THE RE-BRANDING OF MICHAEL VICK: PICKING UP THE PIECES AND MOVING FORWARD

THE RE-BRANDING OF MICHAEL VICK: PICKING UP THE PIECES AND MOVING FORWARD

*** Originally posted at www.accessathletes.com - The Real Athlete's Blog. ***

It's official now. Michael Vick has been conditionally reinstated by Commissioner Roger Goodell to the NFL. He now has the chance - the chance - to rebuild his career, his reputation and his life.

For the past two years, one of the most polarizing debates in the sports media world today has been the discussion about Michael Vick. Regardless of your personal opinion, the facts are the facts. Vick served his sentence. He paid his debt to society based on what the legal system deemed an appropriate punishment. He lost his freedom and went to federal prison at Leavenworth (which is no Martha Stewart country club, nor is it the "NFL Jail" Pacman Jones served time in for multiple game suspensions).

Please understand, nobody is dismissing his crime or diminishing the severity of what he did. The question now is how will Vick fare under the conditional reinstatement from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and then, what team will take the chance on bringing him on board.

Although he has paid his debt to society, in the court of public opinion, Michael Vick is still guilty, has a lot to prove and has some work to do to repair his image. So, in keeping with the themed approach to these blogs (athletes and accountability), let's focus on what steps need to happen from a public relations and crisis communications perspective as the rebranding of Michael Vick begins.

Now that Vick has been reinstated into the NFL, there is no doubt is that Commissioner Goodell wants to see how Michael handles himself publicly, see if he is really a changed man, if he is truly remorseful, and how he will deal with elevated degrees of public outrage from those who believe he is nothing short of an abomination and should never be granted the privilege to play in the National Football League again. The League will watch how he handles interviews, press conferences, traveling alone or with his crew, tweeting, going out or staying in, etc. Ultimately, they will want to see what he is willing to do to put the past behind him, move forward, before believing this former overall number one pick can and will represent the NFL shield in a positive way.

Since his release from federal prison, it's obvious Vick has hired and is working with a public relations team. More importantly, he seems to be following their strategic approach regarding how he will be re-introduced into society and hopefully regain a position with an NFL team. I say this because there is a stark contrast in how he (Vick) is handling things now versus how he handled them prior to his arrest and leading up to and through his conviction. Back then, his public statements and actions seemed nothing short of contrived, insincere, unapologetic, and anything but remorseful. (Kind of Chris Brown-ish, if you will, but without the really bad made for YouTube script and the five month delay in releasing it.) Vick's initial statements were rushed. They were not focused. The strategy was not a strategy but more of a series of tactics that were not focused and ultimately insulted the public's intelligence.

You CANNOT go from making these vehement denials with an outward show of arrogance, to, in no short order, "I found Jesus, I'm listening to my spiritual advisors, and I'm deeply sorry about what happened." Listen, I'm a spiritual man with Tebow-size faith, but when you do the things that Vick was accused of, offend the vast majority of the population (not to mention a very active portion of the population — the animal rights activists) making a public proclamation such as this in the form of a poorly scripted (or maybe poorly executed) press conference, will never be accepted. People will NEVER buy that.

So let's fast forward to the immediate future like Mike raced through the defenses he played. The strategy of maintaining a low profile, saying little but letting actions speak louder than words, showing humility and remorse — and meaning it sincerely, will be the cornerstones in the re-branding of Michael Vick. The contrition he appears to show now is what was needed back then. It has to be real. Look, you cannot fake this or script this. The change has to be heartfelt, come from within, and be truly sincere if it is to be believable. Then and only then, do you have a chance to turn the tide from negative to neutral (if not positive).

Granted, it's going to take a while and he may never be forgiven by many of his detractors. Working with the Humane Society (and not doing PSA's right now is smart) and getting their President and CEO Wayne Pacelle to state that he looked Michael Vick in the eye, believed his level of sincerity and that he wants to make a positive change and that it's a new day, is another step in the right direction. It is a HUGE step towards reputation recovery. And having Tony Dungy as a mentor is a very wise move as it relates to rehabbing his image and putting the right people around him.

These few things are merely the first steps in a long road to recovery and rebranding for Vick. But they are important ones nonetheless. Mike still has a long way to go. Let's not forget Vick must encounter, handle and rise above a ton of negative things said and written about him, understand his reputation has been decimated and that it will take time to rebuild, and deal with activist groups chomping at the bit to protest outside and perhaps inside the stadiums he may play in.

I'm sure there will be a strategy surrounding how that will be handled. But for now, Mike needs to continue to go one step, one breath, one day at a time. Listen, I'm not condoning what he did nor giving him a pass. I for one do believe in second chances, but understand full well that Michael Vick cannot afford any additional mistakes.

Those of us who have played and understand the game of football (and sports period for that matter) always say, "the most valuable lesson in sports is knowing how to apply what you've learned on the field to how you handle life's adverse circumstances." Vick must now be the epitome of this statement. He needs to stay the course, not get rattled, remain poised and understand this is a journey, and now that he has been given a second chance, understand there is no room for error - off the field.

Good luck Mike. Stay the course. Be sincere and understand what's ahead of you. Keep good people and a strong, qualified team of advisors around you. Recognize what's happened and if you follow the strategy, you will come out on top in the long run.

I believe you can do this.

HANDLING CRISIS IN THE SPORTS (AND ENTERTAINMENT) WORLD - PERSPECTIVE FROM A GAME CHANGING PUBLIC RELATIONS PRO

(Originally posted on "The Real Athlete Blog" at www.AccessAthletes.com.)


So what do you do when you find your star athlete, celebrity or politician in the eye of a controversial media storm?

Athletes in trouble. Celebrities and politicians, too. We see it every day. Tune into SportsCenter, the local news, CNN, talk radio, troll around the Internet, and guess what? Without fail you are going to hear or read about someone saying or doing something so unbelievably dumb, so profoundly stupid, you find yourself staring at the screen in utter disbelief saying, "Wow. Really? Did they really just say/do that?!? You can't be serious!"

Whether amateur or professional status, one of the things athletes and their "handlers" will face at some point in their career is a crisis. It's inevitable. Unfortunately, it is all too commonplace that the athlete at the center of controversy and their "handlers" will be foolish enough to think, "Oh, we can handle this! Here's what we'll say/won't say. This is what we'll do. What's the worst that could happen? This will blow over...ummm...it will, won't it?" Their reactions and responses will range from blame assessment, vehement denials, finger pointing, and the worst possible response ever, the clueless, deer in headlights "no comment." We've seen it all too often. Athletes and/or teams in peril providing us with case studies in what NOT to do.

It is easy to pass judgement and point fingers when watching those in the spotlight flat out flail in front of the cameras. The pressure is tremendous. The world is watching and people who have never experienced the culture of what life is like at THIS level - the level of being inside the world of professional sports and entertainment - have NO idea what these athletes are faced with.

Then there are those who've weathered the storm, lost endorsements, served their penalites/suspensions, etc., and dealt with significant (albeit temporary) damage to their reputations. But they came back, and arguably stronger than ever. Kobe Bryant, Michael Phelps, Charles Barkley, Jason Giambi, and Andy Pettite, and you can even toss in LeBron James after his refusal to shake the hands of the Orlando Magic after the Cavs Eastern Conference Finals loss this past season. These individuals lost endorsement deals and credibility, but they all recovered.

Why? How? What's the difference between rebounding and faltering? How did these individuals find themselves overcoming the controversial situations they faced in the public eye?

For starters, they faced it head on. They owned their level of responsibility. They held themselves accountable for their actions and they worked hard to get through it. Their messages were consistent. Their apologies were sincere. Their "humaness" was believable and real. But prior to whatever reputation or sponsorship damaging issue that confronted them, they built a significant bank of goodwill with the media, the public, and their fanbase. And somewhere in the midst of it all, at the core was a sound communications strategy designed to help them face these painful issues head on, deal with them, and work through them. Both in front of and behind the cameras.

So what are you going to do when the situation impacts you? When you or one of the players in your organization are in the hot seat? Well here's one thing you don't want to do - have a group of publicists, lawyers, managers, agents, or "your boys," trying to fix your reputation in the public arena through the media WITHOUT the help of a skilled, seasoned and proven public relations professional. Look, no offense, we work with all of the aforementioned parties, but they are NOT the people designed to handle your reputation and how that is managed in the court of public opinion.

You see, it's not not about spin. It's about telling your story. It's about accountability, ownership, moving forward, and making sure the story is balanced. When you're honest, no matter how painful it is, the public will tend to forgive you. Will it be easy? No. Will it be painful? Absolutely. Will it impact your bottom line? Potentially. But recovery all depends on the plan you put in place, how well you execute it, and how closely your client (i.e., the athlete at the center of it all) LISTENS and STAYS ON STRATEGY. Do it right and you're on the road to recovery faster. Not so well and sponsorship deals, contract renewals, post-career opportunities, reputation blemishes, along with the fallout in the court of public opinion (and in some cases, legal) can be impacted in less than favorable ways.

Recovery depends on a number of factors, many listed above. But one thing is certain. A solid team of PR pros and a sound communications strategy is your best bet. And have them on board and in place from the beginning. Prepare for the crisis BEFORE it happens with anything and everything you do because success for your clients starts and stops with that solid communications strategy.

Remember, the fans and the public ultimately are forgiving IF you do not offend them. Yes, nobody is perfect, but normal people do not live under the microscope the way athletes and celebrities do. That's one of the things people forget. If our lives were viewed by all, how would we handle it? In my opinion, it's one of the reasons why if you own it, admit it, ask for forgiveness, be sincere in your apology, show contrition, deal with the pain and anguish and fall out, and show you are committed to seeing it through, you'll eventually be forgiven. Especially if you get back to what you were doing and perform at a high level on the field of play with solid relationships with media, fans, and teammates to go along with that.

And guess what? You got it. It's all centered around a solid communications strategy!