Personnal identities
• Founders
A founder or a CEO with a strong personality and
image is a huge asset for a brand. Indeed, it shows that behind the brand, they
are people and that the brand is driven by people. It helps consumers to
understand better the values of the brand : the character, motivations and
actions of the founder/CEO, when known by the public, have a huge impact on the
perception of the company and the brand.
In the fragrance world, a great example of a
founder that made a difference is Gabrielle Chanel. Indeed, Coco was a very
charismatic person, known for her determination and ambition. She changed the
face of the fashion world by imposing black as the colour of elegance and by
removing corset to the feminine silhouette.
In a 20’s fragrances world that glorified the
single flower fragrances, she created with Ernst Beaux an abstract, mysterious
perfume : a bouquet with over 80 different scents that made it impossible to
recognize one scent. Not only she participated to the creation of the scent but
she also was the base of the creation of a new brand inside the Chanel brand,
the N°5 brand.
Indeed the name of the product, an indentification
number, is closely linked to Gabrielle decision and believes (it was her lucky
number). The pure and timeless flacon is also linked to her work : the
simplification and the use of minimal lines.
Chanel N°5 was even advertised by Coco Chanel herself
in her suit at the Ritz : the personnage of Gabrielle was the foundation of the
brand and gives a clear message about values and perception of Chanel.
• Endorsement
Celebrity endorsement is widely used in
the fragrances sector. Stars are extremely important and valuable to perfume
brands, even though it is an expensive choice. Indeed those personalities who usually
come from the fashion, movie or music sectors make the brand’s message stand
out among the clutter of advertising from competitiors. They create brand
awareness, contribute to sustaining a brand’s aura, generate extensive PR
leverage and are a great way to attract the consumer’s attention.
There is an endless list of examples of
celebrity endorsements in the perfume industry but I will just quote “La vie
est belle” of Lancôme with the endorsement of Julia Roberts.
Indeed, this endorsement was a real
success because both the brand and Julia Roberts were compatible and credible :
Lancôme’s DNA is femininity, emotion, joie-de-vivre and the actress is well
known for her infectious smile, her coolness and sensuality.
Nevertheless, celebrities
endorsements can face multiple issues leading to a failure of the campaign. We
could talk of a set of “rules” that need to be respected in order for the
campaign to be a success : the celebrity must have a global appeal and must be
credible for the sector he or she is advertising. Morevoer,
the celebrity’s personality must match the brand’s DNA : not only the two have
to be compatible but the collaboration has to be relevant.
When these set
of « rules » are not respected, the advertising campaign is usally
condemned to fail. An example of a celebrity endorsement that was criticized a
lot was the N°5 perfume campaign featuring Brad Pitt. Chanel decided to use a
man to describe the ideal woman and her perfume : the client would then want to
wear the perfume of the ideal woman depicted by Brad Pitt. But this strategy
did not pay off because the consumers did not understand the add, they did not
see the relevance of the actor in the N°5 story. The campaign lost the
feminine, sophisticated and elegant appeal of the N°5 brand. Moreover, some
consumers thought a new perfume was launched : N°5 for men.. The result were a
campaign that everyone talked about but not in good terms !
Article posted by Marie Lou Van der Houwen
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