Vick: Pre Dog Days

Posted by Liz Dill and Tom Gable

After being released from prison Vick was conditionally reinstated to the NFL, a move that has been criticized by many. According to an article in The New York Times, one of Vick’s next biggest battles will be how teams and the public will receive him – his personal rebranding.

While in prison, Vick got a head-start on his PR and rebranding campaign by forging a relationship with the Humane Society and announcing that he will be working with the organization to discourage dog fighting and educate youth about its evils. Since NFL fans are historically forgiving of athletes’ follies and legal entanglements, Vick has the opportunity to become a role model and recover his personal brand reputation.

Can he recover? Will he walk the talk, move in a positive new direction and not simply spew platitudes crafted from the Crisis PR 101 playbook? He needs to be sincere in his apology and actively engage in a program of continuous community service. He must be prepared for widespread hostility wherever he appears (imagine the signs, costumes and howling, barking crowds on the attack in every stadium he visits). From an authentic PR perspective, here are a few suggestions for Vick to consider in creating a new reputation:

• Start a non-profit foundation that focuses on improving animal health and welfare, such as one that works to rehabilitate abandoned fighting dogs and places them in new homes.
• Create a scholarship program in his name through the Humane Society to provide grants each year to students pursuing veterinary care studies.
• Donate a portion of his salary and future endorsements to organizations that work to fight animal cruelty.
• Mend his relationships with animal and pet organizations by appearing in public service announcements that promote proper behavior.
• Volunteer every month at a local animal shelter and work with the shelter to raise additional donations.
• Establish a program to speak to groups about the horrors of dog fighting.
• Write a series of opinion-editorial pieces on lessons learned; place with traditional and online media.
• Create a Facebook page and communicate directly with fans; create conversations.
• Open a Twitter account so fans can follow his entrance back into the NFL and keep updated on his many positive public activities.

Even these steps and many more, taken over several seasons and perhaps his entire career, may not be enough to salvage his reputation. The ball is in his hands.

Bookmark to:

Tags: branding, Crisis PR, issues management, news, positioning, PR, reputation

This entry was posted on Monday, August 3rd, 2009 at 12:47 pm and is filed under Authentic PR, Brilliant Counsel, Client Service Results, Crisis PR, Horizon Management, Hype Free PR. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.