Once the brand’s dream was the likes of David Beckham: high profile celebrity with brand equity amounting into the millions. Known for his football skills, marrying a Spice Girl and being covered in many a tattoo he is idolised around the world. Having earned a small fortune in sponsorship deals he is known as celebrity elite alongside the likes of Brad Pitt, Halle Berry and Charlize Theron. Many a fan have bought the clothing, skincare products and fragrances. We know from glossy magazines that certain designers will give out free outfits to celebrities to increase brand awareness and encourage diehard fans to make those investments that their bank manager probably wouldn’t agree on!

Then reality TV shows appeared and it was the start of a different type of celebrity. The general public became addicted to watching real people living their real lives with aspirations and real life problems more like their own and they began to relate. No longer did they need to spend a small fortune on the right outfit to feel more like their idols. Their idols were now wearing high street and it was much more affordable.

Take, for example, Mark Wright. A wealthy lad from Essex who was once a semi-professional player for Tottenham Hotspurs and rose to fame after becoming the main character for reality TV show, The Only Way is Essex. He now has his own calendar and launched a range of Swarovski crystal tattoos designed to be worn by men (don’t ask!)

The new lease of reality TV star has had a great impact on some brands. Cheap and sometimes trashy, with a quick turnaround and guaranteed sales. When the star fell out of favour it was straight on to the next one keeping the sales coming and the customer happy.

But it all depends on the type of reality TV star and how the brand want their reputation to be perceived. What if a reality TV star gives them free advertising but they don’t like the image that person promotes.

Abercrombie & Fitch have so far been the first to make a move when they felt their brand in threat. Jersey Shore, a reality show on MTV, is downright gritty, showing drunken debauchery and one night stands to the point where, in August, Abercrombie & Fitch paid one of the stars of Jersey Shore to NEVER wear their brand again as they didn’t want to be associated with the antics of one Mr. Sorrentino because they didn’t feel he fitted with their brand image.

Although this has been the first case of a brand paying someone NOT to wear their clothes I don’t think it will be the last.

So what should brands be doing to take full advantage of these people who are living their 15 minutes of fame…. Easy they should be watching the Twitter streams and reading the magazine articles that refer to these top trending TV shows. It’s the best way to see who is flavour of the week and who is not. And how can they use this information to drive sales… They should be creating limited edition products that fly off the shelves and if they are savvy enough and pick up on something before their competitors they could also grab the next big thing and ride with them as they hit the big time.