Indian marketers has been an addict of celebrities. From salt to automobiles, celebrity endorsements has been one of the most used marketing strategies in the Indian market . In a recent article in Economic Times, a survey was quoted which would give marketers a second thought about their obsession with celebrities.
The survey was conducted by The Futures Company of the WPP - Kantar Group. The survey was conducted across 18 countries that represent 80% of the world GDP. The Indian sample contained 700 individuals from 14 urban centers, metros and Tier1 cities ( ET March 16, 2009).
The survey results indicated a segment of 16-25 affluent youngsters which are referred as Millenials. The Millenials are upper class youngsters who form an important part of the high spending consumer segment across the globe. This highly connected youngsters represents the hip-hop generation who are not averse to spending on themselves.
The report reveals some important characteristics of this Millenials. These segment are not apologetic about spending on themselves. They think that they have a primary responsibility towards themselves and allots some time and money on themselves. Indian millenials also would prefer to be with the crowd but would like to stand out. They would like to try out new things and experiences.
Indian millenials also exhibited attachments to family and community. They feel very much connected to parents and peers. The young consumers are also attached to local community, culture and traditions.
The interesting part is the attitude of these segment towards celebrities. These consumers doesn't see celebrities as real or authentic. But these youngsters are influenced by real life heroes as their role model. For marketers, this is bad news. It is true that most of the celebrity endorsements are aimed at the sticky factor - making the consumers watch the ad rather than promoting authenticity. But the over use of celebrities has made them a commodity. One of the reasons for this distrust is that these consumers are highly informed and they know that using celebrities is a strategy and has nothing to do with the authenticity. For the less fortunate Indian youth , celebrities hold some amount of influence either in purchase or in brand recall.
Read the full article here : Celebrites not so hot with Gen- Y
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