Tag Archives: Beyonce

Crisis Management, , , , , , , , ,

Bravo TV, the popular American cable network operated by NBCUniversal, interviewed our founder and CEO, Shannon Wilkinson, on how celebrities are successfully managing their once-public divorces. Here are highlights from reporter Marianne Garvey’s interview, published on Bravo’s “Personal Space”:

“When Fergie and Josh Duhamel announced their split, the shock was softened by the fact that they told us it in fact had happened “earlier this year.” “Same with Anna Faris and Chris Pratt, who also released a joint statement on their separation, saying they “tried for a long time…” “Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck had everyone confused as to the date of their actual split because it happened nearly a year before they announced their breakup—and they were still living together. For a while, it even looks like they would reconcile.

“What’s with the trend of waiting so long to tell the public you’re over? How can they really move on while still pretending? In private, they’re way ahead of us, explains Shannon Wilkinson, founder of Reputation Communications, a New York City based firm that is described as a “reputation architect,” which, for a hefty fee, takes control of a celebrity’s narrative and helps them through a crisis like a divorce.

“The firm creates a storyline or a “strategy,” tailored specifically to the situation at hand and even helps a celeb control their online image if their divorce has become the top Google search online. In other words, they are hired to control the “story” of their star client’s split. “They usually wait to announce in order have privacy to get back on their feet, address their career, reboot their image, and move on without the public weighing in,” says Shannon. “It’s a symbol of very good management when they are able to conceal it for some time; it’s also helpful when they are between projects, they can take a breather and not in the spotlight.”

“Shannon says that the most interesting part is that with sites like TMZ, tabloids, and paparazzi, celebs still manage to pull off the impossible and keep a divorce on the DL, sometimes for a year or more. “The primary reason they hold off is because of privacy, it’s very often related to the family issue…if they have small children like Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck and they’re clearly very devoted to their children…When celebrities are able to put a veil over their separation or divorce with a serious partner it enables them to manage the emotions of the couple and the family in a way they rarely have the luxury to do.”

“They also have time to deal with logistics, reboot their lives, figure out where they’ll live, find a new home, inform their friends and family, and mourn the relationship in private. But, let’s not forget career.

“In some instances their career is playing a role,” Shannon adds, “The more time they have to get the right legal representation, and deal with the fallout and make a joint statement, the more time they have in private to map out what’s next for their career, and the more strategic control they have over their careers. Maybe they’re up for a movie role and they don’t want the divorce to be front and center, we help. Because when that happens they’ve lost the narrative. If your career has something on the front burner or in development they lose that when the divorce is all over the news.”

“So she works to develop a strategic plan to develop artistic content as high as that divorce story—and says the absolute number one best celebrity own the world who has conquered this formula is Beyoncé. “The key is to integrate it and move forward,” Shannon adds, saying “Gwyneth Paltrow mastered the idea with her “conscious uncoupling” from Chris Martin.

Read the complete article: Hollywood “Fixers” Tell Us Exactly How Stars Who Break Up (And Want To Pretend They Didn’t) Pull It off.

 
 
Reputation Case Study, , , , , , , , ,
Rihanna: Beyond Her Hits, Authenticity

In Vanity Fair’s current cover story on Rihanna, she discusses the chasm between her reality and her reputation. Jay-Z confirms that her authenticity is one of her biggest attractions.  That was our take, too, when we published this in December 2012.

At 24, Rihanna is one of the world’s biggest pop stars. She’s become the most-liked person on Facebook by acting in a way that many celebrities don’t: genuinely.

The combination of authenticity and transparency has earned her recognition ranging from TIME’s “100 Most Influential People in the World” to Forbes’ “Celebrity 100” and “Social Networking Superstars.” “Rihanna’s fans love her all the more for being so brazenly imperfect,” wrote Huffington Post’s Kia Makarechi, whose take rings true in the singer’s candid talk in a recent Vogue profile.

Recent 777 Turbulence

Given her self-proclaimed “Good Girl Gone Bad” reputation, the reports from Rihanna’s recent 777 Tour weren’t that surprising. To promote her new album she invited some lucky fans and more than 150 journalists to jet around on a seven-country, seven-concert jaunt. First-hand accounts offered harrowing tales of what transpired, but they steered clear of blaming Rihanna, instead lamenting the exhausting travel and poor execution of the weeklong trip.

She ended up showing her travel companions the other side of being a global pop icon—it can be incredibly grueling. “It’s impossible to spend time with everybody, and I’m sorry I didn’t,” she told the press as the tour came to an end, later elaborating in an interview with BBC’s Radio 1.

Image counselors might advise that she reward the participants with an all-expenses-paid trip to one of her concerts in Paris or Las Vegas. Or, to make a donation in their names to organizations that support less fortunate fans, like homeless teens. (She already supports many charities.) But the spin control long utilized by other superstars may not be necessary – and isn’t in keeping with her approach to her career.

“…Rihanna, who earned $53 million last year… is the pleasure principle incarnate,” wrote Camille Pigalia last week.

That may explain why.

 
 
Branding, Social Media, , , , , ,
Beyoncé Bucks the System – and Wins Big

At midnight last Thursday, Beyoncé put her own stamp on social media marketing.  She bypassed the traditional music industry marketing machine and released a brand new album directly to her fans — on Instagram.  Her team was so successful in avoiding leaks that it was a complete surprise.

Ben Sisario reported the unexpected release in The New York Times:

“The release of a blockbuster album has historically come with a few standard marketing moves. Flood the radio with an early single. Book as many TV appearances as possible. Line up partnerships with big retailers and consumer brands.

But at midnight on Thursday, when Beyoncé released her latest album, she did none of those things. Instead, she merely wrote, “Surprise!” to her more than eight million Instagram followers, and the full album — all 14 songs and 17 videos of it — appeared for sale on iTunes.

The stealth rollout of the album, “Beyoncé,” upended the music industry’s conventional wisdom, and was a smashing success.”

The Take Away for Traditional Business Leaders

What can more traditional C.E.O.’s and other business leaders take away from Beyoncé’s successful stealth move? The most important is that social media is a tool that enables users to take ownership of their message.

In online reputation management,  the more control you have over the information about your brand online, the more well-balanced your online image is. If it is authentic, interesting and informative, it will have credibility.

Using social media to communicate directly to the public, with no filter of spokesperson or other third parties, enables your message to be viewed exactly as you intend it to be. You still can’t change how the media, critics and consumers respond, but you have complete management over what, how and when you introduce what you want them to know. That results in a more authentic picture of your point of view – one that is less easily skewed by others. It also enables a message that the media can use — including national news outlets.

In more traditional corporate cultures, doing this requires the participation of a lot of team members – including risk, compliance and legal officers. So planning such strategies and having them in your playbook before you need them, is a good strategy for 2014.

Above: Beyonce, Montreal 2013, by Nat Ch Villa

 
 
Branding, , , , , , , ,
Pepsi’s Beyonce Deal: Reputation-Building with a Star

Pepsi has announced a trail-blazing, $50 million collaboration with superstar Beyonce. The deal combines Pepsi advertising and marketing with an estimated $25 million-dollar creative content development fund to support the singer’s own conceptual projects.  That’s the interesting part. “For Pepsi, the goal is to enhance its reputation with consumers by acting as something of an artistic patron instead of simply paying for celebrity endorsements,” reports Ben Sinsario.

Affiliating with Beyonce as an artistic patron will align Pepsi with far more benefits than a standard commercial endorsement. Pepsi will attain luster from the sheen reflected by Beyonce’s creativity, blue-chip image and relationships with the biggest names in entertainment. Her husband Jay-Z is a powerhouse on all levels. It is a brilliant relationship for Pepsi.

Arts Patronage Has Always Been the Ticket to Superstar Prestige

The patronage aspect of the deal revisits corporate support of the arts campaigns during the ‘70s and ‘80s. American Express, Exxon and other major companies underwrote national tours of blockbuster art exhibitions and dance companies. Such sponsorships aligned them with wealthy, educated cultural audiences.  Many corporations replaced arts sponsorships with sports underwriting.

Arts patronage has always been a conduit to status. But affiliating with contemporary culture – art, film, literature, music – confers a cool factor like no other.  (The star-studded Miami Art Basel fair, which closed yesterday, attests to that. So do the dozens of private jets that flood Miami’s airports just before it opens each year.) In supporting Beyonce’s creative projects, Pepsi is enabling her with a bigger platform for her creative ideas. We trust it isn’t just another a commercial deal.

Consumers’ Desire for Authenticity Influenced the Concept

Brad Jakeman, president of PepsiCo’s global beverage group, attributed their decision to authenticity.

“Consumers are seeking a much greater authenticity in marketing from the brands they love,” he told Ben Sisario. “It’s caused a shift in the way we think about deals with artists, from a transactional deal to a mutually beneficial collaboration.”

In other words: consumers are tired of being sold to. Pepsi and Beyonce’s management and marketing teams have responded using the key principles of reputation management: authenticity and trust. We anticipate they’ll deliver the goods, too.