Taking Advice from Celebrities

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/golf/pga/2011-02-22-wgc-accenture-match-play-championship_N.htm

I recently read this article in USA Today and I realized another way that social media can be used to enhance your marketing plan. We are no doubt familiar with the classic marketing technique of using a celebrity to sell your product, whether it be through television commercials or what not. However, what would happen if we combined this approach with social media?

In the article, Ian Poulter notes that he posted a photo of himself on Twitter and his Power Balance bracelet was accidentally exposed. This slight exposure led to skyrocketing sales of Power Bracelets.
         
Celebrities work exceptionally hard on their own personal brand, and it seems to pay off for them. People feel like they actually know the celebrities, so they trust them. The Ian Poulter example explains how quickly the Power Balance sold, so why not feed off these personal brands through a larger, more effective medium?

The benefits you can get from Twitter in regards to your own personal brand are outrageous. If gaining a celebrity to help sell your product is not within your reach, as marketers, we need to build sites with consistent and accurate posts so we can get our customers to trust us; become almost like a friend to them so we can get across what our brand’s “personality” is all about. We can really learn from what the celebrities are using social media for, so let’s take advantage of it.

Gaining the trust of our customers is one of the most important factors in selling a product or service, and that is easily achievable through social media outlets. Conversation is key. Once we let people see what we’re really all about, as a product or a company, we can thrive.