Tencent Video has always been dedicated to showing the freshest and most popular videos. It has been famous for its talent shows and IP dramas so far, which have also attracted many fans. This year, Tencent Video has announced new endorses, that are Zhao Liying, Wu Yifan, Yang Zi, Xiao Zhan, Yang Mi, Yang Yang, Dilireba and Yang Chaoyue. The first seven celebrities are the protagonists of recent hit TV dramas, while Yang Chaoyue is the most popular trainee in Chinese Produce 101 produced by Tencent Video.
Did they succeed on the selection of celebrity?
Yes, but some of the brand ambassadors caused problems. The celebrity effect makes it easier for users to choose and trust a brand. When the image of a celebrity matches the brand’s value, people’s purchasing power receives the influence of these celebrities. Tencent Video chooses these stars who have a large fan base. When they work together, this private domain traffic will flood into the platform, and the reputation of the brand itself will bring a certain boost to the status and image of the stars, reaching a win-win situation. But a bad partner can be a disaster for a group, even create negative effects for a brand.
Did they succeed on the selection of celebrity?
Yes, but some of the brand ambassadors caused problems. The celebrity effect makes it easier for users to choose and trust a brand. When the image of a celebrity matches the brand’s value, people’s purchasing power receives the influence of these celebrities.
Tencent Video chooses these stars who have a large fan base. When they work together, this private domain traffic will flood into the platform, and the reputation of the brand itself will bring a certain boost to the status and image of the stars, reaching a win-win situation. But a bad partner can be a disaster for a group, even create negative effects for a brand.
An urgent PR crisis?
As some of you may know, one of the above celebrities–Wu Yifan, has been jailed for a criminal act and this has been a huge PR crisis for Tencent Video. One of the first to react to this incident was a Chinese skincare brand – Hanshu. The brand was the first one to stop the partnership. They thought it would have a negative impact, as it was the wrong selection of stars and there might be a cascading effect. But as the first brand to terminate the contract, HanShu was surprisingly well received by Chinese netizens and even attracted new customers. And after Tencent Video terminated the contract, all the expenses paid for a TV series were all for nothing as the star had another IP series collaboration with Tencent Video that had been filmed but not broadcast.
How to find the right star?
Current Chinese market focus on hotspot, but brands need to consider more than just one aspect when choosing an ambassador. There are celebrities who have millions of followers, but their style does not match the brand. This can also lead to confusion among consumers. So, in terms of style, celebrities and brands need to be unified. Finally, the celebrity and the brand need to have the same direction. For example, in this case, Wu and Tencent Video do not have the same development expectations. Tencent Video needs to have more high-quality TV series, while Wu’s work is all centered on his music career.
There are two sides to working with celebrities. Brands cannot predict what problems will arise in the future or define the outcome of the cooperation, but what they can do is to choose prudently before the cooperation and react if they encounter problems afterwards.
____________ Jingfang LIU
Word count: 500
Work Cited –
李云康. (2018). 明星效应的利与弊. 青评网. https://qingping.hunnu.edu.cn/info/1002/50284.htm
吴亦凡遭各大品牌方解约 腾讯视频S级待播剧或受波及. (2021). 证券日报. http://m.gxfin.com/article/finance/cj/renwu/2021-07-20/5611738.html