BAT Inks Deal With RCA/JIVE Label for Artist Endorsements

Irvine, CA-based Brand Affinity Technologies (BAT) announced a deal with RCA/JIVE Label Group to add music stars to its already successful pro athlete endorsement platform. The agreement will enable even local brands to potentially leverage cost-effective endorsements from high-profile RCA/JIVE artists such as Adam Lambert, Britney Spears, Ke$ha, Santana and Usher.

For the artist, BAT provides a relatively easy way to generation auxiliary revenues and potentially raise their profile.

Once they agree to participate, the celebrity goes for a photo-shoot where they pose empty handed or pointing to a blank space. Those images and the celebrity background – along with other information such as popularity rating – are then added to the BAT database, which advertisers can search for endorsers.

Once they’ve chosen the right celebrity, they work with their ad agency to superimpose a product in their hand or photo background. These digital creatives can then appear in a variety of online and offline campaigns, including social media, TV and outdoor billboards.

BAT CEO Ryan Steelberg said that while some endorsements will be used in national campaigns, “Our differentiator in the marketplace is how we can help them leverage these celebrities and brands for local executions.”

BAT serves as the clearinghouse for the artist’s licensing and image rights, so that a musician on tour can do local web, TV and billboards touting a local product or service in advance of a concert in that very area.

On the sports celebrity side, BAT has helped Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub line up an endorsement for heating/air conditioning products and services in the Houston area and has helped Boston Celtics guard Rajon Rondo endorse products across New England.

Most of these deals are for 90 days or less, making them ideal for products and services with some seasonality, Steelberg explained.

For BAT, which has thousands of celebrities in its database, the move into music was a logical extension after the success of their sports celebrity program. “Some of these artists and bands may be huge in terms of awareness or album sales, but have zero deals right now,” Steelberg said.