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The Davie Brown Talent - - - - - - - - -
Little Gold Book
of
Celebrity Endorsers
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Kobe Bryant
Los Angeles Lakers
Bryant’s incredible on-court success and long career (more than 1,100 NBA games) are the driving factors behind his high awareness – he’s known by 90 percent of U.S. consumers, according to the DBI. While he’s effectively rehabilitated his image since the sexual assault case in July 2003, Bryant’s trust, aspiration, and appeal scores are still relatively low considering his extraordinary career, which includes three NBA titles, an NBA MVP award, and nearly a dozen All-Star games, not to mention a gold medal at the 2008 Sumer Olympics in Beijing. tion Still, according to the DBI, consumers consider Bryant to be a trendsetter whose influence scores are strong when compared with other top NBA players.
Dwight Howard
Orlando Magic
Howard’s strengths as a potential endorser are obvious: He’s dynamic, charismatic, and handsome. Like Shaq before him, Howard’s combination of size, strength, and athleticism make him unique, even in a league full of big, athletic players. Known by just 35 percent of U.S. consumers, Howard’s awareness score is on par with that of Rafael Nadal, who hasn’t resonated with Americans. But according to the DBI, Howard’s appeal is strong, even stronger than Shaq’s and NASCAR favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr. Moreover, Howard’s trust score is nearly three points higher than that of Lance Armstrong. Based on data from the DBI, Howard tends to capture the attention of consumers. His breakthrough score is nearly identical to LeBron’s, and just two points below that of Tiger Woods. As is typically the case, as Howard’s awareness expands, his attribute scores will fall off, though probably not significantly.
Pau Gasol
Los Angeles Lakers
Despite a nine-year NBA career that includes two All-Star game appearances and a Rookie of the Year award, fewer than three in 10 U.S. consumers know Gasol, according to the DBI. Like his Lakers teammates, Gasol tends to fall in the shadow of Kobe, which could explain his low awareness level. The good news is, although his awareness is low, his appeal among those who know him is close to 70 percent. In fact, Gasol’s DBI profile is well rounded with solid scores in each of the eight attributes. As his awareness level increases, which should happen after proving himself in the Finals, his DBI ranking will likely improve. At this point, his DBI scores are comparable to those of NBA star Amare Stoudemire and UFC fighter Tito Ortiz. A former Euro League star, Pau has international appeal, which helps to differentiate his personal brand from other NBA stars. Plus, his oncourt chemistry with Kobe was obvious throughout the Finals, further bolstering his appeal.
Phil Jackson
Los Angeles Lakers/Head Coach
Arguably the NBA’s all-time greatest coach, Jackson’s status as a legend is supported by his DBI ratings. Known as a thoughtful leader, he currently ranks in the top 80 of all male sports celebrities in the DBI. Further, his trust score puts him in the top 50 of all male sports celebrities in the DBI. Without question, Jackson’s association with winning and two of the NBA’s all-time greatest players – Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant – have helped to differentiate himself among professional coaches. Jackson is k J k i known by 54 percent of all U.S. consumers – a high awareness b score for active NBA coaches in the DBI database. He is undoubtedly more recognizable than his 2009 NBA Finals rival coach, Stan Van Gundy, who is known by less than a quarter of U.S. consumers. Additionally, Phil ranks higher than another legendary Lakers coach and competitor, Pat Riley, who is known by 34 percent of U.S. consumers. Though his awareness is higher, Jackson trails Riley in several key attribute scores, including trust, endorsement and aspiration. This could be attributed to Riley’s signature “GQ” look, his association with the Lakers “Showtime” of the ‘80s, and his experience coaching in three American cities that are well known for celebrity culture – New York, Los Angeles and Miami.
Hedo Turkoglu
Orlando Magic
Known as “The Michael Jordan of Turkey,” Hedo, like Pau Gasol, appeals to both domestic and international markets. Despite his nickname, Hedo’s DBI scores differ significantly from the real Michael Jordan, who is known by 99.6 percent of U.S. consumers; Hedo is known by 20 percent of Americans, according to the DBI. All of Turkoglu’s DBI scores are below the median, but his strong performance in the 2009 postseason will likely give his awareness numbers a boost. According to the DBI, Hedo appeals to 70 percent of those who know him and is seen as someone who people trust and aspire to be like. However, U.S. consumers don’t yet consider him to be a strong endorser.
Andrew Bynum
Los Angeles Lakers
In 2005, the 7-foot Bynum became the youngest player ever to be drafted by an NBA team. Since then, his skills – like his DBI scores – have steadily improved. Currently known by 23 percent of U.S. consumers, Bynum’s awareness level should increase thanks to his 23 postseason games and strong performance against Dwight Howard, the NBA’s premier center. Bynum’s DBI scores in key attributes such as trust, endorsement, aspiration and breakthrough are low. This could be caused by several factors, including his age and the injuries he’s battled the last two seasons. On a team with talented veterans (e.g., Bryant, Gasol, Fisher, Odom) and exciting young players (e.g., Ariza, Brown, Farmar), Bynum isn’t the first Laker sought out by the press for quotes or insight. As his career goes on and he finds his voice, his scores may improve.
Rashard Lewis
Orlando Magic
An 11-year pro, Lewis played a major role in Orlando’s post season run, which has helped to elevate his awareness nationally. He is currently known by 26 percent of U.S. consumers, who consider him to be a strong endorser and aspirational figure. His link to pop singer Rihanna has helped Lewis garner ink in the gossip columns, thereby moving him off the sports pages and exposing him to a wider audience. Lewis is an excellent example of a really good NBA player (he’s averaged more than 20 ppg three times in his career) who’s failed to differentiate himself as a brand.
Stan Van Gundy
Orlando Magic/Head Coach
Known by 23 percent of U.S. consumers, Van Gundy is a sort of “Average Joe” who comes from a family of coaches. His brother, Jeff, coached the New York Knicks and Houston Rockets and is now an ABC/ESPN analyst, where he called the Finals as his brother coached. When comparing the Van Gundy brothers in the DBI, Stan’s awareness is higher than Jeff ’s, but Jeff trumps his brother in the endorsement and aspiration categories. Van Gundy’s pull-no-punches style, passion for coaching, and “everyman” appearance give him a distinct and memorable brand that help to differentiate him from other coaches.
About the Davie Brown Index
T
he Davie Brown Index® (DBI) is an independent index for
brand marketers and agencies that determines a celebrity’s ability to influence brand affinity and consumer purchase intent. The DBI provides brand marketers with a systematic approach for quantifying and qualifying the use of celebrities in marketing campaigns by evaluating a celebrity’s awareness, appeal and relevance to a brand’s image and their influence on consumer buying behavior. The DBI consists of more than 2,400 celebrities and is powered by a 1.5 million-member domestic research panel. Respondents evaluate celebrities along eight key attributes: Appeal, aspiration, awareness, endorsement, influence, breakthrough (notice), trendsetter, and trust. The DBI includes today’s most relevant celebrities for brand marketers because it’s dynamically updated, both on a weekly basis, as well as through special requests from DBI subscribers. This enables brand marketers to react quickly to current events affecting celebrities and gain insight into lesser-known celebrities who are “on the rise.”
About Davie Brown Entertainment
Founded in 1984, Los Angeles-based Davie Brown Entertainment provides a full spectrum of entertainment-based solutions for global companies. As the entertainment consulting and activation agency of The Marketing Arm network, Davie Brown serves as a conduit between brands and content providers via branded entertainment, product placement, entertainment promotions, and strategic studio alliances. Recognized as the nation’s largest talent buyer, Davie Brown’s talent division secures celebrities and licenses third-party intellectual property rights for advertising, speaking engagements, promotional programs, PR activities, and events.
About The Marketing Arm
The Marketing Arm is a promotions and events agency building brands through the emotionally powerful platforms of entertainment, music, sports, events, and cause marketing. Operating within Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC), The Marketing Arm includes six best-in-class business units: Usmp (events), Millsport (sports), Davie Brown (entertainment), Kaleidoscope (corporate events), Wave (multicultural), and Ipsh (wireless).
Contact Information
F
or more information about Davie Brown or the Davie Brown
Index (DBI), please contact: Matt Fleming Davie Brown Talent (214) 259-3255 (office) MFleming@DavieBrown.com www.DavieBrownTalent.com Media contact: Chris Anderson The Marketing Arm (214) 259-3290 (office) (214) 450-6471 (cell) CAnderson@TheMarketingArm.com www.TheMarketingArm.com