Madonna: Pure Marketing Genius

Big flops on the big screen

Her incredible career falters only when it comes to the movies. She has been in so many turkeys that many people wonder why she still bothers. To her credit, the big screen calamities have never seriously dented her brand and she has turned in a few spectacular performances. She was lauded for Desperately Seeking Susan (1985) and Dick Tracy (1990), and was simply brilliant as Eva Peron in Evita, winning a Golden Globe Award.

Material girl

Her reputation as a strong and savvy businesswoman was reinforced in 1992 when she hammered out a multi-million dollar deal with Time-Warner to create her own record label, Maverick Records. It sent shock waves through the industry and was a clear message to other women in music about gaining financial control. It gave her a bigger royalty rate and multi-million dollar advances on forthcoming albums. In an interview with the New York Times at the time of the $60 million deal, Charles Koppelman, then the chief operating officer of EMI Records, North America, said, “She’s the exception: someone who taps into artists and musical genres before the rest of the world does. In other deals where artists get their own labels, such perks are usually window dressing to satisfy their egos. Madonna’s different. I would bet on her to make something more of it.” And did she ever.

With a shrewd eye for talent she launched the career of Alanis Morissette, whose debut album Jagged Little Pill sold an estimated 30 million copies. Maverick Records housed music, film, TV, and publishing divisions. She sold her share in the label to Warner Music in 2004 for a multi-million dollar figure.

In the same way that she keeps up with the latest trends and fashions, Madonna is no slouch when it comes to spotting new business opportunities. There was a startling combination of brand innovation and marketing when she forged a close relationship with Pepsi in the late 1980s. The company signed a one-year $5 million contract with her. For the fizzy drink manufacturer it was a way of using the emotional attachment that people have with the singer to help sell more drinks. For Madonna it was a way of reaching a bigger market.

The song used in the commercial was “Like a Prayer,” and Madonna shot a separate video with a more wholesome appeal that aired to approximately 250 million people in more than 40 countries. It received an incredible reaction. Pepsi executives were patting themselves on the back feeling sure that sales would increase and Madonna would soon have another mega-hit on her hands.

But, Madonna’s version of the music video for “Like a Prayer” was broadcast on MTV the next day and all hell broke loose as the media storm was unleashed. Pepsi suffered from the volume and intensity of negative criticism and eventually cancelled the contract with Madonna. The singer got to keep her advance, and of course, controversy has never dented her bank balance.

Fabulous at 50

Pop music is an industry where sex sells, and a sex-orientated sales pitch is essential if an act is to get anywhere. But this becomes much harder when the brand ages—in the eyes of the audience, only the young engage in sex. Madonna is still a very sexy woman, of course, but the image is much different from the in-your-face attitude of the Madonna we knew in the 1980s and ‘90s when she was singing about oral sex and S&M. Now, the brand has undergone an even more dramatic change—now she represents the new 50.

It wasn’t too long ago that 50 was seen as the age where people started heading toward the twilight of their lives, the best years were a distant memory. Well, Madonna has ripped up that rule book. Now, her brand incorporates being fabulous at 50; a time where people are asking themselves serious questions about what they want to do with the rest of their lives. It’s a new beginning and Madonna is a symbol for this new age.

The creative juggernaut continues on her way, and such is the success of her brand that companies all over the world are studying what is now known in marketing circles as the Madonna factor to help refresh and renew their own brands. Last year she signed a massive record contract with concert promoter Live Nation. Reportedly worth a $120 million, she became the first star to sign an all-in-one deal rather than a traditional record contract.

This deal gives the promoter rights to her music, DVDs, concerts, and merchandise. It’s another business innovation and gives her the opportunity to take advantage of new methods of music distribution and to reach an even larger fan base. For Madonna, the show will go on for many years to come.