A little of Mark

Stressed is just 'desserts' spelled backward

Invaluable business lessons we can all learn from Tigergate


Just as we’re starting to pull out of the stress of a great economic recession, Tiger Woods seems to be crashing his Escalade right into it. The number of women linked to Tigergate is getting longer than the line outside Best Buy on Black Friday, and his bank accounts are bleeding millions faster than you can say “transgressions.” Suffice to say, Tiger enjoyed plenty of dessert this past decade, and all he has to show for it now is a heap of financial stress and a violent spouse.

Sound familiar? Hey, we’ve all been there.

What I mean is, every business-owner is married to their business. And so many company owners have overextended themselves long before the housing crash — with secret splurging here, sugary perks there, and maybe a few too hefty company bonuses in between. And when businesses have to dip into their reserves to pay off all those desserts, future business opportunities (aka, marketing / ad budgets) are often compromised. In essence, owners are cheating their own company from a great future — and in the end, it’s the brand that suffers. (If you’ve noticed, Tiger has been rather absent from TV spots and print ads lately. Tisk, tisk.)

So what can we learn from the roving eye of the Tiger? ALWAYS BE TRUE TO YOUR BRAND.
No matter how many years you’ve spent building your brand, you can destroy it in an instant. In Tiger’s case, he was not being true to his brand, (possibly) from the get-go. The quality of his product was, is, and always will be unparalleled. But what he truthfully stands for couldn’t be further from his brand image. And that right there can overshadow product quality and unsell the product. Fast.

As we cut bait on 2009, I think we’ll all emerge smarter, wiser, and more honest in the coming year. Let’s go easier on the desserts, and heavier on the advertising. And if we need to post something on our fridge so we won’t forget, that visual of Tiger Woods with the missing teeth and the stitches in his forehead is a great reminder.