Your Image, Your Money: Led Zeppelin

What is the worth of a song?  According to Portfolio.com, $572 million plus.  That’s right, Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin is estimated to be worth $572 million and counting.

Led Zeppelin have found their money maker in a single song.  Sure they have a portfolio of great hits, but Stairway to Heaven is by far their biggest cash cow and they know it.  It is their image.

So how did they turn a single song into the money maker it is today?  First, its a great song.  It is one of the most requested songs of all time.  Every time the song gets played on the radio or otherwise, they make money.

Second, they didn’t whore it out.  They were very selective of when and where it was released.  It was never made a single because Zeppelin wanted to make people purchase the whole album.  By purchasing the whole album, Zeppelin made more in royalties.

Third, they use it to generate sales of their other songs.  Cadillac targeted baby boomers in a 2002 ad featuring “Rock and Roll”, another song of Zeppelin.  Cadillac knew that baby boomers would be drawn to an ad that had Zeppelin playing.  Zeppelin could have used Stairway to Heaven, but instead keeps it close to home for the perfect deal.  Now that companies know that Zeppelin is licensing their songs, the longer Zeppelin holds out on Stairway, the larger the price it will fetch to the lucky bidder.  In the meantime, companies are licensing Zeppelins other songs.

There are some important lessons you can learn from Zeppelin.  Once you have your money maker image, take care of it and you will reap the rewards over the long run.

Your Image, Your Money: Tiger Woods

Have you ever wondered why Tiger Woods has no visible tattoos, no piercings, doesn’t wear hip hop clothing, nor does he have excessive “bling”? The answer is rather simple. Tiger Woods understands that his image is his money maker.

Tiger Woods has earned $100,890,709 in career tournament earnings. However, he has made $668,550,000 in endorsements. So what does that mean? 86% of Tiger Woods earnings come from endorsements, not golf. Endorsements are all about image. Tiger Woods understands that he is trying to sell a product to a middle class male. He’s not selling to the inner city kids.

If it were simply about golf for Tiger Woods, he could dress how he wants to, drive what he wants to, act how he wants to, but Tiger Woods understands that golf isn’t his true money maker. Sure, it got him to where he is at, but keep in mind that the money he has made from golf is only 14% of his total earnings.

We can learn an important lesson from athletes like Tiger Woods. Your image is your money maker. Companies with dress codes understand this concept. They institute a dress code to take away your image. They want you to represent the company, not yourself.

The same can be said for your money maker. You represent your money maker, not yourself. Build your image around your money maker. If your money maker is selling Harley Davidsons, how would you dress? Would you wear a suit and tie? Tattoos or no tattoos?

Tiger Woods sells to the middle class male. That’s why he endorses Buick and not Lamborgini.