1. What is the brand essence of ‘David Beckham’ the brand? Describe, using adjectives, David Beckham, the brand. What values are inherent in the brand? Have they changed over time and if so, how?

Brand essence: Immense charisma People could identify with him, coming from a middle class background Appealing to all different types of age groups and people, sport fans as well as non-football fans,

because of his looks, charisma and attitudes

Beckham, the brand: The brand stands for style/fashion, authenticity and success Fashionable: With all the different fashion brands he endorsed (Adidas, Brylcreem, …) combined

with Victoria’s sense of fashion David Beckham was able to set new trends Approachable: people feel connected to him and his success story The brand also expresses the promise of success, due to Beckham’s success story

Values: Family-committed Success-Story Talent Stylish Authenticity

Changed: Yes: Due to the increasing number of brands he endorsed, he became over-exposed, therefore

losing credibility and exclusivity This lead to David Beckham losing authenticity, which also weakened the style –factor of the

brands he endorsed

2. What type of product/s do you believe is/are most appropriate for endorsement by David Beckham? Explain your choice.

Sports clothes/shoes: they have an obvious connection to his talent which made him so famous. It also makes it easy for clothes and shoes to be displayed when playing football

Hair products, like hair gel: Due to his interest in changing hair styles

3. What are the theoretical explanations underpinning celebrity endorsement? How does the process work?

In today’s time, the market is flooded with products that only differentiate themselves by their name. Celebrity endorsements enable the product’s to stand out in the big amount of product offerings

The celebrity profits from the endorsement in several ways: he/she can revive his or her career, provide him/her with additional exposure or simply do it for the money gained by it. Some might also do it not for themselves but to promote altruistic causes

It is crucial to ensure that the celebrity’s image stands in line with the product’s image. The values the celebrity expresses, in Beckham’s case style for example, have to match the ones of the brand, otherwise the associations of the celebrity with the brand are unclear to the consumers and hence cause confusion and damage the credibility of both the product as well as the celebrity

4. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using celebrities in advertising?

Advantages: Especially unknown products that are new to the market can benefit from celebrity

endorsements. People that are skeptical towards new products and tend to prefer the familiar products to rely on can be attracted to these new products when they stand in connection with a celebrity, as this increases the product’s credibility

Celebrities can help brands reposition themselves, as in the case of Brylcreem. Since it is hard to shake off the image associated with a brand which stood for the same thing over many years, the strong image of a celebrity can help a brand in that case

Disadvantages: Bad behaviour and scandals of the testimonial can damage the brand’s image If the celebrity endorses many other brands the risk of over-exposure increases and the

effect of exclusivity and credibility diminishes