This posting began as a reply to Keith, which by coincidence I began writing on the day that Tiger Woods announced his predicted return to ‘business as usual.’ Just days later, the favorable reception for his reemergence became evident in a 43% spike in ad spending value for his return to the Masters which will surely crank up its ‘in 3D” ratings. Tiger’s mea culpa messaging is now incorporated in two fixed-length pre-tourney interviews on ESPN and the Golf Channel— astutely selected media outlets that weren’t going to try to torpedo their viewer boon.
It’s too bad for the stakeholders in Tiger-marketed brands that my original commentary (Tiger’s Quadruple Bogey: News & Views, Dec. 10, 2009) was in any way prophetic. Tiger’s failure to get out ahead of the avalanche of “disclosure de jour” underscores the importance of being forthright, and his “failure to manage” left a telltale financial wake.
Published viewpoints on effective crisis management and Tiger’s scenario specifically are varied and strongly held. Among the many I found, Bob Conrad’s blog exchange illustrates this polarization. I fall into the Shel Holz and Jennifer Windrum camps and back that opinion with more than 25 years of experience in guiding organizations’ toughest communications during change, leadership transition or crisis.
The good news for college students and practitioners is that the legacies of brands rebounding from crisis — Tylenol’s tampering and latest recall, Perrier’s contamination, Enron’s implosion, the devastating Bonfire collapse at Texas A&M, and the bizarrely unsteady response by Toyota to claims of unpredictable mechanics — provide compelling instructional tools. These are all stories of substantial economic, health and social impact; and they are all reasons why the Public Relations Society of America identifies crisis counsel as an essential competency within its industry professional accreditation.
There are ample stories of redeemed public figures that pave an optimistic path for Tiger. In the meantime, the gaze of the PR industry and university faculties are trained on his newest reputation advisor: White House alumnus cum sports PR consultant Ari Fleischer (see ESPN opinion), whose counsel must have factored the Master’s return and interviews.
Like many, I now have Tiger fatigue. But as Nielsen viewership data will likely show, I will be among the millions worldwide who will be tuned into the Masters, in part because I play golf and always watch some of this event (note: I didn’t take the leap to say “I’m a golfer”) but also I want to see this most public reputation business story play out.
Will you be watching too?
March 23rd, 2010 at 6:21 am
Tiger fatigue is a terrific–but, for me, an understated–term…I like it for it captures the moment perfectly.
He–and his managers–have been masterful at parlaying an image [coupled with obvious golfing ability] to his own advantage. What was most telling for me was the “expose” by WSJ [I think I cited it on one of my screeds] on how he, up-to-two years before the “fall,” managed to dodge the bullet of public knowledge and condemnation of leading a double-image existence.
What accounts for a lot of cynicism on the part of many is the public’s apparently permanent Alzheimers condition when it comes to celebrity shameless self-promotion over substance; in Tiger’s case it seems that the target audience also comes pre-disposed to think uncritically when it comes to domestic relations in the first place. [Why else would ice-fishing, walking around aimlessly in the woods with firearms, and golfing be so popular pastimes for men? There are only a few explanations, some of which are not entirely noble.]
Those two attributes won’t make it hard for Tiger to show a considerable–albeit it not complete–comeback! Great discussion on a topic a lot of people are very interested in, Loring! KBM