Cheryl Cole drives X Factor popularity, says research

Cheryl Cole’s star wattage is one of the key drivers for the success of ITV’s The X Factor, according to Millward Brown celebrity research.

Cheryl Cole on the X Factor 2010
Cheryl Cole on the X Factor 2010

The show returned for its seventh series last weekend and drew a peak audience of 12.6m on ITV1.

Millward Brown’s celebrity and brand research (Cebra), which interviews 2,000 customer about 100 celebrities and 100 brands, was unveiled by Marketing Week in April. It is used by marketers to identify celebrity and brand partnerships.

The research shows singer Cole has the highest celebrity “Buzz” scores in the study (76% positive) “buzz”.

Senior researcher in Millward Brown’s UK media practice Rob Valsler says: “Cole has a mix of exciting, endearing and engaging traits, which is a great fit for The X-Factor brand. It wouldn’t surprise me if Cole was responsible for the record viewing figures the show had for the first showing of its new series last week.”

ITV.com plans to roll out its dual-screen platform ITV Live for The X Factor 2010.

ITV Live launched for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and is built and designed in partnership with live social TV specialists Monterosa. It allows users to interact with a range of online tools, such as chat, video and facts, while watching the action on the big screen.