Celebrity endorsements: Do they work?

Over the past couple of months, Kenyan entertainers have been scrambling to get a piece of the election pie with various celebrities aligning themselves with their preferred political outfits. For the entertainers, it’s an opportunity to make a quick buck. For the politicians, a step towards wooing yet another vote in their tally.

“You see politicians have to pay people to attend their rallies but for entertainers, people pay to come see us,” says gospel rapper cum activist Juliani.

The idea of celebrity endorsements is quite simple. People like celebrities. If those celebrities say that they like/support a product/cause, people will too. But does it really work? Is celebrity “coolness” as contagious as it is often touted to be, especially in Kenya?

“For someone or some organisation to request a celebrity figure to endorse a given initiative, it means they have observed that this celebrity has a certain fan base that they would like to tap into,” says singer Avril. “It says that they believe you can accomplish something that they are unable to.”

During the 2008 US elections, various “A list” celebrities declared their support for President Barrack Obama’s bid. In the aftermath of the elections, it was reported that this greatly boosted Obama’s win with Oprah Winfrey said to have influenced up to one million voters towards Obama’s historic victory. The same was replicated in President Obama’s 2012 bid when rapper Jay Z and his wife Beyonce emerged as the celebrity faces of the Obama campaign. Again, he won.

So, what accounts for this celebrity effect? Endorsements could be said to be a signal of quality – but the modern consumer is sophisticated. They know money is changing hands. At a deeper level though, it’s only human that fans seem to crave a connection to the famous and the powerful.

Entertainment bigwig Buddha Blaze who doubles up as a consultant for a major Kenyan PR firm opines that “celebrity endorsements are a big deal. Even here in Kenya. It might not be on the American scale but the fact that they have an audience means there’s an opportunity.”

Take Jaguar for instance. With the back to back success of his “Kigeugeu” and “Matapeli” singles, he is arguably one of the topmost ranking Kenyan celebrities at the moment. Little wonder that every politician in the country would want him on his side and with his open support of Mike Mbuvi Sonko’s senatorial bid, it would be expected that this will greatly boost his campaign. The same goes for the likes of Bamboo and Abbas who have been linked to TNA presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta’s bid and Prezzo and Redsan to CORD’s Raila Odinga.

“It’s hard to quantify the impact of these celebrity endorsements in actual figures but bearing in mind that in politics every vote counts, it wouldn’t hurt if they were able to sway any number of undecided voters in favour of their respective aspirants,” argues Buddha Blaze.

In the West where celebrity endorsements are known to significantly determine the outcome of an election, a reverse mechanism applies. Instead of politicians paying celebrities to endorse them, celebs endorse politicians they support to raise funds or drive support for their campaigns either in form of personal donations, event hosting or even bundling hundreds of thousands of dollars from other well-heeled constituents.

Ethnic calculations

Jay-Z and Beyoncé feted Obama at the 40/40 club and helped raise $15 million while Gwen Stefani brought in more than $500,000 for his campaign. Mariah Carey crooned for him and George Clooney played host to an event that raised $15 million for the Obama 2012 campaign.

But given the firm grip ethnicity has proven to have on Kenyan politics, one can only wonder if the celebrities’ declaration will have any impact on voters’ opinions and voting patterns.
“Everyone has their reasons why they do what they do,” says Juliani. “Some do it because they’re getting paid while others do it because they share the aspirants’ convictions. For me it’s about informing my fans and youth in general and empowering them to make sound choices. That’s what I choose to speak for as opposed to individuals.”

There is of course a flip side to all the positives that celebrity endorsements present. A potential supporter who does not like a certain celebrity might be put off if the said celebrity turn up to endorse the candidate.