Ed Cotton: Will The Social Power Of Celebrity Threaten Brands?

Used to be that celebrities owed it to brands to help make them famous and keep them in the spotlight.

They still do, but it’s going to be a different relationship moving forward.

Soccer star Lionel Messi just went onto Facebook and got 7 million “likes” in a matter of hours.

The ability for celebrities to directly connect with their audience of fans is going to open up significant opportunities for them.

Opportunities that might be able to threaten brands directly because of the celebrity power and the “exclusive” insight/access they can bring, untainted by the constraints of an over-arching brand.

It’s likely we will see some sports celebrities move outside the orbit of the traditional clothing and footwear players and go something on their own.

(Continue reading here.)

Ed Cotton is the Director of Strategy at BSSP, and is curious about all things relating to brands, marketing and culture. Read more at influx insights.