PR Secrets to Keep Your Brand Relevant
3 PR SECRETS TO KEEP YOUR BRAND RELEVANT
Article by Yetunde Taiwo-Shorters
Photo Credit: Spell & the Gypsy Collective
Magazine: Issue #33
In my 16 years in public relations and marketing, I have worked with over 100 celebrities, including notable Grammy award winning artist from the classical music industry, to the film industry producers and the pop music artists. I noticed there are 3 secrets they use to stay relevant to us. Understanding these secrets can help you shift your own thinking and help you too be “celebrated” for your awesomeness. The biggest difference between you and any celebrity is that more people know them and celebrate them than they do you. Let’s face it; your moment of fame when you sang in grade school or in that play in kindergarten was your premier “celebrity moment”. We’ve all had some kind of taste of “celebrity”. Mastering those things we experienced and learned in those times are the same things celebrities do now. On that note, let’s get to it.
SECRET 1| YOU AMPLIFIED (YOUR BEST SELF)
If you remember that moment in your life you were celebrated, you will probably realize it was because you were being you x 50. When your mother or father told you “practice makes perfect”, they knew what they were talking about. Secret one to being a relevant celebrity: YOU HAVE TO COMMIT TO DOING THE WORK DAILY: Practice being yourself x 50. Celebrities have practiced being themselves or being so exceptional at what they do, they become MASTERS at it. You need to decide to step FULLY into you, the authentic you. Then master it so well that no one can do what you do, the way you do it. So the thought of being like anyone else is a bad idea to being celebrated. Be your best self. From Oprah, Angelina Jolie to Denzel Washington, Suze Orman and Lupita Nyong'o. They are MASTERS at themselves and their craft. It’s a daily commitment. Start practicing your own SELF MASTERY.
SECRET 2| STAY CURRENT AND ENGAGED
You can probably name 5 celebrities that are “has beens”. Do you know why? For so many of them, they stopped staying in front of us or engaging us. If you don’t evolve, let’s face it you will become redundant. There is nothing wrong with sticking to what worked in 1990. But you have to find a way to evolve into current technologies that fit your personality in the new millennia. So if you like old school ways of coaching people and writing on boards and technology seems hard for you, then write on boards but have it recorded and uploaded to YouTube. If you don’t engage the new population the way they understand, you will be left in and with the old population.
My suggestion: sit down and take inventory of how you do things and develop ways to evolve into the new millennia. Either using the Internet (social media), a hybrid of your sense of style, a partnership with someone or a company that does things the new way. Just remember, if you do not engage the influential population, you just may get stuck promoting or marketing to your generation alone. That can be limiting. Think bigger. The celebrity that has mastered this art is BEYONCÉ. She is still herself, but you can see it’s a more evolved version of her with a similar sound to her style of music and fashion. Her fan-base ranges from teens to grown adults. Even grandmas can sing a Beyoncé Song. Stay Current and knowledgeable.
SECRET 3| LEARNING 101: COMMITMENT
If you think celebrities reach “celeb status” and stop, think again. They are always learning. Either at being better at their craft or learning a new craft, they understand that knowing and doing more keeps them evolving into other parts of themselves. This other parts are what keep us engaged and interested. They commit to learning.
Elite athlete Serena Williams is a great example of this. With all her accolades in the tennis world, she decided she wanted to be a manicurist too. I know. Many people looked down on it. (Side bar, a lot of men and women build their wealth in this people-pampering field). Don’t knock it. She decided to do something she loved. She got certified as a manicurist and now, she has a line of nail polish in partnership with OPI that are a part of her wealth building way of life. Take a cue from Serena. Whatever it is that you like and want to learn, do it and don’t bother about what people would say about you. It just might be your millionaire idea. GO FOR IT.
There are many more secrets, but these were the top 3 I found consistent with the celebrities I got to work with. I hope you tap into these secrets for yourself. GOOD LUCK!
