Branding Spotlight: Oprah

An article by helperdogg    2 Comments

The O brand – arguably the most powerful and influential celebrity brand there is. At the center of the brand is Oprah Winfrey. Her rise from an abuse-ridden home in rural Mississippi to a billionaire, media mogul is nothing less than remarkable. Her road to success began as a co-anchor on Nashville’s WLAC-TV at the age of 19. Now her #1 rated talk show defines daytime television and has become a catalyst for boosting the popularity of other brands.

Let’s take a look at the elements that are in involved in the Oprah Winfrey Brand.

The Logo

I always like to start off with the visual aspect of a brand. The Oprah logo includes, what i assume, is her signature with Oprah spelled out underneath in a sans-sarif font. Variations of her logo are used for her television show, XM radio station and website (all of which we will talk about later.) Her brand follows the basic rule of being consistent by using the logo on all her media outlets but you wouldn’t expect anything less from Oprah. The logo is simple and displays a sense of class which is what people associate with Oprah Winfrey.

The Show

The Oprah Winfrey Show is not only the longest-running daytime television show in history (first airing on September 8, 1986), it is also the highest-rated talk show in history. With 24 seasons and nearly 5000 episodes, it is a force to be reckoned with in television pop-culture.  Oprah will be ending her show on September 9, 2011 marking 25 years. The show, for the moment, is the meat of her brand and has shaped the perception of who Oprah Winfrey is. The show has given her brand so much strength that on name alone she continue to grow her empire.

The Corporation

Harpo, Inc controls the entertainment and media interest of Oprah Winfrey where she sits as its chairman. The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) is its newest addition. OWN began airing on New Years Day and will probably take over as Harpo, Inc’s flagship entity once the Oprah Winfrey Show ends it’s reign in Sptember 2011. Harpo, Inc allows Oprah Winfrey to touch different  areas of media from the small screen to the large screen and even radio. It rounds out her media empire. However the print publishing part of the O brand is handled by…..

The Magazine

O: The Oprah Magazine is a monthly magazine published by Oprah Winfrey and The Hearst Corporation. The magazine first began publishing April 2000 and has an average paid circulation of over 2.7 million copies. Even during these times of decline for print publication, O Magazine still thrives off the overall strength of the Oprah brand.

The Website 

Oprah.com is the place on the web that gives you up to date info on everything Oprah. All of her associated brands are featured here, from her magazine, to her show to her network.

The Influence

You cannot have a discussion about the Oprah brand without mentioning it’s influence on people and other brands.  Her Angel Network charitible organization has been able to award funds to hundreds of organizations throughout the United States and in more than 30 countries around the world. It has raised over $51 million. Oprah has also invested $40 million to create the Leadership Academy for Girls near Johannesburg in South Africa. The school opened in January, 2007.

Her influence on other brands does not go unnoticed. She even has the power to move entire industries. This influence has been referred to as “The Oprah Effect”. In 1996, an episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show  featured mad cow disease. Cattle growers claimed that the episode triggered a drop in beef prices causing them to lose millions of dollars. Cattle ranchers in Texas filed a $10.3 million lawsuit claiming she defamed the entire industry.

Oprah’s Book Club which was featured on her show, was responsible for turning many unknown book titles into national best-sellers. Her influence alone would, in some cases, increase sales by as many as several million copies.

Oprah’s Favorite Things is the best example of how her brand influences other brands. Companies whose products are featured on the show experience extreme increases in sales. Scott Schroeder, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Garrett Popcorn Shops, stated being featured on the episode resulted in over 100,000 hits to the website on the afternoon the episode was aired and sales increased in December by over 100%. This caused the business to go from “making popcorn eight hours a day to 24 hours a day.

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The Conclusion

I have been lucky enough to see the Oprah brand grow from it’s inception. I’ve always been amazed at the strength of it. I have a slight issue with the design of the OWN logo. I don’t think it shares the soft, elegant feel of the rest of her branding. Outside of that I think she has a very solid brand and I seriously doubt my opinion on the logo will have any effect on the network’s success.

What do you think about the Oprah brand. Was there anything you can think of to include?

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