When a Rising Star Falls

Individual brands, professional brands, leadership brands, and celebrity brands can rise to world fame in a few hours with the right YouTube video or a couple of interviews on national media. Look at Susan Boyle, the woman with the angelic voice discovered on Britain’s Got Talent. Since her professional launch and brand birth, she has made history, breaking sales records with her debut compact disk and sellout concert tours around the globe.

That lightning speed also goes in the other direction. Just as fast as these brands can rise to fame, they can fall from it and end up in the brand trash can. Ted Williams, branded “the homeless man with the golden voice,” was discovered by a reporter and propelled to fame. Perhaps ...

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