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Fewer Celebrity Ads During Grammys Signal Media Shift

Advertising Age, Friday, February 13, 2009 9:30 AM

The Chris Brown scandal will likely add to the slowdown of artist endorsements in ads. This year's Grammy telecast is a milestone in the decline of celebrity endorsements, which dropped by 46% compared to last year, per GreenLight, a media and talent rights clearinghouse.

Rather than a blip, the decline is part of a larger shift. Grammys ads with celebrity endorsements slid from 21% of spots in 2007 to 13% last year to only 7% of spots this year, excluding ads for recordings and movie trailers.

This doesn't mean marketing with celebs is out. Fewer celebrity endorsements reflect a change in media buying, says David Schwab, director of Octagon First Call. It shows a shift in "how a brand is going to spend its money in the entertainment space. Many brands working with celebrities are now talking about using only PR and viral," instead of advertising, he says. "People are just trying to do different things and stretch dollars."

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