Is Neutrogena overusing Hayden Panettiere?

Neutrogena Skin iD ft. Hayden Panettiere from Starworks Artists on Vimeo.



Neutrogena Sonic Wave ft. Hayden Panettiere from Starworks Artists on Vimeo.

Hayden Panettiere has long been a celebrity spokesperson for Neutrogena. I was kind of shocked however, when during one commercial break I saw her in two advertisements for different products!

At first I thought they were for different companies, so I figured there must be a breach of contract or something, but I quickly realized they are both for Neutrogena.

I'm guessing that she has proven successful in previous brand campaigns, but because the two products are so different, I find it a little bit contrived. Obviously Hayden is getting paid to endorse the products, but it really seems like a money grab. In the Skin iD commercial, you don't even see Hayden using the product, nor does she claim to use it!

I think that Neutrogena would have been wiser to use a different spokesperson for one of these products. I know that Vanessa Hudgens was previously seen in commercials for the "Wave", so I'm assuming that she was not as successful as they hoped. I understand why Neutrogena would want to build on Hayden's past success, but there can be too much of a good thing!

I think this is a good lesson for all companies. Be careful how you use celebrity endorsers! Even if a celebrity has successfully increased sales and brand awareness, if you overuse them it no longer feels genuine, and that might affect your brand.

On a different note, I just want to mention how difficult it was to find these videos online! Neutrogena does not have a YouTube channel, and I only found a few videos on their website and Facebook page. I don't understand - their products are clearly targeted to a young market, why wouldn't they take advantage of these free opportunities?