Brand Jordan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Brand Jordan - Essay Example Evidently, the five key attributes to Jordan could be listed as great athlete, ultra-competitive champion, well-known African-American, Handsome guy, and fascinating spokesman (‘Case Study’). The leading attribute will be the one that creates a perceptual label within a person’s mind and drags his attentions on encountering the particular personal brand. The leading attribute behind the Brand Jordan was ‘the greatest basketball player of all time’. 2. Team Jordan candidates and the brand attributes One of the candidates suggested for the Brand Jordan with so much popularity was the eminent soccer player David Beckham. He started his career from becoming a winning soccer player at the age of 14 and later was known for his youth empowerment and training programs. Brand Jordan considered Beckham to sustain the reputation of the brand as his career portrayed numerous achievements, like having a free-kick technique named after him, which could drag the att ention of customers. Besides he has been at his best with the Manchester United. Signing with Beckham would be a good start for entering the world of soccer. However, he was in his mid thirties and would be approaching the end of his career soon. Jamie Foxx was at his all time high popularity in 2006. He was an American Academy Award winning actor and a Grammy Award nominated singer and comedian. His noticeable personal attributes were attractive, athletic African-American, and good fit for the lifestyle products. However, Larry Miller, president of Brand Jordan had a second thought whether signing Foxx in a low-profile endorsement would be profitable or would detract from the brand. Another candidate for the team was a professional golfer from Hawaii, Michelle Wie, a 6-feet woman successfully driving back majority of professional women golfers. Wie had a seemingly limitless potential while commonly comparing with the Tiger Woods and Sorenstam. Wie has been eminent in her career and was an incredible athlete, but that was not all enough to decide that whether golf was the right starting point for the Brand Jordan to reach out to women. Chinese market was an important factor for the expansion of the Brand Jordan, and a best way to promote the brand over the China market was signing Liu Xiang, a 22 years old Chinese athlete who was best known for winning the 110 meters hurdles at his first IAAF Grand Prix in Lausanne. His popularity was further increased when he tied the world record of 12.91 seconds of Colin Jackson, a first time achievement of a non-African descent. Another advantage was that this endorsement would diminish the value of rival Reebok’s market. Though the Xiang has been considered the superstar in his home country in whose market the brand had a bright future, which was not all enough to get into a contract with the athlete. A big concern on selecting Xiang was about the Chinese government’s endorsement with him on a cigarette bran d. 3. Importance of celebrity endorsement Obviously, celebrity endorsements have been identified and accepted by the firms as it has direct results that influences the brand the company is trying to send through a person in a way that the customers experience a sense of similarity with the brand. Brand Jordan felt that the celebrity endorsement would be an important factor as the consumers tend more to conceive information from a celebrity whom they know than a person they do not. Besides, the celebrity has the ability to transfer their eminent and