The “brand” Shaquille O’Neal received an unexpected boost from an impostor who used Twitter to share with Shaq’s fans. Or did he? The impostor was actually a 33 year old fan, and when Shaq and his publicist found out, Shaq took over as The_Real_Shaq, and has enjoyed a new wave of fan-aticism, according to a story in the NY Times.
It’s interesting to contemplate the value of communicating so directly with your fans, especially for pro athletes. They hire PR firms to negotiate endorsements and get them good publicity. All of the work creates the “brand” the athlete represents. In the world of social media, branding can become very personal. His publicist, putting a positive spin on the whole thing, took credit for trying to get Shaq to tweet with fans. Seems like he’s got a built in audience, thanks to the faux-Shaq.
You guys are super excited about Twitter, huh?! =)
That is interesting. Maybe I can pretend to be my idols on the twitter to help them gather their fans and get some souvenirs from my idols for rewarding my hard work.