Utilizing a celebrity as spokesperson for a brand is relatively commonplace. The spokesperson can be more recognizable than the product, especially to demographic segments. The spokesperson can add credibility. There’s a long list of matches that have become magic. Nike and Michael Jordan. Marie Osmond and Nutrisystem. Matthew McConaughey and Lincoln. Chris Paul, Aaron Rodgers, etc., and State Farm. The list is a long one because the practice works. On the other hand, to err is human, and spokespersons do screw up. The latest example is Bruce Springsteen. We’ll take a look at a few major blunders and offer some advice on what to do when a spokesperson screws up.
Jared, Paula, Gilbert and Jarvik
It was Tuesday, July 7, 2015 when the FBI raided Jared Fogle’s home looking for child pornography. A little more than a month later, Fogle reached a deal with prosecutors and plead guilty to two counts. Needless to say, the events ended Fogle’s 15 year run as Subway’s spokesperson. He won’t be eligible for parole until 2028 and he won’t be eligible to endorse another product, for forever.
Paula Deen was once in business with many brands and had a show on the Food Network. Things changed after she was taken to court for alleged racial and sexual discrimination against former employees. She admitted to using the N-word.
She was dropped by the network and lost several other deals but has staged an apology-filled comeback in recent years. She opened new restaurants, launched a clothing line, got into pet food, and appeared on Dancing with the Stars. Her past likely limits her ability to fully recapture the affection and esteem she held as show host and spokesperson.
AFLAC should have known. It was no secret that comedian Gilbert Gottfried was outspoken and on the edge. He was doing 9/11 jokes only weeks after the tragedy. Despite his reputation AFLAC went ahead and hired him to be the voice of their duck mascot. When an earthquake and devastating tsunami rocked Japan, Gottfried took to Twitter with a series of jokes about the disaster which killed thousands. The insensitivity resulted in Gottfried’s immediate termination. We should also mention that, at the time, Japan accounted for about 75 percent of AFLAC’s business.
The Artificial Doctor
This one is interesting because it highlights a celebrity endorser of a different kind and it reveals just how incompetent or nonexistent research can be. Pharmaceutical firm Pfizer, the COVID vaccine company, was looking for someone to endorse their drug Lipitor. The drug can lower bad and raise good cholesterol in your blood. So, it looked like a perfect fit when they started airing commercials with “doctor” Robert Jarvik. You might remember him. He had become a celebrity inventor when he helped perfect an artificial heart. The commercials featured him recommending Lipitor along with cardio. And then the campaign suffered a credibility failure. Jarvik had been to medical school but never did a residency or had a license to practice. He should not have been giving medical advice. A scene of Jarvik rowing a boat on a lake wasn’t him. It was a stunt double. When the House Committee on Energy and Commerce began to investigate, Pfizer pulled the ads.
An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure
We live in the information era. Companies and agencies, and anyone else involved in the selection of a brand spokesperson need to do their homework. Candidates for a commercial spokesperson need to be vetted like political appointees. We realize private firms don’t have the FBI at their disposal, but there are a myriad of ways to get background information on people. It’s not that difficult to discover if someone has a medical license or not. A company with the resources of Pfizer certainly could have.
Controversy is something most brands try their best to avoid. Why AFLAC would pursue or agree to Gilbert Gottfried in the first place, is a good question. Making conservative choices about who is hired to be a spokesperson doesn’t guarantee your brand will be protected. Bill Cosby was once considered a very safe selection. Still, if it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is Gilbert Gottfried, and he is likely to say things you brand will regret.
Don’t Equivocate
If a spokesperson blunder is serious enough, do the right thing right away. The focus of spokesperson scandals moves to the “what are you going to do about it?” stage very quickly. Regardless of the circumstances, even if your brand is partly at fault, you want to get ahead of the story. Don’t try to gauge what public sentiment will be. Be transparent and honest.
Hiring a spokesperson or using a celebrity in an ad is generally a beneficial and benign endeavor. Do some serious advance work and you probably won’t end up apologizing.