The self destructive marketing strategy of Donald Trump

It’s been talked about again and again in the news, on popular radio stations, and made fun of countless times on the internet.  I’m talking about none other than Donald Trump, the former business mogul and presidential candidate whose know-it-all demeanor continues to destroy his own empire.  In fact, I use the term ‘business mogul’ very loosely; I doubt by the end of the year that his vast empire will be anything more than a sandcastle.

Yes, it has been talked about over and over again from so many different viewpoints.  Still, it’s too good not to talk about (in a you-can’t-make-this-stuff-up kind of way).

It has been very interesting watching his downfall (and I realize how cruel that statement sounds) over such a short time period.  Granted, his comments offended a remarkable amount of people (and he seems to be somewhat proud of that fact), but it is very amazing to me just how many big businesses have severed ties with him.  First, Univision cut ties with Trump, refusing to air the Miss Universe Pageant.  NBCUniversal followed shortly after, leaving Trump high and dry and the Miss USA pageant floating in the balance.  Then – something that literally made ma jaw drop when I read it – Macy’s decided to cut ties with Trump as well.  To make matters worse, over this past weekend, Donald Trump got himself into even more hot water, speaking out against war veteran John McCain and the “plight of veterans . . . to the forefront” (Scott, Preston & Bradner, CNN.com, 2015), potentially destroying another brand – the GOP.

This entry is more a comment on the self destructive behavior that Trump has exhibited and how he has ruined several brands in the process, causing several companies to trip over themselves to get away from Trump.  As innovative as marketing is in today’s society, it seems that it can do just as much damage as well.  This situation is a great example of viral marketing working in the wrong way.  It seems that Trump may not have realized (or may have,  depending on how you see it) that his comments could be etched in stone at any time with this remarkable tool called ‘the internet’ and spread like wildfire to all corners of the nation, or of the world, even.  This also gives people a chance to keep viewing the videos and reading the many articles on his comments, leaving them to develop and redevelop opinions on the severity of his comments  I’m not sure whether Macy’s and NBC would have cut ties as quickly if Trump’s ‘marketing campaign’ wasn’t so present.  The same will happen to the GOP, but in a different way – they will have to determine how to deal with Trump because he is destroying their credibility with his free speech.

It will be interesting to see who decides to abandon the Trump ship next.  Considering everything that has happened so far, he would be wise to stop while he’s (somewhat) ahead.  Of all the words that are in his vocabulary, though, something tells me that ‘wise’ isn’t one of them. #TheFallofTrump

Reference:

Scott, E., Preston, M., & Bradner, E. (2015) Defiant Trump Refuses to Apologize to McCain. CNN Online. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/18/politics/donald-trump-john-mccain-war-hero/index.html