Several months ago I commented on my blog on salesvantage.com about the adverse affect a brand icon like Tiger Woods would have on the companies that use Tiger as a brand icon for their company or products while he was out with knee surgery. Tiger Woods is the brand icon for companies such as Buick, Accenture, and of course the game of golf itself. We can’t blame Tiger for poor sales of Buick and the downfall of GM, but it is noteworthy that the viewership of the Buick International was down 57% without Tiger participating in the tournament. While we don’t have evidence of the direct effect of the absence of Tiger Woods from the PGA tour due to his knee surgery on the companies he sponsors, we do now have the results of the affect of his absence on viewers of the PGA tour. The percentage of change of viewers watching the following PGA events with Tiger not participating follows:
British Open -13%
AT&T National -45%
NEC World Series of Golf -45%
PGA Championship -58%
Buick International -57%
Deutsche Golf Championship -57%
BMW Golf Championship -65%
Tour Championship -62%
My conclusion may be a stretch, but I believe the Tiger Woods brand effect supports that a strong brand brings positive results, and when that brand is absent, companies and products suffer negative results. In today’s economy it is more important than ever to maintain a strong brand strategy.