10 Tips for Working With Celebrity Spokespeople

Mo Moorman

When Jockey signed Tim Tebow in July 2010, the brand hoped to harness the power of his then-celebrity stature. When Tebow’s status reached a truly elite level, Jockey and agency Cone Communications needed all hands on deck for “Tebow Time.” Mo Moorman, director of PR and social media at Jockey, provides 10 tips for brands who use celebrities as spokespeople:

1. Be specific in your legal agreement with exactly what is expected of the celebrity. Establish the number of appearances and number of production dates. 

2. Set a regular communication schedule and determine the approval process. Often you’ll work with a celebrity’s management team, not directly with the celebrity.

3. Establish guidelines for approved media outlets, journalists and bloggers. Celebrities often have preferences about the media with which they interact.

4. Clarify the celebrity’s role at appearances. Ensure he or she is comfortable with your expectations long before the event takes place.

5. Get access to the celebrity's calendar. You’ll want to be able to leverage some, and avoid other, commitments.

6. Provide message training before any celebrity appearance for your brand—and with some frequency otherwise

7. Get to know the celebrity’s other endorsement deals. Look for opportunities for co-branded campaigns.

8. Share your brand’s news and highlights with the celebrity. Stay top-of-mind and demonstrate your commitment to the person.

9. Stay current with your celebrity’s activities. Follow them on Twitter, create Google alerts for mentions of them (with and without your brand’s name)

10. Keep it real. At the end of the day, these are real people with real feelings and real needs. Treat them like a real person and you’ll usually get the same in return.

Follow Bill Miltenberg: @bmiltenberg