These Duke grads will get you a personalized video greeting from a celebrity — for a price

It’s not enough to say “Happy Birthday” in a greeting card anymore. You need a celebrity say it for you.

Or at least that’s the thinking behind Cameo, a web site and an app created by three Duke University alumni that lets fans order a personalized video from an array of athletes, celebrities and social media influencers. The Chicago-based company launched in February 2017 and since then, more than 50,000 Cameos have been created for any occasion, including birthday greetings, prom invitations, even marriage proposals.

However, don’t expect a shout out from Brad Pitt.

Steven Galanis, CEO and co-founder of Cameo, said the platform was intended for celebrities below the A-list threshold to connect with fans and monetize their fame. But he’s not opposed to expanding the talent list. In fact, that’s his hope.

“We don’t think our business is reliant on the A-plus list talent,” said Galanis, who graduated from Duke in 2010. “But we do think they’ll want to do it one day, too. Justin Bieber already does SnapStories every day and Drake is doing an Instagram post for free. If we build a product that is so fun that you’d do it for free, but you get paid — we think it will eventually attract everybody.”

Cameo’s roster of more than 3,000 famous faces includes Tom Felton, who played Draco Malfoy in the “Harry Potter” films, NFL Hall of Famer Terrell Owens and President Donald Trump’s second wife Marla Maples (she’s listed as an actress on the web site not as Trump’s ex).

To order up a Cameo, choose from the list of celebrities, enter the recipient’s name, your email and phone number and some instructions on what the celebrity should say. (If you’re ordering it as a gift, the cameo will come to you to send along.) Celebrities set their own price, and take 75 percent of the earnings.

Galanis said the average cost is $35, but ranges from $20 to a few hundred. A video from Owens costs $350, while a shout out from rapper Soulja Boy is $25. Recently retired Seattle Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor charges $1,000 for a video.

“We might say, ‘Hey, you have a similar profile as this person’ or ‘Hey, you’re overpriced look at what this person is charging,’ ” Galanis said. “Or sometimes it’s, ‘Hey we think you’re way underpriced. You may be getting booked too much and not able to do them.’ ”

The idea behind Cameo was inspired by a 12-second video of NFL defensive end Cassius Marsh, Galanis said.

In October 2016, Martin Blencowe was the agent for Marsh, who was playing for the Seattle Seahawks at the time. Blencowe asked him to record a video for a friend who just had a baby.

“Hey Brandon, I just want to say congratulations on (your son) Maverick,” Marsh said in the video. “And I’m sure if he gets your athletic ability, he’ll be playing for the Seahawks one day, man.”

Blencowe, who is Galanis’ partner in Blue Baron Productions, showed Galanis the video. But it wasn’t the video that intrigued Galanis, it was the response.

“This video got posted on Instagram, and this guy, Brandon said it was the best gift he ever got in his life,” Galanis said. “That guy was an executive at Nike, who works with some of the biggest athletes on Earth. It really got us thinking. If this guy was super pumped hearing from Cassius Marsh, what would any random fan feel hearing from their favorite person?”

Galanis and Blencowe teamed up with former Vine video star Devon Townsend, who built the site, and Arthur Leopold, now the COO. Blencowe is the only non-Duke graduate in the group. The site launched in 2017 with four professional athletes signed on to contribute Cameos. Galanis and Blencowe used their connections in the film industry (they’ve worked as producers on movies staring Bruce Willis, Robert De Niro and John Cusack) to sign some actors. It was Townsend who got them to add YouTube and social media comedians.

His suggestion proved beneficial. Cameo’s most booked talent is YouTube and Vine comedians Evan Breen, Nick Colletti and Cody Ko. “The Real Housewives of New York City” star Sonja Morgan is close behind at No. 4.

“We really found those ex-Vine stars do really well because we think their fans are used to them producing content like this,” Galanis said. “And they’ve also kept their prices relatively inexpensive.”

With every request, stars have seven days to decide to do the video or not. If seven days passes and the video isn’t completed, the charge is canceled. Celebrities can opt out of any Cameo they don’t want to do, but Galanis said less than 3 percent of the requests are declined.

“If you went and tried to book Lance Thomas, for example, who was a Duke player and have him say, ‘Duke sucks. Go UNC,’ he would say, ‘No,’ ” Galanis said.

Galanis said his team of 21 full-time employees recruits celebrities for the platform, while some stars sign up themselves. Cameo reaches celebrities through direct messages on Twitter and Instagram and through a talent-to-talent referral program.

Cameo launched an app for iPhones in April, but Galanis said customers can’t book Cameos on the iOS app yet. He said Apple wants to take a large portion of the earnings, which could hurt the company. Galanis said he hopes to expand purchases to the iOS app.

Looking forward, Galanis said he would like to continue adding more talent to both the Cameo web site and eventually the Cameo staff.

“We love that our products leave people smiling, laughing and crying,” Galanis said. “Almost all of these are bought as gifts. It’s not the talent charging their fan for something directly. It’s no different than you buying tickets to a Beyonce concert for your friend’s birthday.”