Technology

Can Chad Ochocinco teach us about the brand?

Can Chad Ochocinco teach us something about branding? Your first instinct might be to answer that question with a resounding, no! But that would be too hasty. I suspect that even if you are not a football fan, you are familiar with the name Chad Ochocino. It probably sounds a bit familiar to you, but you’re not sure why. He is a professional soccer player who made headlines when he changed his name from Chad Johnson to Ochocinco in honor of the number on his jersey: 85. Now I know that Ochocinco is not a literal translation of eighty-five, but that doesn’t matter. . Instead, let’s focus on what we can learn from a quick study of your branding / marketing activities.

Chad has recently tapped into his popular appeal in an appearance on Dancing with the Stars (it ran for the last four couples) and his own love-seeking reality TV show. He is not the first soccer player to appear on Dancing with the Stars or to have his own television show. But Chad is unique in that he seems to do all of his public moves with his tongue planted firmly on his cheek, fully aware that what he is doing is deliberately creating a brand that will outweigh his athletic career.

One thing that Chad has done to distinguish himself from others struggling to secure their future after soccer is to jump on both feet to use social media to engage with others and build his brand. What tools did you select? Internet TV, Facebook and Twitter! Chad has over 995,000 followers as of this date and is a frequent and entertaining tweeter on political, social and, of course, sports topics.

I don’t know how the value of a personal brand is measured (I bet the guy from Mashable or someone like him will look into that shortly, Godspeed!) But I do know that Chad is now way beyond your typical athletic mark. What does that mean? It means that you have become the kind of leader with the kind of influence that legends are made of. He uses social media the way all of us who work to build personal brands should. You work to build relationships both offline and offline, diversify your marketing efforts, be personal and very real, and add value (entertainment and sometimes thought-provoking feedback) before looking for something in return.

And other athletes are certainly catching on! Did you see the Espy Awards last night? In addition to the number of athletes who personally tweeted about the event, many of them mentioned social media, specifically Twitter, in interviews. Chris Johnson even thanked ‘Twitter, especially’ in his Best New Player acceptance speech. Who would have thought?

Now Chad is effervescent, mischievous and charming, right? Do you have to be those things to achieve the same business success? Should you have your own iPhone app like Chad does? No! You need to be yourself, know and use YOUR unique assets and gifts, and remember to have fun. If you are having fun and having fun, the people you are looking to build relationships with will be too.

Hope you are planning a POWERFUL day!

I invite you to comment or share this with others using the links below.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *