Nobody is perfect and the amplification and examination of someone else’s personal drama is just wrong. WHY IS IT THAT PEOPLE TAKE SO MUCH INTEREST AND JOY IN ANOTHER PERSON’S DESTRUCTION? In this case, it is because Tiger is a victim of the “Reverse Power” of his Celebrity Personal Brand.

It is considered smart marketing when a company develops a Celebrity Personal Brand to enable their message to reach far beyond where a “company” can go on their own. A Celebrity Personal Brand connects on a 1 to 1 basis, and holds the power to motivate, persuade and create loyalty. That is because people relate to the individual and establish shared-thinking with their message: Girls relate to Kim Kardashian’s style or Taylor Swift’s perkiness … Men are inspired by Lance Armstrong’s iron will or Troy Polamolu’s ferocity.

People get what they need from Celebrity Brands, and on the “Front Side” of Celebrity Personal Branding, it is ALL GOOD. On this side, positive emotions are received. People buy into the brand message because they want to transfer the feeling of being like the celebrity: “If I drink Gatorade … I can play like Tiger Woods,” “If I wear these shoes, I have Style like Kim Kardashian,” “If I wear this gold Livestrong Bracelet, I have the power of Lance Armstrong.”

However, the “Reverse Power” is where the darker and more destructive usage occurs. The “Reverse Power” happens because the “Frontal” message of these Celebrity Brands is translated and interpreted in so many different fashions and forms. The array of associations that these Celebrity Personal Brands create in people’s lives spreads into unintended areas. They travel far beyond the simple messages that a company like Gatorade or Nike is trying to create for their products. As a result, these celebrities get placed on mountainous pedestals where they are required to live up to super human standards in EVERY aspect of their life. Once they are blown up to this level there is no place for them to go but down.

We set them up for a shameful descent and on their way down we derive satisfaction and celebration in knowing that they make mistakes too. The media fuels this fire knowing that the “Reverse Power” of branding means that seeing Tiger Woods and his “perfect life” exposed is a source of validation for the negative, and a point of interest for the gossipers … Nevermind, respecting the privacy of his wife and their two children … Gotta get those ratings!

“What could the crash mean?”, “Is his wife involved?”, “Is there another woman?” … People are celebrating the private drama that he is going through like it means something good to their own lives. When you have a man like Tiger releasing statements telling you “I’m not Perfect”, “This is a private matter” and “My family is embarrassed” does it not make you feel a little sick?

I am hoping that we will soon reach a limit to the amount of over exposure we can stomach when it comes to this type of celebrating the “Reverse Power” of Celebrity Branding. There have been too many clear-cut examples witnessed where solid celebrities like Tiger, have been “chewed up and spit out” in an intrusive manner.

My point is that problems happen in everyone’s life and we all step out of line from time to time. That is how you learn. I wish participants in this media frenzy would wake up to the fact that Tiger Woods does not owe them the explanation he was forced to give … nor does he owe them a starring role in the “perfect family life.”

People were already figuring out ways to get more out of their marketing budget with the internet via their website, email marketing etc.  Even before the “recession” it had already risen to prominence over the past 5 years.  In fact, it was slowly becoming the force it was forecasted to be 15 years ago.  However, when spending tightened, the need for innovation, ideas and dollar stretching ad campaigns grew dramatically.  This added jet fuel to the development process, and suddenly the internet became THE top priority.

So much attention, so much innovation … Wow, the experience is here.  With all the excitement and focus, seemingly everyone got online … much to the delightful surprise of marketers.  All types of companies found new ways to engage their customers as well as reward them.  People of all ages flocked to sites like Facebook and Twitter, and the companies followed.  As a result, the relationship between customer and company has gotten much more personal and far more transparent than ever before.  Which is a huge win for everyone.

With no slow down in sight, Internet marketing will continue to get more personal and more creative.  There is little doubt that it will serve a long reign as the ultimate, unparalleled marketing and communication tool … just like they said it would.

As for traditional mass media, the economy has knocked it off the ropes and onto the canvas.  The internet is not the main issue for the knock out blows being delivered to media channel’s like Newspaper and Radio.  They are battling a whole new enemy … the magnifying glass. Shrinking budgets are making it necessary for marketers to begin looking closer at ROI and proof of performance than ever before.  They want to know “exactly” what they are getting for their money.  Targeted marketing is here for good and the vague days of “Spray and Pray” marketing are over.

Right now, Mass Media channels have to refine their tools to become more precise in their services. They need to do this in order to compete with the trackable and traceable nature that advertisers LOVE about the internet.  The push is on for all media channels to figure out how they can deliver more results for advertisers … in better and more precise ways.  This is a huge win for everyone as well.

New media development, mass media morphing and innovative new options … are all contributors to the fact that there has never been a more exciting time to be in Marketing.  The economy has pushed progress in all of these areas.  The new scene in marketing will settle into a much more level playing field. Anyone with a strong enough message that is relevant and compelling can succeed and businesses spending money on displaying their message will achieve greater results with a smaller budget.  The point is, that the shift in the economy has helped speed along our progress towards the future of marketing … and when the economy comes back, businesses will be in far better shape for the future.

It’s not that I have trouble completing a 5K (3 miles) … I don’t.  It’s that I just can’t seem to make progress fast enough, and running at a reduced speed or at a lower performance level is simply demoralizing.  I have not been the fastest runner in the past, but when I trained, I got faster in weeks.  I felt great in weeks.  Now, as I am about to turn 39 in 2010, my body is not responding in the same fashion … there must be a reason.

When you search for justification, especially in the case of poor performance, it is not difficult to find.  In this case, it blew right in my face.  The fact is, that since I had started training, it has been extremely windy outside … nearly everyday.  I began to think how the wind was making training a bit more difficult and less enjoyable to say the least.  So I defined it as the problem, telling myself  “It has to be the reason behind my performance.”  The wind justified my efforts and it became the friend to me that most underachievers bond with … an excuse.

So I ran with my friend for the next few weeks.  I kept telling myself that “the wind” is the reason I have not been able to run, excel or perform like I used to in the past.  It must be “the wind.”   I even skipped a run a few days earlier, because I told myself that “the wind” was too strong and that running would be unpleasant.

I gave this “limiting definition” more and more power.  It replaced the thought that I was beginning to get lazy, or that I needed to push myself a little harder.  It made settling for poor performance a bit more palatable.  However, you can only utilize this friend for so long until you have the opportunity to see it for what it truly is.   I had that chance last week when I went to run and I was faced with the strongest wind I have faced so far.

As I went to return in doors and skip the run … my friend was happy to provide me with company.   However, it was at that point that I had an awakening.  I saw “my friend” for who he truly was in my mind.  I realized he was an excuse.

Now that I have re-defined him as such, I gained power over that belief.  I began to see my performance problems for what they really were … a weakening of my will.  I had inaccurately defined my blocks and challenges as “the wind.”  In doing so, I was building towards progress in the wrong direction and I was not getting stronger.  I defined a new goal and target: the strengthening of my will and drive.

I ran that day, and every day since with the attitude that I need to strengthen my will and drive along with my body.  As a result, I finally feel back in control of my fitness and my progress.  In addition, it made me aware just how clever I have gotten in my old age.  Through athletics, I learned at an early age to easily identify excuses, and I never bought into them.  But now, as I get older, it becomes more and more difficult to recognize the excuses.  They come into my life masquerading as justifications or observations and at times they succeed in weakening me.

I am learning that the older I get, the better I get at subconsciously making excuses.  That is why defining my direction in a positive and powerful manner is more important that ever.  If I am going to continue to excel as a person with my health and in my life, I need to recognize excuses… take away their power and then define my way to success.

That way I can take control of my progress …  build towards strength and success … and always be moving towards improvement.  I am thankful to have gone through this awakening process and I consider myself wiser and stronger as a result.  You can bet I will be running today and working towards my new goal … I hope it’s windy outside.

It’s not that the aforementioned strategies are not important in brand building … they are.  However, when it comes to establishing shared-thinking and creating a bond with your audience, an Authentic Message is the catalyst to brand success.

Smart companies use Authentic Messaging on the front-end to create Brand Summary Statements that accurately detail who they are, what they are about and the needs they fill for their clients and customers.  Another front-end action is the development of an authentic Mission Statement to guide your brand.   This is a deeper, more formalized proclamation that can transform an entire organization.

The Brand Summary and Mission Statements are very similar and BOTH deliver shared-thinking that creates a connection with management, employees, clients and customers.  Truthful builds trust and trust builds relationships … That is why companies often put their Authentic Messaging to the forefront of their marketing.  Companies like Sprint, Ford and Southwest have all recently utilized Authentic Messaging by featuring their CEO’s expressing what they are REALLY about as a company.  They want you to see the source, witness the sincerity, and know that their message is truthful and authentic.  When this type of marketing is executed correctly … it is VERY POWERFUL.

I am not suggesting that every company advertise SOLELY with constant delivery of Mission Statements and Brand Summary statements … that would take all of the fun out of connection.  It would be like a relationship where your partner kept telling you, who they are, what they stand for and the deep, sincere way they love you … every day …  all of the time ….  NO THANK YOU!  Nobody wants that much sincerity, and that much depth all of the time.

So you don’t have to feature it 24/7, but that connection must exist in your overall strategy, and it needs to be a strong force.

The bottom line is, that if you want a business built on a solid relationship and not on perception, then you must skillfully construct an own authentic message that bonds and utilize it in your marketing strategy.  Whether it is developed on the front-end as your foundation or implemented later as a rejuvenation strategy, a strong Authentic Message needs the core concept of your brand strategy.

This Authentic Message defines who you are and what you are all about.   It will function as the heart and soul of your business and deliver long-term success unlike any other tactic or strategy you can implement.