Value of celebrity PR

Here at de Winter we have just finished the ‘Christmas lights switch on season’ and what a Christmas it has been!

Last week culminated in the one and only Peter Andre in Warrington. He was great, the crowds loved him and the media coverage and buzz ensured it was a surefire success for the client, Golden Square Shopping Centre.

What is the real value of Celebrity PR?

Companies spend millions on celebrity endorsement and it has helped to change the media's attitude to PR.

Celebrities are great for the tabloids, and so the media are now more than happy to speak to us creative PR’s who have a celebrity story.

The appetite for celebrity is huge. This is because people can get so much more involved in celebrity life. You can now view a right Royal rugby knees up seconds after the photo is taken in Queenstown and images of Jordan at McDonalds. In today's world of Big Brother, Heat and Grazia no celebrity story is too small and the public eat it up.

For brands this is an opportunity and it doesn’t need to be expensive. A clever, creative use of a well known face can reaffirm a brand’s relationship with its audience, can get people talking about it (huge currency on social media too!) and generate massive PR coverage in the national press. The use of Peter Andre for Golden Square Shopping Centre is a great example – he has his own reality TV show therefore a ready-made relationship with an audience.

Far too many people stick their noses up at celebrities – but they simply don’t ‘get it’. The famous, whether A-list or D-list, have succeeded in not just developing their own personal brand equity but creating a demand for it too.

The thousands who queued on Friday night in Warrington are proof how celebrity PR can be a cost effective marketing tool to generate huge media and public awareness. Which in monetary terms far outweighs the actual celebrity booking fee.