Laurie Kessler is an expert in promoting both products and people. She has extensive experience in entertainment, talent relations and representation, celebrity bookings, events, media, marketing, promotions, publicity, video production and branding campaigns. She has worked with literally thousands of celebrities and luminaries, brands, non-profits, and media conglomerates – and she is highly adept at determining client needs and priorities, and delivering strategic solutions and results.
FWM: The Celebrity Source is known for creating organic, authentic celebrity matches for their clients. Tell us about your business.
The Celebrity Source was established in 1988, and for over 30 years has helped brands, non-profits and events match with the perfect celebrity or influencer to help increase profits, donations, trust, impact, and awareness. We work with thousands of celebrities from film, television, sports, music, fashion, and beyond – and help make the talent procurement process very turnkey for our clients, saving them time and money.
FWM: “We’re not just a booking agency, we are a strategic partner who digs deep into our clients’ needs and fulfills them.” Explain
We are a full-service celebrity company that has worked with a long list of businesses of all sizes. We also align with brands’ PR, marketing, ad and event agencies, to ideate and implement celebrity strategies that help elevate brands and amplify their messaging. We work with each client closely to ensure we secure the ideal celebrity or influencer that fits within their budget and best meets their goals.
FWM: Are you seeing any changes in the industry?
While we know the pandemic has been challenging for many, we are proud to say that The Celebrity Source was able to fare well during these times. Most of our clients pivoted to digital or virtual strategies. For example, event clients incorporated celebrities to add some “sizzle” to the virtual experience – be it a musical performance over Zoom, a short “meet and greet” with a famous actor, a celebrity chef offering a remote cooking lesson, or a legendary speaker offering words of wisdom. We have also seen many businesses opt to run social media and digital ad campaigns featuring celebrities, allowing talent to shoot from home or with a small “COVID-safe” crew in-studio – which provided an even greater authenticity to the ads, and successful results for the brands.
FWM: Take us through the process of working with you.
We utilize a multi-phase process to help thoroughly understand our client’s needs, priorities and budgets – and then help identify the right celebrities that are the best match, conduct all talent outreach, negotiate the lowest talent fees and best terms possible, and then coordinate all the logistical details for celebrity involvement. We act as the organization’s agent (not the talent’s), and with decades of experience we know how to get talent to say “Yes!” to working on a project.
FWM: Do you work with small businesses?
While The Celebrity Source has worked with many world-class clients such as Disney, Coca-Cola, Calvin Klein, Toyota, Kraft and more; we also love working with small businesses and emerging brands to help them grow. We know that small or young businesses understand the power of celebrity endorsements and affiliations, but have leaner budgets they need to be smart with. We therefore are happy to work with small businesses to help them “dip their toe in the waters” of celebrity strategies at affordable costs – be it through a celebrity gifting program, social media endorsements with more reasonably-priced stars, adding in a “cause” component to the project where some celebrities may even waive their fees, and other solutions that can work within manageable budgets.
FWM: Tell us about your recent partnership with GolfStatus.org. What is your vision for the partnership?
GolfStatus.org, is a leading event management platform for golf fundraisers. They serve nonprofit clients, businesses, corporate entities, and others holding charity golf outings. The Celebrity Source, is the leading celebrity procurement agency in the country and since we share a similar client base the partnership seemed like a natural, not to mention knowing from experience that celebrity support can help quantum leap charity golf tournaments in terms of exposure and funds raised. Therefore, partnering with GolfStatus and their Golf for Good program was a no-brainer for us.
FWM: What lessons have you learned over the years?
It’s been fascinating to see over the years how the definition of “celebrity” has evolved and expanded. When we first formed the business in the late 80s, the idea of celebrity was much more traditional – famous movie and TV stars, rock stars, and sports legends. With the rise of social media, not only do many influencers now qualify as a celebrity – even traditional celebrities have become actual brands, many creating mini empires beyond the industries that initially made them famous. This expansion has helped open up a vast array of potential brand/talent partnerships, and has made our role even more vital to help our clients navigate these dynamic times.
Who have you enjoyed working with the most? This is always a challenging question as it’s like being asked to pick your favorite child. We have so many amazing celebrity relationships ranging from Matthew McConaughey and Magic Johnson to Oprah and Kelly Clarkson. Each collaboration is unique – from race car driving with Keanu Reeves and red carpet events with Nicole Kidman to ad campaigns with Howie Mandell and William Shatner. We love our job, and playing “matchmaker” with our clients and celebrities makes each day exciting and rewarding.
FWM: Why is The Celebrity Source a perfect solution for brands today?
We know that our clients have a million things to juggle – and they want reliable, effective partners to help them achieve their goals. Our priority is to harness the power of celebrity alignment, and to protect the client’s best interests, making the collaboration as easy, affordable, and successful as possible.
Website: www.thecelebritysource.com
Instagram: @thecelebritysource
Facebook: @celebritysource
Twitter: @celebritysource
LinkedIn: @thecelebritysource
YouTube: @thecelebritysource
YouTube Channel – Hiring Celebrities Video Series: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHcS4aksNk1eVwygi12g3ig
YouTube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYELQ71Tquc&t=31s
