News
Consumer perceptions of Woods changeDecember 10, 2009
Affairs not costing Tiger Woods dollars, but brand influence
Boston Herald
Corporate sponsors may say they’re sticking by Tiger Woods for now, but the golf icon’s standing with the general public has dramatically diminished, according to a celebrity talent firm.
Woods’ ranking on the Davie Brown Index, which quantifies celebrities’ ability to influence brand loyalty and consumer purchases, has dropped to 24th from sixth place since his alleged philandering became public fodder. The index, created by Los Angeles-based Davie Brown Entertainment, tracks 2,800 celebrities as a guide for brand marketers.
Woods has around $100 million in endorsement contracts with brands including Boston’s Gillette, Accenture, AT&T, EA Sports, Gatorade, Nike Golf and TAG Heuer.
Gatorade acknowledged yesterday that it’s discontinuing its Gatorade Tiger Focus drink that debuted in 2008. But the company said it made the decision - part of a broader brand overhaul - several months before the Nov. 27 car accident that led to a continuous public airing of Woods’ sex life.
Beverage Digest, which first reported the news in its Nov. 25 issue, estimated Tiger Focus’ sales volume dropped 34 percent through October, accounting for less than 5 percent of Gatorade’s overall sales volume.
But there’s no publicly released evidence so far that Woods’ new notoriety is affecting sales of products he endorses.
EA Sports’ “Tiger Woods PGA Tour” for Nintendo Wii has been on Amazon.com’s list of 100 best-selling video games for the last 114 days. Released it June, it was ranked 61st yesterday.
Woods is the face of Nike Golf, which had fiscal 2009 sales of $648.3 million from clubs, clothing and other products. It’s not peak golf season right now, though the fourth quarter that includes the holiday season is big for golf sales.
“If (Woods) comes out in January and plays like he’s supposed to, and he wins a tournament, that’s when it invokes buying,” said Bob McGee, editor of the Sporting Goods Intelligence newsletter.
At the Edwin Watts Golf store in Hanover, manager Michael Hicks says a lot of customers are coming in and joking about Woods’ alleged indiscretions.
“They’ll point out his merchandise and say, ‘I bet no one’s buying that book right now,’ ” Hicks said, referring to Woods’ 2001 “How I Play Golf”. “But we only have a couple of copies anyway.”