Tiger Woods: Enough is Enough LaBarbara Mid’gett TUI University Abstract Tiger Woods is a high paying champion golfer who made some bad choices. From these choices, some of his endorsers have dropped him from their corporations. Should he be reinstated by these endorsers? We will take a look at the companies and what they stand for. We will note how other celebrities have made some other bad choices and still made it back to the top. We will talk about how companies tend to put celebrities on a pedestal thinking they are perfect and realizing that they weren’t. Also how some of his sponsors are still endorsing him.
Tiger Woods is world champion golf player. He has won over 14 championships. (Wikipedia, 2010) Woods had over 5 major endorsers which netted over a total of $100 million dollars. In 2009 Tiger Woods martial-infidelity scandal became public. This caused his whole life to change. Several of his endorsers dropped their contracts while some others put Tiger Woods on the back burner because of this scandal. Now this scandal is being worked through by Tiger Woods and his wife. Tiger was not a government worker, doctor lawyer or public official. Woods was a professional who was good at what he do.
He knew how to win, which sparked the eyes of companies like AT&T, Gatorade and Accenture who gave Tiger Woods great endorsements prior to the infidelity scandals. Accenture, PLC who felt that Tiger Woods represented the company as a symbol of its new High Performance Business strategy. ( Business Wire 2003), and felt Tiger Wood strength, mastery discipline and relentless focus on winning are universally recognized qualities that mirror the characteristics of a high- performance business, making him the idea representative for their marketing position.
Accenture global consulting firm used the golfer as the centerpiece of its marketing-and- advertising program, and he appeared in most of its ads. Yet, during this rough time for Tiger and his family these companies dropped their endorsements. Now Tiger is no longer the man for their company. But he help the companies to make great revenues while he was with Accenture “For the past six years, Accenture and Tiger Woods have had a very successful sponsorship arrangement and his achievements on the golf course have been a powerful metaphor for business success in Accenture’s advertising,” the company said in a statement. However, given the circumstances of the last two weeks, after careful consideration and analysis, the company has determined that he is no longer the right representative for its advertising. ”(Bloomberg,2010) AT&T Corporation decided that he is no longer the kind of clean-cut, family-friendly corporate ambassador for its products. (Lynn, 2010) So AT&T just wishes him the best. Gatorade had a huge contract with Tiger Woods. Gatorade has announced that it has officially severed its endorsement ties with Tiger Woods.
In a statement, the company said, “We no longer see a role for Tiger in our marketing efforts and have ended our relationship. Gatorade claimed that sales of the Tiger Woods branded drink was lagging market sales and we wish him the best”. (McCarthy, 2010). The question is Why? Why should Tiger lose his some of his major endorsement because he made some mistakes or some bad choices? Why can’t he be reinstated into the contract that he had. The corporations were making money on from his name. Michael Jordan had multiple affairs and Gatorade stuck by him.
It’s funny, the guy who apologized is being criticized while the guy who just ignored the haters is still worshipped. Woods issued a apology to his wife and the public admitting he had hurt his family and saying he needed to focus on being a “better husband, father and person,” an ambition that many of us could add to our list of New Year’s resolutions. (Mathew, 2010) To further that aim, he said he was leaving competitive golf “indefinitely” — even though the implication that playing golf is somehow incompatible with becoming a better husband and father is more than a little troubling for the sport. When corporations attempt to set themselves up as moral arbiters, they just end up making themselves look out of touch. First, no one really cares. Moss, one of the world’s most well-known models, found herself in trouble in 2005 after pictures were published allegedly showing her using cocaine. Companies such as Hennes & Mauritz AB and Chanel SA promptly canceled her contracts. Five years later, Moss is still a big brand. Likewise, the Rolling Stones packed more bad behavior into a single tour date than Tiger Woods could chalk up in a year. Yet orporations still line up to sponsor their concerts. (Mathew 2010)Second, companies want to associate themselves with stars who have personality. The average Joe doesn’t identify with Accenture’s corporate-mission statements. Sponsors have to put a golfer on the brochure to get anyone to take a look because the sportsman has character and an inspiring life story. Those qualities are what people find most interesting. (Mathew 2010) But don’t expect those “personalities” to be perfect. If they were, they would be as dull as the products they are promoting.
And then what would be the point hiring them? It is precisely their human foibles we find appealing. (Mathew 2010) Nike and Electronic Arts have decided to stand by Tiger during this rough time. Other companies should just shrug and say, “Hey, Tiger is human. Sponsors have misunderstood why they wanted celebrity endorsements in the first place. They need authenticity, not bland corporate perfection. If corporations aren’t willing to accept that their “ambassadors” are real people, with all the flaws and fallibilities that come with that package, there is no point in having them on the payroll. Mathew 2020) Yes, Tiger Woods should be reinstated by all the endorsers who dropped him. I have not seen a perfect human being. Sometimes we all make choices that could affect us later. This is something that happens in today’s family almost every day. Well known doctors, business lawyers, politicians, movie stars and famous athletes have all gone through making bad choices. Yet they still come back from bigger and better than ever. Woods will comeback from this major setback, just as Kate Moss to the rolling stones have done.
Just as Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant returned from their affairs , stronger than ever. The worst thing you can do to a person is hit him when he’s down. Tiger Woods has paid for his bad choice dearly. But, he still is one of the best golf players in the country. Nike understand ‘s that he’s human. The Golf Digest Magazine understood what he was going through. These companies know that once he starts playing again it will be worth the strain and the patience. References Bloomberg, (2009).
Accenture, Gilette severe ties with Tiger Woods . Alrroya. http://english. alrroya. com/content/accenture-gilette-severe-ties-tiger-woods Business Editor, (2003) . Accenture Selects Tiger Woods to Launch High Performance Business Strategy. Business Wire. Retrieved from http://www. encyclopedia. com/Business+Wire/publications. aspx? date=20031003&pageN umber=1 Lynn, Matthew, (2010). Tiger Woods’s Sponsors Should Forgive and Forget: Matthew Lynn. Bloomberg Business week. Retrieved from http://. businessweek. om/news/2010-01-04/tiger-woods-s-sponsors- should-forgive-a McCarthy, Michael,(2010). Gatorade Ends Endorsement Contract with Tiger Woods. USA Today. Retrieved from http://www. usatoday. com/sports/golf/pga/2010-02-26-tiger -woods-gatorade_N. htm Wei, William, (2010). The Wire: Tiger Woods Lost $22 Million in Endorsements in 2010. Business Insider. Retrieved from http://www. businessinsider. com/tiger-woods-lost-22- million-in-2010-endorsements-2010-7 Wikipedia , (2010). Tiger Woods. Retrieved from http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Tiger_Woods
