Akshay Kumar dominated TV advertising in 2024: TAM AdEx

TAM AdEx has recently released the TAM Celebrity Endorsement Report for 2024, covering various aspects of celebrity endorsement on television in the year, including the most visible celebrity through endorsements, the quantum of sectors, categories and brands endorsed, the ratio of ads with and without celebrity endorsements, monthly and yearly celebrity endorsement trends, and advertising theme appeal difference by age and gender. 

In 2024, ad volumes for celebrity-endorsed commercials saw a 3% growth compared to 2023, highlighting the sustained influence of star power in advertising. The IPL season significantly boosted advertising activity, making April - June 2024 the peak period for daily ad volumes. Most celebrity endorsements were seen on television during May and the lowest in December. 

The report highlights that male movie actors command 42% of the total ad endorsement market. Further, about a fourth of all ads feature celebrities in television advertising. 2024 saw film stars feature in 77% of TV ads, followed by sports persons (14%) and TV stars (9%). 

Food & Beverages, Personal Care/Personal Hygiene and Household Products are the top categories endorsed by celebrities, making up for more than 50% of such ads. Other key categories include Services, Building, Industrial & Land Materials/Equipment, Personal Healthcare, Hair Care, Laundry, Banking/Finance/Investment and Auto. 

In 2024, the F&B sector saw a strong male celebrity presence in advertisements, while Personal Care/Personal Hygiene was predominantly endorsed by female celebrities, reflecting gendered marketing trends in these industries. Advertisements in the Agriculture, Telecom/Internet Service Providers, and Media sectors exclusively featured male celebrity endorsers.

The top 10 advertising categories collectively contributed 35% of all celebrity-endorsed ads. These include Toilet/Floor Cleaners, Toilet Soaps, Washing Powders/Liquids, Aerated Soft Drink, Paints, Building Materials/Systems, Hair Dyes, Ecom-Online Shopping, Milk Beverages and Biscuits. 

‘Ecom-Gaming’ was the most sought-after category, attracting 53 celebrities for endorsements from a diverse range of professions, followed closely by ‘Spices’, with 34 celebrities, reflecting the broad appeal and marketing potential of these sectors. Other top categories included Building Materials/Systems (33), Ecom-Online Shopping (25), Retail Outlets-Jewellers (24), Hosiery (24), Aerated Soft Drink (23), Paints (23), Biscuits (21) and Perfumes/Deodorant (20). 

Akshay Kumar dominated TV advertising in 2024, with 20 hrs of daily visibility across all channels, making him the most visible celebrity. Shah Rukh Khan followed closely behind with 16 hrs per day, reinforcing his enduring influence in brand endorsements. Other most visible celebrities included Amitabh Bachchan, M S Dhoni, Sara Ali Khan, Kiara Advani, Alia Bhatt, Ranveer Singh, Ranbir Kapoor and Anushka Sharma. 

M S Dhoni, Kiara Advani, and Ranbir Kapoor were new entrants in the 2024 Top 10 list, compared to 2023, the report notes, adding that MS Dhoni was the most sought-after celebrity, endorsing the highest number of brands (52) in 2024. 

When it comes to celebrity couples endorsing brands, 50% of the ads featured Akshay Kumar/Twinkle Khanna, Ranbir Kapoor/Alia Bhatt, Anushka Sharma/Virat Kohli and Amitabh Bachchan/Jaya Bachchan