Some brands will forever be synonymous with their ambassador, the celebrity that has fronted their advertising campaigns. If you need any proof of that head to Gary Lineker’s Twitter page and count how many references to crisps you see in his replies.

Choosing the right brand ambassador can make or break the success of an advertising campaign. A thorough vetting procedure needs to be carried out by the brand before signing up a celebrity as one scandal could end up dragging their reputation through the mud.

Recently, Game of Thrones’ actor Kristian Nairn has been involved in different ads campaigns featuring the character he plays in the HBO series. From the KFC ad to the Power of Hodl campaign, Nairn is emerging in the advertisement business as a strong image.

Successful brand ambassadors

Gary Lineker – Walkers

The former Leicester, Tottenham and Barcelona striker came so close to World Cup glory for England in 1990 after finishing top scorer in the tournament 4 years earlier. However, for a generation of people in the UK he isn’t known for his sporting achievements, but more for his association with the nation’s favourite crisps.

In 1985, Lineker fronted his first advert for the Leicester based crisp company and has since gone on to be involved in every major advertising campaign for Walkers ever since. In 2016 he even starred alongside Lionel Messi in an advert aired during the Champions League final.

Despite being criticised for his anti-Brexit tweets, Lineker has had a whiter than white public life, never bringing the company’s name into disrepute. In fact his Twitter spats with Piers Morgan – who refers to him as the ‘jug eared Walkers man’ – have actually helped to spread the appeal of the brand.

George Clooney – Martini

At one time Clooney was perhaps the most famous man in film, starring in a whole host of blockbuster movies as well as being a worldwide heart throb. Martini enlisted him as a brand ambassador in 2007 to front their advertising campaigns.

The most well-known of which saw him being refused entry to a party because he had forgot to bring along Martini. By using Clooney as a brand ambassador, Martini managed to exploit the actor’s universal appeal and at the same time made their brand infinitely cooler.

The next big brand ambassador?

Kristian Nairn: You’re probably unfamiliar with Kristian Nairn, a 42-year-old actor and DJ from Lisburn, Northern Ireland. Well he’s a pretty big deal in Belfast, as the resident DJ for The Kremlin and the owner of the incredibly popular bar Cuckoo.

However he is famous worldwide for his portrayal of Hodor in the critically-acclaimed HBO series Game of Thrones. His character has been seen and loved by millions of fans across the globe and the one word that he speaks in the series ‘HODOR’ has been plastered across memes and videos for years. In 2017, the fast-food company KFC has also used Nairn popularity amongst the Game of Thrones fan to produce a successful advert that recreated the ‘Hold the door’ scene.

Recently, it is the Israeli based company eToro that have selected Nairn to appear in an advert that looks capable of rivalling the Walkers and Martini efforts. In it Nairn is offered a series of advertising deals by his agent and repeatedly refuses to accept any deal that requires him to say ‘HODOR’.

Finally, he agrees to do an upmarket advert for eToro by repeating the term ‘HODL’, the term jokingly referring to cryptocurrency investors who refuse to sell when the value of their stock is crashing.

The advert is funny, witty and utilises Nairn’s iconic catchphrase excellently, making it a guaranteed success. Whether or not it has the impact of George Clooney or Gary Lineker’s campaigns remains to be seen.