I’ve had several days since the LeBron James/Dan Gilbert debacle to consider the ramifications to my profession after that PR nightmare. (Yes, I realize this may seem a bit self-centered, particularly to Cleveland residents). But seriously, who in their right mind would hire a PR firm or consultant after that mess?
For those of you who live under a rock, LeBron James held an hour-long, primetime television special this past week to tell the world that he was dissing his home town of Cleveland and taking his basketball skills to Miami. Rather than tell his team face-to-face, he opted for the public spectacle. It was so poorly handled that it made many of those who love him on the basketball court turn away from their television in shame for him. And then his former team’s owner, Dan Gilbert, posted a letter on the Cleveland Cavalier’s site saying that LeBron was a coward and that he quit on the team — all of which may be true, but came off like the tantrum of a spoiled child.
So why I am I worried about the effect this will have on my profession? Because here you had two businessmen (yes, LeBron is more business than basketball) that are in the wealthiest one-percent of all the people in the world. You just know they have teams of PR professionals working for them and have spent countless hours in media training, yet it wasn’t enough to circumvent this meltdown. And I guarantee you that their PR professionals are the best that money can buy.
Now, I can see Dan Gilbert ignoring the advice of his PR team in publishing that letter. More than once I’ve been overruled when advising a CEO (much to their chagrin later). But I don’t believe for a minute that the television special was LeBron’s idea. That came from his management team. And they did a terrible job preparing him. The reasons he gave for leaving, even if true, came off as so selfish. And he just wasn’t polished. He stumbled for words and didn’t sound like a billion dollar brand, he sounded like an uneducated egoist.
So is this just a case of “everyone makes mistakes?” Or is the state of the PR profession really in this bad of shape? I think what it really shows is the disconnect between brand and message. Throughout my career I’ve watched people try to build a brand that doesn’t match what their words or actions are saying. It never works.
LeBron’s brand is about fun, athletic endeavor. He dances during games. His commercials use puppets. His dunks are highlight reel spectaculars. Why showcase him in a setting that was somber, had no athleticism, and that focused on the negative side to his brand. You see, to be a top-notch athlete requires a self-serving attitude. You must forego many of the things that people associate with generosity, like family, self-sacrifice, and compassion. You are trained that to be the best, you must focus exclusively on what is best for you, and develop an instinct for the competitive kill.
The message was delivered in a way that only focused on the negative aspects of his brand and that didn’t allow him to shine a light on the positive aspects. It’s like a company who has built their brand around customer service being a part of a panel on disruptive technologies. Even if they have good technology, the panel doesn’t serve the purpose of advancing the positive aspects of their brand.
So in the end, I think LeBron’s decision was completely valid and fitting with his brand. But the way he chose to share his decision was a huge mistake. And his PR and management team should have known better. Yes, it was a tremendous opportunity to be able to highlight LeBron in a nationally televised special, but they neglected to ask the more important question: Will it highlight him in a positive or a negative way?
Of course, in all of this discussion we should not forget those masters of PR at BP. Tony Hayward, CEO of BP, has been conspicuously bereft of common sense. One can only hope that his PR advisors have been giving good advice that, for some reason, he just isn’t taking. If on the other hand they are not being proactive enough in handling this crisis situation, they should be fired.
It’s been a couple of interesting weeks to be a part of the PR world. One isn’t sure whether to bury a head in the sand or start really playing up the other aspects of one’s consultancy.