Athlete Endorsers – Buyer Beware!

2009 has certainly given brands with celebrity athlete endorsers plenty to think about. From Michael Vick to Donte’ Stallworth, Michael Phelps, the MLB Steroid List and Serena Williams there is plenty to remind us of the potential downside of tying major marketing campaigns and your brand image to another person. Now with the Tiger tales emerging, the environment is downright scary. It will take a bold and courageous brand manager to suggest a high profile endorsement idea in the short term.

But return they will. Why? Simply because it works. Brands have a long history of turning to athletes for advertising, spokespeople or other association. Shave cream, tobacco and beer companies found out early on that sport was and remains an effective way to reach a male audience. As media outlets and exposure has exploded, sports have taken on a much larger role in our culture. As a result, stars and celebrity athletes have grown in their ability to shape customer perceptions, buying behavior and create new brands. For example, Nike Golf is the business that Tiger Woods built.

Does that make an endorsement a slam dunk? Certainly not. Like all marketing activities, this requires planning, careful consideration and evaluation. Below are some areas that must be considered before you enter the endorsement waters

1. What is your marketing objective? How long before you achieve it?
2. Know your brand and your target audience
3. Understand the role of the endorser, what do they bring to the program?
4. Define the attributes of an ‘ideal’ athlete
5. Evaluate at least 3, but definitely more than 1 athlete
6. Have the brand manager spend time with the athlete (not the agent!) understanding them and getting a feel for how they will fit with the brand and relate to the target.
7. BEFORE you negotiate with an athlete or agent, be sure you have identified every possible and potential use of their image, likeness, marks etc. You don’t want to go back after a deal is done and ask for something else
8. Share the marketing ideas with the athlete to get their input and allow them to feel like part of the team
9. After you reach terms, it is critical that the brand manager sits with the athlete (again, NOT the agent) one to one, to reaffirm the seriousness of the relationship and desire for it to work for both parties.
10. Delineate a very clear and complete ‘morals clause’ that will enable you to get of the deal for any behavior you find offensive or detrimental to the brand. Don’t settle for boilerplate language, make it as specific and flexible as possible, to meet any unforeseen situations.
11. Insert some ‘penalty’ language, in the event of unforeseeably bad behavior (Tiger). This goes above and beyond breaking the deal and walking away and may allow you to recoup some of the brand value lost. (At the very lest you will have done the right thing)

Typically, agents for bigger name athletes have been reluctant to include language, clauses and other steps that were considered invasive or challenging. Obviously, the Tiger Woods revelation has set a new standard which should enable potential sponsors to seek and obtain greater transparency, flexibility and collaboration. Any brand making a major investment would be wise to consider extensive background checks and investigations, as part of the due diligence process.

The marketing landscape is now shaped by so many outlets and marketing vehicles. The instantaneous nature and easy access is a huge opportunity and threat at the same time. As long as we build our businesses utilizing humans, with all our frailty and weaknesses, the potential for marketing doom exists. Cell phone cameras, security videos and Tweeter are a mere few seconds from the Internet.

Choose wisely and enter the athlete endorsement world with your eyes open. No surprises!