I grew up in South Jersey watching Penn State and Joe Paterno throughout my childhood. He was an icon of dignity and class and, for me, represented what was still good and pure about college football. The events of the past several days have brought a sudden and ugly end to that reputation. I'm saddened by that, especially for Joe Paterno and the young men he influenced over the years. I don't think Joe is a bad guy, but he clearly didn't do everything he could have to protect the young men exposed to danger. I am furious for those young men, and heartbroken at what they endured.
There is a marketing point here. Brands, no matter how shiny, can be tarnished in mere moments. Penn State's brand is certainly dinged up a bunch right now, and Paterno's brand is in bad shape. Can they recover? Of course they can. Tylenol did. BP is doing it. Toyota has managed it, Exxon did. Bill Clinton is a highly-sought-after speaker and best-selling author despite his antics in the White House and being the only modern president ever impeached.
As a marketer, I am extremely cautious about aligning my client's brand with an individual spokesperson. Celebrities and athletes can be wonderful spokespeople, but they can also behave badly and take your brand with them. Even CEO's can get into trouble and damage the brand.
It's impossible to predict when your brand will suffer because of the bad actions of one of your employees or a spokesperson. Your best defense is a complete crisis communications plan with an identified process for dealing with any situation. If you don't have one of those, I would be happy to help you put one together. Please contact me at Kim@DeppeCommunications.com
There is a marketing point here. Brands, no matter how shiny, can be tarnished in mere moments. Penn State's brand is certainly dinged up a bunch right now, and Paterno's brand is in bad shape. Can they recover? Of course they can. Tylenol did. BP is doing it. Toyota has managed it, Exxon did. Bill Clinton is a highly-sought-after speaker and best-selling author despite his antics in the White House and being the only modern president ever impeached.
As a marketer, I am extremely cautious about aligning my client's brand with an individual spokesperson. Celebrities and athletes can be wonderful spokespeople, but they can also behave badly and take your brand with them. Even CEO's can get into trouble and damage the brand.
It's impossible to predict when your brand will suffer because of the bad actions of one of your employees or a spokesperson. Your best defense is a complete crisis communications plan with an identified process for dealing with any situation. If you don't have one of those, I would be happy to help you put one together. Please contact me at Kim@DeppeCommunications.com
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