Anna Kendrick, star of Up in the Air, Pitch Perfect and singer of Billboard topper “When I’m Gone” is a star that fits in today’s smartphone and sharing world. Unlike her counterparts, she does not have an agent or an assistant. She manages all of her deals herself. She also has a huge and loyal following on Twitter (2.47 M followers) and Instagram (1.39 M followers). An “insider” who regular people can relate to, she was recently named as one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People, the article posts the following about her views on personal brand:
If there’s something about the concept of a personal brand that Kendrick still finds a little . . . uncool, she’s also too smart to pretend it’s not important. “I know the idea of a brand is something that I’m supposed to not care about,” she says. “But I do think it’s a part of my life, and I’m trying to just be in control of it, as opposed to ignoring it.
As many do, she relates the concept of personal brand to people who self-promote and are fake online. But, the idea is to not be fake, but to face up to the fact that we all have personal brands, and it is about controlling the message rather than ignoring it. She is genuine in her posts, for example, she did not hide the fact that she was very excited to meet Beyonce, and purposely did not play it cool(see pic from Instagram above).
Her online presence helped her sponsorship of Newcastle Beer for example. They ran a Behind the Scenes ad where she talks about not being hot enough to be in a beer commercial in a relatable way. The results?
In the run-up to the Super Bowl, the commercial was watched online more than 4 million times. “We don’t have the sales figures yet,” says Royer, “but brand conversation on social media went up 400%.” With more than 600 organic media mentions, the ad also dominated the Super Bowl commercial conversation, even at the expense of actual Super Bowl commercials. “We made so many Top 10 lists, and we didn’t even buy an ad,” says Royer.
Other tips that she offers:
- Don’t self-promote too much – focus on being funny and interesting.
- Be careful about sponsored posts, don’t do it in a way that alienates fans such as having a deal that asks you to post 10+ times.
- Be thoughtful about what you share – usually she has multiple posts on the go in her smart phone and chooses which ones to post carefully!