Paris Hilton to teach a Personal Branding seminar for $1 million
- Written by Neil Patel on July 15th, 2007
- 18 Comments »
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I recently read on Dan Schawbel’s blog that Paris Hilton maybe teaching a personal branding seminar for $1,000,000.
The Offer:
This week Paris was offered the sum of $1 million dollars by The Learning Annex to teach a one-hour class on “How to Build Your Brand.” If the offer is accepted, she will be the second highest paid speaker by the company, next to Donald Trump, who was paid $1.5 million in the past. “We just sent over the offer to her this morning, and I think there’s a good chance she’d do it.” - President Bill Zanker
This news completely shocked me when I found out about it and I am guessing that it may shock many of you because Paris was already some what famous at birth and she basically rose to fame from a sex tape called “One Night in Paris”. I know many of you feel that she isn’t the best candidate to speak on personal branding and I do agree with that, but here is some value I think she could provide:
- Acting dumb – although Paris acts dumb she really isn’t that stupid. Yes, she may not be book smart but she knows how to act dumb in order to draw more buzz. This may not be the thing you want to do, but there are certain moments where you could act dumb and potentially increase your fame. I don’t recommend this to everyone but I have done this to a few people who think they know everything and then turned things around later to show them that they don’t. From what I can tell, Paris doesn’t use this tactic in the same fashion I do but she can still provide some value by giving tips on how to act dumb. Although it sounds simple, timing is everything when acting dumb.
- Leveraging your brand - this is probably one of the most important parts about personal branding. Creating a strong brand is just half the battle, the other half is figuring out how you can leverage it. Looking at examples of how she leveraged her brand in the past would be a beneficial because you can see how she succeed and failed in the past.
- Image– one of the things that we overlook with personal branding is appearance. Paris definitely has this one down. I don’t mean the tight shirts or the very low skirts that she wears but am instead talking about her business attire and the looking great at more formal or business functions. Some of the places she shops at maybe too expensive for us but she can educate us on how women and men can dress to impress.
These are just a few of the things I think Paris can provide value with. Granted, there are plenty of other case examples for leveraging your brand and image, but I think Paris is a great example these days. Not sure if it is worth $1,000,000 but that is whole different post.
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I’ve used the phrase “Memorabilia Brands Experiences” about a dozen times this past week, with a variey of clients. Memorabilia can literally stuff we give, or stuff people identify us with.
For example, on the subways of NYC right now (and perhaps other cities), is using the power of paris’ personal brand is a creative way:
They can’t use her photo or quote legally without permission. But to remind us of the “Paris” they’re referring to… what do you think they showed?
A dolled up, blinged-out Chihuahua, of course.
In my article, “What are your white wires?” (published by Debonair Magazine), I used my own personal anecdote to show we can develop our own Personal Brand Memorabilia.
The more we are remembered, the more referrals we will get. Not remembered? No referrals.
~ Vikram Rajan
PersonalBrandMarketing.com
she is more adept at telling how to make sex tapes rather personal branding!!
You are probably right, but I still think she can provide value.
Thanks Neil. I’m still in disbelief. I’d much rather they take the $1 Million, split it and send it right to us to teach the class.
I would love that kind of money, but I don’t think we can draw a crowd like Paris.
I think there is actually a lot to be learned from Paris in the way of branding. The key is to look as deep as possible.
Take a look at all of the different things she’s done to give herself the image she has now - not only intentionally but also unintentionally.
She has an extremely strong personal brand. Her first name alone brings an almost instant image of drinking, partying, sex, and a whole host of other things.
Her brand may not have the connotations that a lot of us are looking for, but there is one big lesson to be learned from her - everything we do,say, wear, and publish contributes to our image. As well as a lot of other things that most of us aren’t even aware of.
Neil, Thanks for the added value on this otherwise boring news.
- Mason
To be sure Paris was only acting dumb, I’d need to see some examples of her being smart. I know she has smart people around her, but I’m not convinced her stupidity is an act.
Sean you just showed that she is smart.
If you can associate yourself with smart people who know how to leverage your brand and can help you, then that maybe good enough.
I think that people who are willing to pay the money that will then pay Ms. Hilton 1 million USD for a one-hour talk will certainly be able to apply whatever content she will transmit or be inspired by her spirit. In that way, the course self-selects participants.
Sara this is very true. I actually signed up for one of these Learning Annex seminars and I could only really stay for a few hours before running out the door.
The content is really on a basic level and doesn’t provide a whole lot to people who already read and do the research themselves.
That being said, I’m sure some people will get a lot of value from listening to her and the other speakers.
- Mason
… so will she be giving any demonstrations on how to distribute a videotape about in flagrante delicto?
seems like her biggest spike in personal branding traffic was due to that singular event
- dmc
LOL. You are right on the video tape because I don’t think her movies or music did too well.
Yikeers talk about hype …..!!
I do not understand what Paris can teach about personal branding in an hour?
She could at least help educate people on how to leverage their brand. Such as how you can branch out and use your name to make more money.
Wow! I can’t believe it! Funny thing is I am doing a presentation about building your personal brand at my job. This will certainly open a few eyes. Thank you for sharing!
she is more adept at telling how to make sex tapes rather personal branding!!
I agree, but she still knows a few things about branding.