Everyone has been following the top celebrity endorsement deal this past week- of course I am writing about Stephen Colbert’s sponsorship of the US Speed Skating Team. When the US Speed Skating Team lost Dutch bank DSB as its primary sponsor, creating an immediate shortfall of $300,000 to the association and $50,000 to the athletes, Colbert Nation pounced. Online they raised around $250,000 and the sponsorship deal was inked on the show. A donate now button is prominently displayed on the Colbert Nation website’s homepage. Additionally other sponsors have jumped on the Colbert PR coat tails.

No all is well with the Colbert Show’s endorsement deal. One of the leading US speed skaters has Olympic gold medalist Shani Davis referring to the new patron of the sport as a “jerk”. Most of the team has readily accepted Colbert’s fundraising assistance, media spotlight or at least tolerated the attention with humor. What was slated a PR stunt as much as an awareness campaign is bringing out an ugly division within the team.

With the endless details in the Tiger Woods saga changing daily, anything I post will be outdated by the end of the day. I will however suggest that the charities supported by Tiger Woods both directly and indirectly are pondering new ways to position their partnership with the world’s number one golfer. Those that have hooked their funding train and image to Tiger now must considering the future in ways that most have never been unimaginable weeks ago.

A celebrity endorsement of your cause is a powerful tool. It brings media and attention, things most nonprofits can only garner when they are in middle of turmoil or receive a ridiculously large donation. Managing celebrity partnerships requires a unique set of expertise and lots of communication. Most celebrities become well know for something other than their work in the social sector. ‘A List’ individuals tend to be magnets. They can attract a lot of postive attention but they also attract less than desirable press (either in rumor or fact).

How can you position your enterprise to partner with the right celebrity? Do you add them to your Board (what decision-making talents can a celebrity bring that currently missing from you Board)? Is there a role that is best suited for a celebrity within your organization? If the celebrity cloak falls off tomorrow, would you still want to have this person associated with the organization? What would be the one thing that a celebrity could do for your organization? Are you focused obtaining that primary objective?