Across the world, celebrities have been used for a variety of brands, big and small, new and old, winners and losers.

India has opened its markets only recently and is witnessing an era of competition that its industry never imagined. Many venerable old organizations are now clutching at expensive straws to survive.

Consequently, one of the most noticeable trends over the last five years has been the plethora of celebrity endorsements. Across product categories, from toiletries to telecom, hi-fi's to hotels, ready-mades to razor blades, everyone seems to be roping in a "Brand Ambassador" to sell their products. If we take a look at the set of brand ambassadors who have been contracted so far, they are all either from the world of film or cricket. This is because India produces and consumes vast quantities of both.

So, our most celebrated cricket icon (perhaps our most celebrated personality), Sachin Tendulkar endorses everything from radial tires and the Palio car to Pepsi, Visa, Adidas, stock trading portals and music systems. The branding question is "Will the real Tendulkar please stand up?" Can he really be all of these?

Which brings us immediately to the term "endorsement." By definition we must be endorsing some trait or character of the brand. Theoretically, anybody can endorse anything if he carries credibility. But like the old advertising adage says, "the medium is the message." Shouldn't it apply to endorsements as well? After all celebrities are who they are for a strong streak they possess. So, James Bond is dashing, Michael Jordan breaks limits and Andre Agassi doesn't give up. By this logic, could we ever visualize Sean Connery endorsing the Rolls-Royce or John McEnroe as a brand ambassador for the Four Seasons?

Don't get me wrong, I am not advocating a ban on celebrity endorsement. Because celebrities can catalyze brand acceptance and provide the enormous momentum that brands require. However, as the term suggests, they must endorse something. And that something must be intrinsic to the brand.

But for celebrity endorsements to work, they should work on some fundamental ground rules:

a. Articulate with clarity on the brand promise (What am I?) and the brand personality (Who am I?)

b. Create consensus among the brand team on what the communication objectives for the campaign are

c. Focus single-mindedly on the characteristics the chosen celebrity should possess, in order to provide synergy with the brand to be advertised

d. Overtly establish what the celebrity is going to communicate

Once these criteria are met, endorsements can work as a force multiplier. On the flip side, the greatest danger is that because celebrities already carry a strong brand character, a mismatch could be counterproductive to the brand. It is very tempting to be carried away by the short-term exposure and interest that an endorsement could generate.

Finally, given the huge outlay that a celebrity presence demands, isn't it time that shareholders began asking fundamental questions on brand investments too?