The Brand Called Omarosa

While traveling last Friday, I picked up the USA Today and read comments from former Apprentice contestants “fired” by Donald Trump. These former contestants were commenting on the lessons they learned from the show, the key mistake(s) they made to get fired, and what they would have done differently.

Since Brand Autopsy is a marketing/branding focused blog, I was especially intrigued by Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth’s comments...

The primary lesson that I learned was the importance of branding. Inspired by Trump's branding brilliance, I am building my own brand by launching a line of business suits and accessories, exploring book and TV deals and a nationwide speaking tour. I made the mistake of not focusing solely on the task at hand and not focusing on relationships. It would have been more strategic to develop alliances in order to survive in such a high-stakes game.

I’m afraid that Omarosa learned the built-to-flip mentality to branding from Donald Trump.

It is my opinion (and experience) to build a brand that is built-to-last, you must first clearly establish what makes your brand unique, compelling, and meaningful. Once you have established what your band stands for and made your brand compelling and meaningful to consumers, then you can explore the areas to extend the reach of your brand.

If you rush the branding process by extending the reach of your brand before you establish what your brand stands for, then you are following the built-to-flip branding process. Omarosa is clearly trying to extend her fifteen minutes of fame by striking fast. Too fast, if you ask me.

Comments

[fouroboros]

Too true, John.

...a line of business suits and accessories ...I made the mistake of not focusing solely on the task at hand and not focusing on relationships. It would have been more strategic to develop alliances in order to survive in such a high-stakes game.

More strategic? Bwahhahahaha!

So, a speaking tour and books to tell us a what? Essentially that she was raised by a rogue wolf with a taste for Arden and vogueing and hasn't clue one how to function in an environment that includes more than herself? Yes, indeed, ambitious women are certainly going to resonate with that. Let's hope the clothing line is called Professional Suicide or Solipsis--truth in advertising and all that.

[Paul]

I don't thinks she's striking too fast... She's already used up 14 minutes and 30 seconds of her fame. She has only a few seconds left before we all say "who?"

You are right, she currently has little brand to leverage to drive folks to say "I aspire to be like that! How can own a piece of that?"

[John Moore(London)]

I don't think this show is on in the UK (yet) but it sounds fascinating, in an grim sort of way.

From what I've read, and certainly from this entry, the whole thing has a theme of Get Rich Quick.

The idea of building a brand by focussing on promotion is one that is supported by a lot of promotional agents on-the-make. I hope we're going to see more brands in future that have some inner-directedness, some sort of soul and have something real to offer - other than the greed of their proprietor.

Britain's satirical magazine Private Eye has popularised the catchphrase "Crazy Name, Crazy Guy!" and this comes to mind for Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth. (or is the name an anagram?)

[fouroboros]

John, she learned from the branding Anti-christ.

Trump is America's modern version of bare-knuckle success. Horatio Alger with a penchant for supermodels. He's cultivated a self-made man image despite being handed his developer-father's legacy, a silver shovel not a spoon.

As far as a premium brand goes, I'd say The Donald is high class to people from perhaps Queens, NYC or Valley Stream Long Island who actually say "I want something classy". This translates as a plumber from Barnsley or Hull with a fondness for slot machines, faux gold bathroom fixtures and fiberglass Tudor beams.

[fouroboros]

Almost forgot: Hope you get the show soon, it's sort of a cross between The Office and Lord of the Flies. Survivor with dayplanners. The prize is the presidency of one of Trump's companies.

[MRKinLA]

The idea of "individual as brand" is one that's intriguing to contemplate but impossible to uphold. The reason? A brand is a promise of a uniquely differentiated, consistent experience that the consumer can place a value on. But people are hardly consistent; in fact, one could argue that some of the most compelling people -- even those marketers commonly refer to as being their own brands -- are purposely inconsistent, at least to some extent. Imagine Julia Roberts taking the role of "hooker with a heart of gold" for every film. Madonna forever attempting to come off as a Monroe redux, singing the same type of song. Even Jackie Kennedy, whom one might now consider emblematic of a tasteful, classic brand, went through a phase where Americans regarded with derision her decision to marry a swarthy Greek billionaire. In the public's eyes, she was a money-grubbing golddigger with no regard for the sanctity of her dead husband's memory. Individuals are, by their very nature, not good brands, and if they were, they'd scarcely be interesting enough to hold our attention.

The one person who came close to pulling off "individual as brand" was Martha Stewart. Across multiple platforms, Martha eminated a consistent brand promise of upper middle-class as leisure class, good taste for the masses (long before Target appropriated the trend, to excellent effect). But Martha's downfall depicts the particular danger of attempting to pin a brand to persona: all it took was one ill-considered stock trade to irrepairably damage that brand, to deflate millions from its equity. But people should be expected to make mistakes, even big ones, and that's not an allowance that can be made for brands.

Idiots like Omarosa appropriate marketing terminology because they think it makes them look media-savvy. In fact, for anyone who knows how marketing works, it just makes them look like what they are: people grasping for attention, tossing about jargon in an effort to disguise their desperation to stay in the spotlight. The second hand on my Tag has your time at 14 minutes and 59 seconds, Omarosa. And believe me, it's consistently right on the money.

[Lonestarlet]

Omarosa returned to the Apprentice on April 8th. Pity the people who are having to tolerate her yet again.

I am a graphics designer who has worked on branding for several organizations and businesses and I would like to offer my services to Omarosa, along with an idea for FREE. She plans to market a line of clothing and I think the pants should be under the "Liar Liar, Pants on Fire" label. Logo to follow.

[CandPeez]

Stumbled onto this blog while - ahem - researching, yes, that's right, researching Omarosa's past run-ins with being asked to clean out her desk. I too am a marketing specialist and couldn't help clicking on the Google link to see what Omarosa had in common with branding - and I'm so glad I did! Be sure to check out O's Web site - it is slick, albeit horribly bereft of anything interesting or enlightening.

And fouroboros, excellent description of The Apprentice as being a cross between The Office (Brilliant show) and Lord of the flies - too much!

Cool blog, I'll be back for sure, and I'll also be linking it from mine (candpeez.blogspot.com).

You're all FIRED!