This type of advertising obviously works, if you get the right spokesman for the right product. I mean, prior to 1997, how many golfers did you see sporting the Nike swoosh hats and golf shirts? But as soon as Tiger Woods started wearing them, they were all over the place.

Some personalities have a likeability factor that makes them perfect for this. Current scandal aside, Tiger Woods is one of those. Michael Jordan is another.

If you have a tennis-related product, it may be worth the extra cash to get Roger Federer to endorse your product. You will need to calculate how much your sales will need to increase to cover the costs, then estimate the likelihood of that happening. But there are certainly countless examples where this has paid off big-time.

Another alternative you could use is to develop an unknown (or semi-unknown) personality into a famous one. Think of Jared from Subway, or the "can you hear me now" guy from Verizon, or that odd girl from the Progressive commercials, or that long haired guy that draws on the white board in the UPS commercials. Heck, it doesn't even need to be a human...think of the AFLAC duck or the GEICO gecko. Create a "character" or "persona" for your business and find a reasonable actor to fit that role. Use them in a series of advertisements and see what happens.