Wholesome Hannah is feeling the heat

I'm a day late and a dollar short with this post. But, I'm throwing my two cents in on Miley Cyrus' current blow up, anyway.

I actually think that most of the press has called this one right. It was just plain preposterous for her (or her handlers) to agree to take that semi-nude, more than provocative photo. After all, she is Hannah Montana, a mega-brand that right now is second to none among 7-12 year old girls.

This 15-year old TV sensation is simply adored all over the country for her wholesome and endearing Disney Channel qualities. That's what the brand was built on and that's why it's now worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Vanity Fair's cover shot just took one giant step into turning her into Britney Spears. This mistake will also help to dissolve a small part of the essence of Hannah Montana's brand – very dangerous to Miley's career and much scarier to the franchise that Disney has oh so carefully created.

That said (or written), let's not overreact. One body blow to her image shouldn't be a death knell. The fact is that Miley apologized for taking the risqué photo almost as quickly as this issue of the magazine came out. Even though both sides are blaming each other, the bottom line is that she knew it was wrong and, if you take it as a sincere statement, fans (and their parents) can also hope that nothing like this will happen again any time soon.

I believe that the moral of this story should be two-fold:

1) Image truly is everything in the real world. Take care and watch over your brand evolution as you would a new born baby.

2) Making one big mistake will typically not kill a brand if the keepers of the brand are smart enough to sincerely say "I'm sorry." That always goes a long way with those fans who want to continue to believe.

Note: Read Jackie Kolek's take on this situation on Peppercom's PepperDigital blog, which focuses on current digital news, tools and initiatives in the evolving world of Web 2.0.

Comments

[Austin James]

While I feel you are exactly right in your assessment of the situation, I can't help but consider the positive implications of this coverage. Perhaps the strategy was designed to bring in an older demographic. We both know she is the Queen of younger, female consumers, but consider what is in it for the brothers.....or dare I say it, the fathers. Vanity Fair is an adult magazine, designed for adult readers. Consider the internet buzz around Lohan's Vanity Fair pictures. Her 'brand' will inevitably grow out of the innocent teen bopper and in today's society sex sells. While the execution left a little to be desired, I feel the company knew she could take the hit and stay strong. Perhaps they were testing the waters, preparing her 'brand' for a transition into the sex-driven realm of the Hilary Duffs and Lindsay Lohans.

[Ed]

Austin, You may be right. This strategy has been played in Hollywood (and with politicians) many times before. Thanks for the shrewd assessment.

[Austin James]

Mr. Moed, these are interesting topics. I look forward to future posts and a greater dissection of accountability.