A PR primer from Donald Trump
The Donald may be a punchline to many, but it’s hard to deny that he knows about getting media attention and building a brand.
Maybe we can, however. I’m not a fan, and Trump’s threats to enter the presidential race over the years have come across as tired and transparent bids for publicity. Like it or not, though, the guy does know how to build a brand and get media coverage. For all of his failures, he’s a genius at image-making and self-promotion.
So on the theory that you never know where your next insight or blog post idea may come from, here are some, ahem, “PR lessons” from the Donald.
Control the story. I don’t know Trump, but I crossed paths with him several years ago when a client shared sponsorship credit for a major philanthropic event. He was surprisingly involved in the staging of the news conference and accompanying photo opportunities, down to the details. It was an almost Jobsian mastery of the optics, all for the greater glory of the Trump name. The same attention was paid to this week’s announcement, right down to the “extras” hired to cheer in all the right places (not recommended.)
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