Martha Stewart is 64 today and has just been told she has to serve 3 more weeks house confinement due to a breach of her conditions (she went to an outside yoga class!) This has not stopped her however in re-building her brand – including the launch of two new TV shows – The Apprentice and also a daytime show Martha. For the 2nd show she is trying to find… Read More »Are You Martha Stewart? or Stuart?
In my latest newsletter I wrote about Lance Armstrongs Seven Personal Branding Tips , which prompted one of my biggest newsletter responses – both positive and negative! It was interesting to see that for every 5 positive comments there was one negative slight as to his 'clean image' or questioning his true ability based on the fact that he works with in a team environment versus the individual achievements of… Read More »Lance Armstrong – Is His Glass Half Full or Half Empty?
It would appear to P.Diddy that nothing is in a name – except change! According to reports this week P. Diddy (a.k.a. – Sean Combs, Puff Daddy and Puffy) is changing his name again because he is bored and wants a name to fit his new persona and style of music – which is now going to be rock and roll! Take his example and compare that to Madonna- who… Read More »Whats in a Name – 2 ?
It was interesting to see that the recent recommendation for the Supreme court in the US by President Bush was a John Roberts – which also happens to be the name of one of the White House correspondents who in his early career was a music reporter on City TV in Toronto! This might present some confusion for a time, whilst the appointment is hotly debated and may cause some… Read More »What’s in a name?
I heard on the radio today that a group of people are petitioning for the Nobel Prize to be awarded to Oprah quite possibly a very worthwhile recipient. I use Oprah as a great example of such a positive personal brand – everything that she does is 'on brand' for her – she exemplifies all the positive attributes that personify her personal brand. When you do what you do each… Read More »How Strong is Your Personal Brand?
Our local IKEA in Burlington this week did an analysis of their customer base by postcode (if you have ever shopped at IKEA they always ask you for your postcode) and discovered that a high number came from the Hamilton area. So early yesterday morning they dispatched 7 employees dressed in IKEA bright yellow tops to downtown Hamilton and proceeded to give away $14,000 (probably about the cost of a… Read More »Have You Given Away A Sample Recently?
Having lunch the other day with a client at Red Lobster I noticed the following coaster (beer mat to we Brits). All that was on it was a red lobster in some sand and the words "If this coaster is a conversation piece, may we suggest another drink?" Simple, perhaps not original, but it got a smile from me and actually stimulated a conversation with the small business client as… Read More »How Are You Getting A Message Across?
The American Marketing Association (an organization you would think would have a handle on dealing with e-marketing) is driving me nuts. I originally had signed up for their newsletter and received it for a while, reading it with varying levels of interest. It became one of those in my in box that was surplus and so I unsubscribed. Since then I have tried to unsubscribe several more times, each time… Read More »I Do Not Want To Hear From The American Marketing Association!
Just finished watching the latest episode of The Apprentice, always good entertainment, especially the consistency of Donald Trumps personal brand – love him or hate him he is consistent! TV can be a terrible time and mind drain and an easy 'habit' to fall in to – nowadays there are probably just 3 or 4 programs a week that I will try to make a point of watching – the… Read More »Can You Simplify The Apprentice?
An Associated Press report this week reported that one of the UK's top soccer players was removed from a nationwide school soccer promotion because of his swearing at referees. Wayne Rooney, a 19 year old who came to the spotlight at last years European championships with a world class display, has been dropped from appearing as the star guest at the under 13 semi-final for the Coca-Cola Cup due to… Read More »Does Coca-Cola Allow Foul Language To Endorse Products?