A PR roadmap for Tiger: talk to Oprah, cry like Tebow, put golf on hold, return to greatness
Posted by
[caption id="attachment_1118" align="alignleft" width="130" caption="Tadd Schwartz"]
[/caption]
From Tadd Schwartz, Principal of Schwartz Media Strategies
When will we ever learn that stonewalling the press only makes things worse?
It's easy playing Monday Morning Quarterback, but really - this one is a no-brainer. Tiger going into hunker-down crisis mode and addressing the public through his web site is only adding fuel to this growing inferno. We need to hear from this guy, and soon, before even his most loyal fans jump ship. Whether you like Tiger or not, if you're following this story, your emotions have swung from concern to empathy to pity to embarrassment to anger. By hiding out, he's enraging the very public that affords him his billion-dollar lifestyle.
My advice to Tiger: while you're hiding out at home in Orlando, pop in the Godfather and pay attention to how Michael cleans house after he smells a rat. Tiger's getting some really bad advice right now, most likely from the very same folks who served as his enablers during this three year "lost weekend" of sexual escapades. Then he needs to man up and address his public and sponsors - in person. Remember, Tiger is a lot more than the greatest golfer in the world - he's also one of the highest paid spokespersons in the universe. That means he's got a squeaky clean rep to protect - like it or not.
The following article - by Rick Rilley of ESPN - is probably one of the best pieces I've read to date on the Tiger Woods drama. Las Vegas PR guru Dave Kirvin lays out a strategy that's so...let's use a Vegas term...MONEY, I wish I had come up with it myself. Tiger - hire Kirvin immediately. See ya on Oprah.
ESPN MAGAZINE: An image-rehab plan for Tiger Woods, by Rick Rilley
Tiger Woods is the first person in history to run his car into a hydrant and set himself on fire.
His reputation is shredded. His once-perfect name has been dragged through more mud than a Nantucket clam digger's boots. A once-spotless life is now an episode of "Cops."
So what now?
First, Oprah Winfrey.