So you've gone into business for yourself and you think you have a product or products that are worth putting out into the marketplace. Besides a great location and an effective grass roots campaign, what one thing could put your push your diamond in the rough product into bona fide diamond status? The much sought after celebrity endorsement!

But you're just Jane Smith, starting up an at-home business selling edgy baby clothes. Why would a celebrity endorse you? Well give them a reason to! You can do this fairly easily by tapping into a few things:

Know your target audience.
Who's in the market? If you're selling cute cotton infant jumpers with edgy slogans, ask yourself which celebrity is pregnant or has just had a baby. Sending Gwen Stefani some free adorable baby clothes for little Kingston to model in his stroller not only gives you the potential to gain Gwen as a customer and endorser, but actually opens up the door to the possibility that your baby clothes will be photographed and appear in one of the weekly celebrity mags.

Appeal to the soul.
Everyone cares about something. Yes, even celebrities! Find out what cause your target celebrity champions and immediately establish a fixed contribution of net profits to that charity before approaching that celebrity. If they like your product AND your cause, you've already effectively doubled your chances that he or she will sign on board.

DO judge your book by its cover.
In the world of celebrity, appearance is everything! Make sure that you put a great deal of emphasis on the packaging of your product. Pour through the style mags to see what's hot and what's not in order to incorporate just the right element of chic in your product's presentation. Everyone wants to feel like they've got their finger on the pulse of what's in, so you can't afford to be out!

Practice product politics.
To the left, to the left! It's a well known fact that a lot of our celebrities are a bit on the liberal side of things. Okay, sometimes more than a bit. That said, it can't hurt and can only help if you can find a cost effective way to use eco-friendly products and strictly humane working conditions for your product's production. Kathy Lee Gifford learned the hard way that no one feels warm and fuzzy about sweaters sewn by underpaid, underage workers in a third world country. Make sure that every aspect of your product from design to production to actual use is something that any morally conscious person would be glad to get behind.

Some of those elements might seem daunting at first and perhaps some may actually be. Just remember that in the world of sales even the seemingly smallest elements can make or break the success of your endeavor.

Learn more about this author, Melanee Dark.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

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