At present, the global crypto industry is increasingly competitive, and the number of projects and marketing investment are constantly rising. In order to enhance brand awareness, large exchanges have widely deployed marketing in the sports and entertainment fields. As pointed out by well-known research, leading exchanges such as Crypto.com and FTX invested a total of about US$1 billion in sports sponsorship in 2021; in 2021, Crypto.com even spent US$700 million to obtain the naming rights of the Staples Center (Crypto.com Arena). In addition, sports star endorsements have become a hot topic.
In 2022, top crypto platform Bitget announced that it had signed a contract with soccer star Messi as its spokesperson, followed by well-known exchange Coinbase, which appeared in NBA and other events. At the end of 2023, Binance officially disclosed plans to invite Cristiano Ronaldo to shoot a large-scale advertising series . Earlier, soccer star Messi also signed a $20 million contract with Socios.com to promote fan tokens, and NBA star LeBron James also reached a multi-year cooperation with Crypto.com. In summary, leveraging the world's top sports and entertainment stars for brand promotion has become an important marketing trend for crypto wallets and exchanges.
The current status and trends of celebrity endorsements in the crypto industry
According to market research firm Nielsen, the annual investment of blockchain and crypto companies in sports sponsorship is expected to exceed $5 billion by 2026. In reality, major trading platforms have increased their sports cooperation: Crypto.com and FTX invested a total of about $1 billion in the sports field in 2021; Crypto.com became the official partner of the Qatar World Cup in 2021, and Coinbase signed a contract with the NBA League, which shows that mainstream capital is vigorously entering sports events and celebrity resources. Check out our celebrity endorsement resources.
Looking back at 2022-2024, although the popularity of sports sponsorship and celebrity endorsements fluctuated due to market cycles, it did not stop. In 2022, Bitget announced the signing of Messi (the star also cooperated with PSG, the Argentine national team, etc. to promote Socios fan tokens); in the same year, Crypto.com sponsored UFC for a ten-year agreement at a cost of $175 million; in 2023, Binance cooperated with Premier League club Manchester City, and OKX signed a Manchester City sponsorship for nearly $70 million. In addition, emerging exchanges such as Everport have also used e-sports stars and social media leaders for publicity. In general, the sports field (football, basketball, boxing, etc.) is the main battlefield for celebrity marketing, and the new wave includes more cross-border cooperation between top leagues, clubs and celebrity endorsements. At the same time, industry observers pointed out that celebrity endorsements are closely related to the efficiency of information dissemination of crypto projects: for example, when Messi briefly mentioned a crypto project on his personal social media, the price of its related tokens would often soar rapidly. It can be seen that celebrity endorsements bring an unusually large amount of attention and topic volume to the project in the short term. A practical guide to obtaining celebrity endorsements
Project directions suitable for different types of stars
Depending on the target users and project positioning, you can choose celebrity endorsements from different fields. Sports stars (such as football, basketball, boxing champions, etc.) are usually used to promote sports events, clubs or sports activities. For example, football superstars are often combined with the World Cup, European Cup, major leagues or fan token projects under clubs (such as Messi cooperating with the national team and clubs to launch fan tokens); NBA stars are suitable for promoting exchanges or blockchain products for the US and Asian markets. Sports scenes can bring huge fan traffic and event linkage, and enhance brand coverage.
Celebrities in the entertainment industry (film and television actors, singers, internet celebrities, etc.) can be used for more extensive market promotion, such as shooting image advertisements, participating in large-scale commercial activities or public welfare cooperation, in order to shape the brand's high-end image or attract people from different circles. In fact, crypto exchanges have also hired Hollywood stars to star in advertisements (such as Crypto.com invited Matt Damon to shoot a promotional video in 2021). The key is to match the audience of the spokesperson: for example, projects targeting young groups may prefer e-sports and music stars; brands targeting the mainstream public can choose well-known movie stars or social celebrities. Different types of celebrity resources have their own advantages, but they can all significantly expand the influence of the project. View in-depth analysis of celebrity endorsements
Analysis of PR value, social media coverage and user conversion brought by celebrities
The greatest value of celebrity endorsements is to quickly increase media and public attention. For example, after Messi posted crypto-related content on his Instagram, the associated token $WATER rose nearly 400% within a few hours, and the trading volume soared to about 97 million US dollars ; similarly, after Cristiano Ronaldo announced a partnership with Binance to issue NFTs, the online search volume of the keyword "Binance" instantly increased by 500% . These cases show that celebrity participation makes the project instantly hit the headlines, triggers heated discussions on social media, and greatly increases brand exposure. At the same time, high exposure is usually accompanied by user conversion: projects can evaluate the effect through indicators such as website visits, new user registrations, and transaction volumes before and after celebrity endorsement promotions.
For example, exchanges often design exclusive registration links, discount codes or landing pages for spokespersons in order to track the increase in new accounts and recharge amounts during the event. Although the data will vary depending on the project and channel, it can be expected that high-profile endorsement activities will bring traffic peaks and user growth. Overall, celebrity endorsements can quickly expand social media coverage and significantly increase potential users' awareness and trust in the brand in the short term, thereby attracting more trials and registrations for exchanges or wallets.
Summarize
Celebrity endorsements have brought unprecedented opportunities for brand building for crypto exchanges and wallets: top athletes and celebrities can quickly expand brand awareness and social trust with their fan base and influence. From NBA to football superstars, from film and television stars to Internet celebrities, all kinds of celebrities have participated in this trend, injecting new vitality into the marketing of the crypto industry. Practice has shown that this strategy is particularly suitable for high-quality projects with strong financial strength and long-term development plans, because large-scale endorsement cooperation is usually expensive and requires careful planning to ensure that the brand and the spokesperson's image fit.
For projects that want to quickly expand into the market and strengthen brand recognition, celebrity endorsements are a feasible and efficient path, but risk prevention and effect evaluation must also be done well. In short, if resources permit, achieving brand transition through celebrity endorsements can greatly increase the project's industry exposure and user trust, laying the foundation for long-term development.
FAQ
Q1: What is the price range for celebrity endorsements?
It usually ranges from several million to tens of millions of dollars. For example, Messi's endorsement of Socios is about 20 million US dollars.
Q2: Is it necessary to choose a sports star?
Not necessarily. You can choose entertainment stars or internet celebrities. The key is to see how well they match the user group.
Q3: How to measure real conversion?
Use exclusive links or invitation codes to monitor the growth of new users, recharge volume and search popularity.
Q4: What kind of projects are suitable for celebrity endorsements?
Exchanges, wallets, and leading infrastructure that have entered a period of global expansion and hope to quickly increase brand awareness.
Projects that target C-end users and need to enter the mainstream market, such as NFT platforms, GameFi, and payment applications.
Projects with mature products , sufficient budgets, clear brand positioning, and the ability to execute with star collaborations.
Web3 brands that hope to break through the circle and attract new users and reach non-crypto user groups (such as sports fans and entertainment fans).
