rather, it is the combination of different factors in the overall marketing play that must be tied together for the investment to work.” Ramirez added.
If you take a look, here are some of the brands and their global ambassadors:
PENSHOPPE
Penshoppe began doing this in 1995 and their ambassadors never disappoint. It started from boy band Boyzone, to Mandy Moore, Ed Westwick, Mario Maurer, Zac Efron, One Direction, and many more. It’s a long line of big stars participating in world class campaigns which serve uniqueness in every take. Right now, they’ve been tapping Asian artists—most particularly Korean stars, who are now currently predominant in this act. Some of the artists include BLACKPINK’S Lisa, TWICE, and Han So Hee.
KAMISETA
2002 was the year for Kamiseta. Alicia Silverstone became the very first Hollywood star who wore and endorsed a 100% Filipino-owned company. This broke news and topped the headlines. Still on its pace, the brand is still on its way to project its glamor and class. Some of their endorsers and ambassadors include Katie Holmes, Natalie Portman, Petra Nemkova, and a lot more.
BENCH
Bench was really known for getting international ambassadors and they’re all living the hype. Starting from Nonie Tao and Jerry Yan in the early 2000s, to Adam Levine and Bruno Mars, they also got their hands on their first Hollywood star: Nicole Scherzinger, who has Filipino blood. Right now, the brand is still serving the same goal: to be the best when it comes to proving that their brand is going places. At present, their ambassadors include Korean actors Ji Chang Wook, Hyun Bin, Park Seo Joon, and K-pop superstars ITZY and TWICE.
CONCLUSION
Over the years, a handful of Filipino clothing brands have stepped up their marketing efforts and cast a wider net to entice Hollywood celebrities to wear their gear. Celebrities can persuade people by just giving a look. And it’s a fact that people often look up to celebrities for fashion and lifestyle inspiration. Celebrities could also use their popularity to raise awareness on important social or political issues or to ask people to patronize certain products or services. It’s a continuous cycle of doing it again– the brand’s attack and specific strategy to reach its potential customers through this type of marketing.
Brands and companies, both local and international, love to tap celebrities in promoting their products and services. It’s a strategy—that in order for some brands to sell, they need to do a little tapping, a little bit of convincing since Filipino local brands have been stepping up the game in which people love and look up to.
