There’s a Brand Opening in Hollywood – Who Can Fill Oprah’s Shoes

Calling all females in Hollywood!

Oprah Winfrey announced she is leaving the Oprah Winfrey Show after 25 years as the face of afternoon television for women — a role that helped position her as one of the most powerful women in entertainment and the world. The official end to her run as the queen of daytime TV is scheduled for September 9, 2011 — plenty of time to position a successor.

Those are big brand shoes to fill.  Who can step up to the challenge?  Some might point to Ellen Degeneres who is already positioned firmly with her own talk show, but Ellen and Oprah represent very different brand messages and images.  Ellen is a comedian at the core and Oprah is a reporter.  Both connect with audiences in different ways and audiences have very different expectations from them.

So that brings us back to the question — who can fill Oprah’s shoes?  Who can step up to the plate and build a similar brand position?  Let’s face it.  Oprah Winfrey’s power and influence transcended the afternoon talk show circuit.  She became a global influencer of everything from the beef industry to publishing, entertainment, and many areas in between.

What do you think?  Can another person fill Oprah’s shoes?  Can you think of anyone who could be up to the challenge?  Who has a brand image and message that could rival Oprah’s — if not now then in the future with a bit of positioning and promotion?

Image: Flickr

Yahoo is not a Search Company

According to Yahoo! CEO Carol Bartz, “We’re not a search company.” You might ask, then what the heck is Yahoo? According to Bartz, it’s a site that creates a complete experience through social, mobile and video components.

The Yahoo! we know today is just the tip of the iceberg of where the company and brand are going in the future. The challenge will be repositioning the brand that has for so long been associated with search and as the brand tagging along behind Google, into a brand that delivers a more experiential and less transactional promise.

I’m rooting for Yahoo, and I think repositioning the brand could be what saves it.  I give props to Carol Bartz for recognizing that the online market has changed and for trying to catch up.  There is deep value in the Yahoo! brand, and watching it struggle in recent years has been unfortunate. 

The repositioning of Yahoo! won’t succeed overnight.  It’s going to take time, investment and patience.  According to Bartz (and despite all the rumors and negative press to the contrary), the majority of Internet users still visit Yahoo!  Perhaps the shift in brand perception among consumers doesn’t have to be a rough road.  Only time will tell, but it sounds like Bartz is on the right track. 

Watch the video interview with Bartz to hear her take on the future of Yahoo! firsthand. 

What do you think?  Can Yahoo! rebound?

Image: Flickr

3 Steps to Organic Brand Positioning

Traditionally, brand positioning is defined as how customers perceive your brand or product in relation to similar products offered by your competitors in your market.   Marketers usually try to create brand position through advertising and promotions in an attempt to influence customers’ perceptions of their brands.  However, in today’s world of busy schedules and nonstop messages, companies need to find different ways to position their brand.  By listening to your customers and making changes internally, you can build your brand position organically.

Organic brand positioning is a reactive strategy because it requires you to listen to your customers, but it’s also an effective strategy.  To position your brand, you need to look at everything that affects your brand image and therefore, your customers’ perception of your brand.  From customer service to pricing and advertising, every part of your organization has some effect on your customers’ overall perception of your brand, and that leads us to the 3 steps to organic brand position listed below: [Read more]

Brand Challenge – Define Your Brand in One Sentence

Ask yourself this question:

• Can you explain your brand identity, meaning your brand position, purpose, promise and image, in one sentence? 

If you can, that’s great.  It means you have a clear definition of your current brand identity. 

If not, you need to take some time to define your brand so you can consistently communicate your brand message across all of your customer touch points.

Next, ask yourself these questions:

• If your one sentence brand identity was included on your marketing piece or business card and your company name were switched with another, would it matter? 
• Would your brand identity sentence work just as well on that other company’s materials or business cards as it does on yours? 

If it does, then that’s great. 

If it doesn’t, then you need to think about changing your brand strategy.  Your brand should be unique to your business or product.  No other company or product should be able to use your brand identity sentence.  If they can, then your brand is not differentiated enough from the myriad of other businesses and products on the market.

Take some time to think about your brand and its uniqueness and make any necessary changes now.  You’ll reap the rewards in the short and long term if you do.

Image: Flickr