Sophie Pearce explores how charities are harnessing the power of celebrity endorsement

To understand why charities look for A-list celebrities, you only need to look at what George Clooney is doing for the Enough Project to end genocide in Sudan, or what Joanna Lumley has done to help retired Gurkhas. It’s an enviable way to raise awareness, boost funds and influence your public.

For Mind, which is fortunate enough to have Stephen Fry as its president, “having high-profile individuals speak openly about their mental health problems challenges attitudes”, says senior media officer Matthew Taylor.

The charity’s Time to Change campaign is an anti-stigma programme which it runs with Rethink Mental Illness. It’s supported by celebrities including Alastair Campbell, Ruby Wax and Patsy Palmer, who all got on board to speak out on the subject of mental illness. They were used specifically to change public attitudes and behaviours towards people with mental health problems.

Common ground

When identifying a celebrity most charities – large or small – agree that the most effective ones will have a synergy with your cause. Someone with experience of the issue will find it easier to empathise and talk about it.

Frances Webb-Thurgood, head of fundraising at Carers UK, outlines her strategy: “As much as we can, we go through newspapers and magazines to see if a certain celebrity has had caring responsibilities. We keep them on file and either write to them or phone them to ask if they would support us.”

Webb-Thurgood found a perfect fit in the actress Alison Steadman: “Alison has been a terrific long-term supporter as she had experience of caring for her mother.”

So, the key is to identify which audiences you want to target, and then pick a celebrity that suits. Get it right, and you can maximise the level of exposure for your cause. For example, when Caudwell Children launched its Enable Sport programme it sought celebrity ambassadors with an interest in disability sport, which resulted in two leading paralympians becoming involved – para-equestrian Lee Pearson CBE and footballer Matthew Dimbylow. The charity’s head of PR, Ben Sutcliffe, says: “For a relatively young charity which helps sick and disabled children across the UK, celebrity endorsement has been integral to increasing brand awareness without investing large sums on above-the-line marketing campaigns.”

Remember: the more famous a celebrity, the more time and resources you will need to get them on board and the less time they might have for you. Celebrities with busy schedules will need a long lead time. They might also have protective minders or agents who may prove obstructive.

Reaching the stars

Opinion can be divided on whether to go directly to the celebrity, or work alongside their gatekeeper. Whichever path you take, don’t be afraid to be direct. Spell out what you want and for how long. In this way the celebrity or agent will quickly be able to decide on their level of commitment. Sutcliffe says: “Our relationship with Peter Andre has been successful because we have a great working relationship with his management team at Can Associates, who are honest with us about the limitations on Peter’s time and the best way for our charity to use him.”

It may also be fruitful to make a direct ask for a specific occasion. Frances Webb-Thurgood successfully asked celebrity chef Nigella Lawson to front the Carers UK direct mail campaign in Kensington and Chelsea. As a former carer and resident of the borough it was both a good fit and the ask was clearly defined. Remember also that a one-off request can sometimes lead to a longer-term partnership.

Different strokes

It may be useful to have several ambassadors or patrons from various walks of life who will appeal to a variety of media and audiences. The key with each, according to Holly Monks, ActionAid UK’s celebrity coordinator is to remember that they are all different: “It’s important to understand your celebrity’s interests and not to use them as a go-to person for every activity you need help publicising.”
To a large extent the celebrity will determine how best they can be used and what they will be comfortable handling: while an actor may be perfect to front a television or radio appeal, a model may prefer a photo call or fashion shoot. In 2011 Christian Aid took designer Pearl Lowe and her model daughter Daisy to see the charity’s fashion project in the Brazilian slums, where former sex workers design dresses and catwalk shows to help them out of poverty. Similarly, a journalist may be suitable for a visit or trip, or they may agree to write an editorial in support of your latest campaign.

Celebrities are looking for exposure and charity work enhances their image. Make sure you try and add value to their support through publicity on your websites, social media pages and other channels, and to your supporter and internal audiences.

Play your cards right

The charities that have the best rapport with their celebrity patrons look after them carefully. They get alongside them as friends, nurture them and keep in touch.

“When celebrities work with a charity, they are going on a journey, so I try to stay close to them on that journey”, says John McKie, artist liaison for Christian Aid. “It’s important to keep updated on their career, as well as being aware of their major personal milestones, if appropriate.”

It is also important to keep celebrities up to date with the charity’s work on a regular basis – for example, a newsletter with a personal note or a Christmas card – and to show them the work that they contribute to has a positive effect on the charity's beneficiaries.

“For us”, says Mind’s Matthew Taylor, “that might involve taking supporters to their local Mind so they can meet people who use our services”.

Damage limitation

Being in the public eye, there is always a chance that a celebrity may attract negative publicity. It’s important to keep on top of developments here and have a media response ready.

“It may not be wise to drop or condemn them in haste”, John McKie advises. “You may do better to try and take a longer view of the celebrity’s career rather than fixate on a piece of poor publicity which can be ephemeral. Many celebrities have ups and downs through their time in the spotlight.”

A cautious charity might wish to follow Caudwell Children’s lead and have a written agreement that the charity can cancel the partnership should they do anything seen as contradictory to the charity’s values.

Face value

There are many ways of measuring a celebrity’s impact. If fronting a media campaign, circulation reach and advertising value equivalent (AVE) can be used. If attached to a fundraising campaign, results can be compared with a similar campaign which had no celebrity.

“Asking a celebrity to tweet about your work is measurable through tools like tweetreach and monitoring click-throughs to specific webpages”, adds Matthew Taylor. “Celebrity support can also be considered as a gift in kind, so think about measuring the value of this. If a celebrity normally charges £5,000 for a corporate after-dinner speaking event and is giving you his or her services for free, you can then value this donation of time at the same level.”

Ben Sutcliffe reckons the true measure of success is being able to attribute fundraising income directly to the personality. He says: “The average raised for Caudwell Children by an individual through a sponsored bungee jump is in the region of £100, but through our Reality Relief campaign, which engages with the stars of hit reality TV shows, we were able to increase fundraising for each jump to as much as £1,500 per person.

“The team of nine celebrities were each given an individual fundraising target, and the charity supported their fundraising by helping them market the challenge through various media channels to reach fans and supporters.

“The fundraising total achieved was over 1,000 per cent greater than the equivalent campaign with members of the general public. The event also achieved a greater amount of publicity, therefore proving the real value of celebrity endorsement.”

There is still more to be done on the evaluation of celebrity involvement in charity work. However, Taylor says that while evaluating the success of these high-profile figures in numerical terms is not always possible, “we know that celebrities can do much to change attitudes and raise awareness, and they have certainly helped us to reach a wider audience”.

Sophie Pearce is a communications consultant with Third Sector PR

This article first appeared in The Fundraiser magazine, Issue 19, July 2012