It is no secret that we live in the age of information
overload. No matter where we look, eat, sleep or breathe,
we are bombarded with information. The problem is that our
potential clients are too. So how do we cut through the
clutter?
For starters, we have to build credibility with our
audience and get them to begin looking for our messages,
because they know that what we say has value. How do we do
that? Let me show you.
Let's take a look at a simple principle that I call the
Ladder of Credibility, Power & Influence.
At the bottom of the ladder you have the Generalist.
The Generalist is anyone who has a general knowledge about
the subject matter at hand. You can lump many people into
this category, because a generalist is anyone with a
working knowledge of the subject who has no specialized
niche.
On the first rung of the ladder, there is the Expert.
The Expert specializes in and should ideally know
everything about a narrow field. In our society, we value
the opinion of the expert more than that of the generalist.
If you don't believe me, imagine that you have a brain
tumor. Who would you call first: your family practice
doctor or a brain specialist? That's what I thought.
Towering above the Generalist and the Specialist, the
Celebrity is at the second rung of the ladder.
I know it sounds a bit absurd, but studies show that in a
marketing message, consumers will value what a celebrity
has to say over pretty much any expert you can put in front
of them. One example is the long-running infomercial for
the acne medication, ProActiv®, which is a product of
Guthy-Renker, one of the most successful direct marketing
companies in the world. They pay celebrities, including
Jessica Simpson, Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, Jennifer Love
Hewitt, Vanessa Williams and Serena Williams, to convince
consumers that their product is the right solution to fight
acne. They could afford any physician in the world for the
amount that they have to pay these celebrities, but the
celebrities outperform the experts all day long.
Last but not least, the Holy Grail top rung on the ladder
of Credibility, Power & Influence is the Celebrity Expert.
Not many celebrities ever rise to the status of Celebrity
Expert, but you can bet that when they do, their marketing
planner is full! In order to reach this status, the
celebrity has to find a way to communicate their knowledge
of a subject to consumers. This can be done in many ways:
by writing a book, sharing their knowledge with another
celebrity like Larry King, or posting blogs on their
website. There are many ways to do this; the point is that
to reach this status, the celebrity has to do more than
just be good at their chosen profession, e.g. acting,
music, sports. Consumers value a celebrity expert over all
other categories of people who deliver marketing messages.
Some great examples of Celebrity Experts are Rachael Ray
(Cooking), Martha Stewart (Domesticity), Donald Trump (Real
Estate), Oprah (Self-Help), Robert Allen (Real Estate), Jay
Abraham (Marketing), Dan Kennedy (Marketing), and there are
many more. If you don't know who all of these Celebrity
Experts are, that's ok! To their chosen niche, they are
celebrities and experts on their subject matter.
The point here is that most people's preconceived notions
about who consumers listen to are wrong. If you are willing
to put in a lot of time and effort, you too can reach
Celebrity Expert status and turn your prospects into raving
fans.
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Additional Resource: If you'd like to learn more about the
steps you need to take to become a Celebrity Expert and see
the view from the top of the ladder of Credibility, Power &
Influence, check out some of the resources we have compiled
for you at http://www.CelebrityBrandingYou.com
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