MUMBAI: Old is gold? That would certainly appear to be the case IF one goes by Hansa Research’s Brand Endorser Report, which has ranked cricketing icon Sachin Tendulkar as India’s number one sports celebrity, followed by (usual suspect) Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni, in that order.
Brand Endorser is a report of research conducted across 36 Indian cities. As per the syndicated study, Tendulkar is the most recognised celebrity in the sports category with a recognition score of 84%. He is perceived to be popular, likable, global personality, confident, aspirational, fit, trustworthy, and relatable, along with a huge fan following, including social media followers base. These factors make him a compelling brand ambassador for a range of products, the report avers.
Commenting on the report, Ashish Karnad, executive vice president, Hansa Research said, “Sachin Tendulkar is perceived as a humble star known for sincerity, loyalty and self-discipline. The brands acknowledge these traits and recognize that the audience will choose a product endorsed by an honest celebrity. This stands as a key reason for Sachin Tendulkar to remain as the most preferred celebrity under sports category for endorsements.”
According to the Brand Endorser report, Sachin Tendulkar has surpassed “current” cricket celebrities like Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul, etc. Another interesting finding reveals that Sania Mirza is the only female sportsperson to be ranked in the top 10 list under sports category.
The celebrities are ranked as per the Brand Endorser (BE) Score results. They are tracked on various metrics like likability, social media influence, perception, marketing potential, recognition etc. which make up their final BE Score.
Key findings:
· Sachin Tendulkar leads over MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli in the sports category
· Amitabh Bachchan topped the overall list as the most recognized celebrity in the country with a very high All India Rank
· Kapil Sharma is the most popular TV star male celebrity
· Mouni Roy is the most popular TV star female celebrity
· Bhuvan Bam tops the social media list amongst other key influencers
· Allu Arjun and Samantha Prabhu tops as the most popular South stars
