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How Do Award Shows Hire Their Hosts? I Think We Know.

Sunday night, actor Jason Sudeikis hosted the MTV Movie Awards (to rave reviews). And, this upcoming Sunday, actor Neil Patrick Harris will host the 2011 Tony Awards. From the outside, one may feel that Sudeikis was an unconventional choice for MTV, while Harris was the obvious choice for the CBS’ broadcasted Tony Awards.

But, we know – from our own experience – that they are both solid choices. And here's why.

When brands ask us to evaluate spokespeople for campaigns, we use a specific process. The third step includes performing extensive research and due diligence. While doing so, we check for category conflicts, upcoming projects, industry chatter, budget fit, potential character or moral issues and pop culture relevance. We use our arsenal of tools, as well as our relationships in the industry to determine who is the best fit for the program.

In MTV’s case, they have regularly chosen talent with timely projects (Sudeikis’ Horrible Bosses releases in a month and has been getting plenty of ad air time) and are up-and-coming/on the verge of stardom. For example, last year’s host was comedian and current Parks & Recreation star Aziz Ansari. At the time, Parks & Recreation was not the established comedy that it is now, and Ansari was perhaps best known for his comedy and appearances on HBO’s Flight of the Conchords and ABC’s Scrubs. However, he was beginning to develop a cult-like following and MTV recognized that potential. In 1999, MTV tapped Lisa Kudrow as to host the Awards. This was only one year into Friends, well before it became the huge success that it did. Similarly, Sarah Jessica Parker hosted in 2000, only two years into Sex and the City.

The Tony Awards face the challenge of finding a host that is not only known to TV audiences (to bring in the ratings) but will also resonate with theater professionals. Neil Patrick Harris is returning for his second go-around as host of the Tony Awards – the first-time he hosted the Tony Awards (2009), he earned an Emmy Award. Though he is best known for his role on How I Met Your Mother, Harris is an entertainer who is no stranger to Broadway. As seen with past hosts, relevance is the key element considered when hiring a host (Sean Hayes – 2010, Whoopi Goldberg – 2008, Hugh Jackman– 2003, 2004, 2005).

Award Shows are just like any branded campaign, looking for the best and most relevant spokesperson that consumers will identify with and relate to. We are not sure if MTV or the Tony Awards have a 10-step process too but  we can guarantee they have a "step three."

On The Talk Shows May 2-6

Our Must-Sees  on this week’s Talk Shows:

1. Rob Lowe was a personable hit last week on Oprah and this week will be touring to promote his memoir Story I Only Tell My Friends and will surely be promoting Parks and Recreation prior to the May 19-25 Sweeps Week.
2. Cast members from The Office (Mindy Kaling, Will Ferrelll, Steve Carell, John Krasinski, Ellie Kemper ) are heavy in the media circuit this week sure to be talking about Carell’s departure and the future for the NBC comedy staple.
3. Christy Turlington’s self-directed and produced documentary debuts on OWN this  May 7- Christy is heavy on a media tour this week for the documentary featuring mothers. Don’t forget Mother’s Day on May 8^th!

Monday, May 2

Audiences will be tuning in to see what Office Cast members have to say about Carell's final Bow

Early Show: Melissa McCarthy, Dr. Phil

Today: Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez, the Wiggles

David Letterman: Tracy Morgan, Rex Ryan

Jay Leno: Paul Walker, Donny & Marie Osmond

Jimmy Kimmel: Rene Russo, Kristin Gore, k.d. lang

Craig Ferguson: Mindy Kaling, Matt Lucas

Jimmy Fallon: LL Cool J, Judd Apatow, Ambrosia

Carson Daly: Fred Armisen, David Seidler, Broken Bells (R 2/24/11)

Tavis Smiley: Loretta Devine

Daily Show: Philip K. Howard

Colbert Report: Francis Fukuyama

Chelsea Lately: Josh Wolf, Brad Wollack, Heather McDonald

Conan O'Brien: Will Ferrell, Paul Bettany, James Blunt

Lopez Tonight: Mark Ruffalo, Yvette Nicole Brown, Rex Navarrete

The View: LL Cool J, Andrew Schorr

The Talk: Lisa Ling, Niecy Nash, Carolyn Glaspy

Regis and Kelly: Eva Mendes, "American Idol" castoff Casey Abrams

Ellen DeGeneres: Steve Carell, Alison Sweeney

Gayle King: Paula Patton

Tuesday, May 3

David Letterman: Caroline Kennedy, Ty Burrell

Jay Leno: Penelope Cruz, Maria Bamford, Ricky Martin

Jimmy Kimmel: Anthony Hopkins, Andre Agassi, the latest "Dancing with the Stars" castoff

Craig Ferguson: Geoffrey Rush, Reese Waters, OK Go

Jimmy Fallon: Whoopi Goldberg, Elmo

Carson Daly: Jason Eisener, Shane Smith, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

Tavis Smiley: Tim Flannery, Bootsy Collins

Daily Show: Rachel Maddow

Colbert Report: Rex Ryan

Chelsea Lately: Paula Patton, Jo Koy, Loni Love, Chris Hardwick

Conan O'Brien: Steve Martin, Atticus Shaffer

Lopez Tonight: Kaley Cuoco, Idris Elba, 2AM Club

Lowe's on the rise (see regurlar Parks & Rec role, Vanity Fair cover, memoir, and more sure to come)

The View: Rob Lowe, stylist Alison Deyette, guest co-host Betty White

The Talk: Jessica Capshaw, Cheryl Jackson, guest co-host Soledad O'Brien

Regis and Kelly: Andy Samberg, Melissa McCarthy

Ellen DeGeneres: Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers, Star Jones

Gayle King: TBA

Wednesday, May 4

Early Show: Candace Bushnell

Today: Shania Twain, Christy Turlington, Mark Bittman

David Letterman: Brian Williams, Rick Harrison, a Top Ten List presented by Betty White

Jay Leno: Kate Hudson, Chris Hemsworth, Sergio Mendes with Siedah Garrett

Jimmy Kimmel: Kenneth Branagh, Ellie Kemper, the 2011 National School Scrabble Champions

Craig Ferguson: John Waters, Pauley Perrette

Jimmy Fallon: Alec Baldwin, Maggie Q

Carson Daly: Anthony Ameen, Sarah Vowell, Goldheart Assembly

Tavis Smiley: Tom Selleck

Daily Show: David Barton

Colbert Report: Amy Farrell

Chelsea Lately: Melissa McCarthy, Joe Matarese, Chris Franjola, Ross Mathews

Conan O'Brien: Eva Mendes, Dan Dunn, the Belle Brigade

Lopez Tonight: Paul Walker, Mike Rowe, Julius Sharpe

The View: Dick Van Dyke, Lala Vazquez & Carmelo Anthony

The Talk: Estelle Harris, Patricia Richardson, Marion Ross, Susan Burton

Regis and Kelly: John Krasinski, Maggie Q

Ellen DeGeneres: John Krasinski

Gayle King: Rob Elder, Sheryl Crow

Thursday, May 5

Model (remember CK, Maybelline, Versace) turned director, Mother of Two, and Media Friendly,Turlington appeals to a wide and coveted demographic

Early Show: Jim Parsons, Melanie Notkin

Today: Giada De Laurentiis

David Letterman: Jodie Foster, Tom Dreesen, Neon Trees

Jay Leno: Katie Couric, Ralph Macchio, Priscilla Ahn

Jimmy Kimmel: Chris Hemsworth, Calexico

Craig Ferguson: Juliette Lewis, Phil Rosenthal

Jimmy Fallon: Tina Fey, Tom Welling, Twin Shadow

Carson Daly: Eliot Rausch, Mini Mansions

Tavis Smiley: Kenneth Branagh

Colbert Report: Bill James

Chelsea Lately: Dita Von Teese, John Caparulo, Fortune Feimster, Greg Fitzsimmons

Conan O'Brien: John Krasinski, Ian Edwards

Lopez Tonight: Eva Mendes, Mike Epps, Carlos Santana

The View: Amy Poehler, Guy Fieri, a performance by the cast of "Sister Act: A Divine Musical Comedy"

The Talk: Angela Bassett, Dave Pontell

Regis and Kelly: Kate Hudson, Jennifer Hudson

Ellen DeGeneres: Meat Loaf, Sara Niemietz

Gayle King: Rob Lowe

Friday, May 6

David Letterman: Mike Birbiglia, "The Human Fuse" Brian Miser, Brother

Jay Leno: Steven Tyler, the Civil Wars

Jimmy Kimmel: Rerun TBA

Craig Ferguson: Will Ferrell, Olivia Munn

Jimmy Fallon: Edie Falco

Carson Daly: Paul Feig, Dan Harmon, the Airborne Toxic Event

Tavis Smiley: Raphael Saadiq

Chelsea Lately: Mary McCormack, Fortune Feimster, Gary Valentine, Ross Mathews (R 4/28/11)

The View: Edie Falco, Toni Braxton

The Talk: Eva La Rue, Gina & Patrick Neely, Crystal Darak, guest co-host Gina Neely

Regis and Kelly: Jodie Foster, Ginnifer Goodwin

Ellen DeGeneres: Kate Hudson

Gayle King: Christy Turlington

Seven Lessons Learned on Tax Day That Can Also Help Brands When Hiring a Celebrity

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There is an uncanny similarity between Tax Day preparation and hiring a celebrity. Here is a list of lessons learned to help you better prepare for both instances.

1. Preparation. While both activities can be done at the last minute, to minimize errors and stress, give yourself time to complete both tasks.
2. Case Studies. Use last year’s work as a guideline. Learn from mistakes and replicate successes when completing the task.
3. Follow the Rules. It is easy to take shortcuts in both instances, but proper due diligence will avoid issues that may come into play later (IRS audits = conflicts with competing brands, etc.)
4. 4. Capitalize on Key Dates. Tax Day is a great publicity stunt day. Accounting firms and brands can take advantage of the increased media attention to create something unique. For example, play off of 1040 as a pricing discount on items or by using social media to offer for advice to your consumers. The same applies when hiring celebrity; look for dates on the calendar that will separate you from your competitors (anniversaries, birth dates, etc.).
5. Getting Money Back. When you get money back in the mail, it means the Government has been sitting on it for the entire year (and you didn’t get to take advantage of interest on it). Same with a celebrity – the money you save does not equate success and the cheapest dollar talent may not be the one that delivers the most value for your brand.
6. Charity. It’s a great write off on a tax form and cause marketing has become a must-do in today’s celebrity/brand environment for credibility and interest.
7. Expertise. You can handle both activities yourself, but you will deliver a better financial result if you hire an expert to assist.

Research: Celebrities in Print Advertising Increase Viewership

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We are just reading the research by GfK MRI Starch Advertising Research about the use of celebrities in print advertising. In summary it says:

• Starch analyzed more than 81,000 print ads that appeared in consumer magazines between December 2009 and September 2010
• On average, the ads that contained a celebrity endorser produced 9.4% higher consumer readership than ads without a celebrity endorser.
• Print ads containing an entertainment celebrity garnered 15.1% more readership, on average, than ads without a celebrity, while the use of sports celebrities raised consumer readership by 7.5%.

It confirms a thought we share daily. Celebrities add to brand awareness and trial. Long term sales are based on the quality of the product.

Example: If you walk down the cereal aisle at the grocery store and see a celebrity or cartoon character on the cover of the box...people typically a) glance at it for an extra second and b) consider trial. If they buy the cereal and it doesn't taste good, they won't buy it again. If it tastes great, they'll buy it when they come back to the store with or without the celebrity's face on it.

5 Tips On How To Use Celebrities At CES

Check out Arik Hanson's blog today, where I share "5 Tips On How To Use Celebrities At CES."  Each year at CES, we see plenty of brands using celebs and influencers to help get their product on the map.  In the blog (excerpt below), we share insights on how to most effectively use celebs at the annual show.  Be sure to check out all of the tips at Arik's blog. 

CES, the Super Bowl of Technology takes place this week in Las Vegas. And just like the big football game, there are countless people (customers), hundreds of brand/product launches, a large number of media (and bloggers/citizen journalists), distractions at every corner and celebrities/influencers being used to break through the clutter. Fortunately, the new technology age makes it is easy for your brand to research (quickly I might add) recent successes and failures at CES to help you figure out your best game plan. So before determining the marketing tactics employed onsite, please write down a list of conference marketing goals (e.g., media impressions, retail buy-in, twitter followers, facebook likes, YouTube views, face-to-face meetings, etc.). Then create your activities around these needs. Focusing on your end results will help you reach your goals. And in knowing that it’s critical to deliver the right message to the right people at the right time, I’ve listed five specific tips on how best to use celebrities in marketing your activities onsite.

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First Call in PRWeek

Thank you Beth Krietsch from PRWeek who recently interviewed me for her PR Toolbox.  Take a look at the article here.

Celebrities, The Internet & Social Media: Truly a Bermuda's Triangle

While the internet, social media, facebook and of course twitter has made communicating and interacting much easier for all of us, they have also made celebrity-brand partnerships (or as we call it, celebrity acquisition) more difficult to execute.

Not too long ago, it was a black-and-white issue when defining a term, territory and third party rights in a contract. But not so anymore. Nowadays, once a widget has been created, a youtube video posted or someone tweets about the program launch -- control SHIFTS from corporate America to the consumer world (and that's what we like about social media). But as you can imagine, that’s what makes structuring these deal points in celebrity/company partnerships more difficult.

Here are some quick tips to consider on your next deal:

1.   Your brands need to be very clear about their intended use of the celebrity (name, likeness, signature, avatar, etc.) in the business points. Celebrity lawyers will demand specific tactics listed in the contract. So don’t be vague and don’t try and sneak something in after the deal is signed. You won’t be able to do so.

2.   Find celebrities that embrace technology (you can follow them every day on twitter – I do). Of course, they also need to fit your brands objectives/goals, line up with your target audience and deliver value that is greater than their cost. But a social media celebrity will help when putting together a deal.

Ashton and Demi are just two of the many celebrities who have embraced Twitter and other social media platforms.

3.   Be careful about your territory language. A lawyer may agree to “worldwide internet territory” in the deal memo but make it “exclusive” in a certain part of the world. Read that closely! Sometimes it will work for your brand (especially if you force the celebrity to only do deals with competitors outside your needed territory and you make them have a different .com, such as .uk, .ca, .aus, etc.). But it gets tricky when that brand is located outside of your territory but sells products within your territory. Did I confuse you? Probably. And that’s why you have to be careful on this one.

4.   Consider payment terms (or bonuses to celebrities) based on click throughs, videos viewed or tangible results.

These advances are changing deal points daily. Make sure you consider all of them on your next deal.

How Brands Should use Celebrities in a Tough Economic Climate

In these wild times, brands are asking us every day – “How do we make sure our celebrity marketing plans are cost-effective? What else can we do to leverage the program?”

Here is a quick “five tip” cheat sheet that will help ensure business success with your corporate-talent partnership.

1.   360 degrees means 360 degrees. Long gone are the stand alone :30 advertisements. With advances in technology and the dot com world, brands have the ability to connect a celebrity program throughout all of their marketing strategies. Opportunities through mobile devices, widgets, blogs, etc. give brands an immediate link to their program. Public relations efforts can be stretched and communicated to dozens of the celebrity’s “unofficial fan sites”. Take advantage of all available mediums so that your message penetrates more efficiently to your targeted audience.

2.   Expense control. Outside of a celebrity’s fee, there are numerous expenses incurred in a campaign. They range from travel and hair/make-up to SAG-residuals and wardrobe fees. Make sure these expenses are considered in a line item and not as an afterthought. These numbers are costly if not managed correctly and planned for. If addressed early in the deal, you have the chance to include these items as part of the overall celebrity budget and/or make the talent responsible for handling some of them on their own dime.

3.   Publicists need to get along. The job of the celebrity’s publicist is to protect his/her client’s image and the job of the brand’s is to extend the brand to as many places as possible. This often leads to a conflict between the two parties. Make sure the publicists talk to each other before a contract is signed. Make sure they agree on the type of outlets included in the outreach efforts (we suggest including the mutually agreed media outlets as an Exhibit to the contract). And finally, make sure the celebrity will deliver your message points to these targeted media outlets. Don’t waste your money on a big name celebrity if they won’t/can’t deliver your campaign’s message.

4.   Don’t get caught with extra stuff in the contract. It’s always smart to start negotiations with more items than you actually need. It allows you to trade services for decreased dollars as the negotiation continues. But when you are ready to sign, having extra marketing uses in the contract doesn’t help you. We are in a tight economic time right now. So if you don’t have the uses planned, you are not likely to use them. Instead, trade them out for critical marketing/financial needs to meet your campaign’s goals and objectives.

5.   Move forward. Celebrities and influencers still work for marketing campaigns. They are a tried-and-true tactic to differentiate your brand and increase awareness. You need to be smart with whom you select and how you use them, because they do work.

Celebrity/ Cause Marketing/ Non-Profit Survey

Celebrity Non-Profit and Cause Marketing Survey 

Recently, we have seen an increase in the use of spokespeople in cause-related campaigns (both directly with a non-profit organization and also tied in with a brand's cause marketing efforts). In an attempt to find out why, we are asking marketers specific questions about their perceptions, motivations and communications tools in our online survey. We welcome you to share this survey with others that you feel would benefit.

Please check back here for results and analysis in the upcoming weeks. Thank you.