Donald Trump and Firing Employees: Creative Cover or Deceptive Marketing

When I go work out at the YMCA I like to read magazines while on the treadmill. In the magazine rack on the wall there is a huge selection. Golf, inspiration, various news, various business magazines, etc, etc., etc. Because of this wide selection, I often make my decision based on a picture. This past week the photo I saw was of Donald Trump on the cover of the April 23, 2007 Business Week Magazine.

As soon as I got moving on the treadmill I found out quickly that the article had nothing to do with Donald Trump, other than using his popular TV Show, The Apprentice, as a backdrop. On that show he fires people every week and that is a central part of the program. In this article (Fear of Firing), Business Week argues that such an approach isn't so easy to use in the real world.

The article was actually quite substantive and useful. If you are thinking of casually firing someone, do so with caution. I will likely make it a topic on an upcoming Houston Business Show. In fact, I'm sure it was far more practical and informative than any puff piece on "the Donald." But it wasn't about the Donald. So was this a creative cover or deceptive marketing? I'm calling it a creative cover. I've been guilty of a similar practice. Last November I did a post on blogging that included a photo of the beautiful Maria Sharapova. It was a little cheap, I know, but it would make a visitor look.

I'm doing a similar thing here. There is a huge number of people who are interested in stories on Trump online. So here I am writing a story that is really about labor law, and the title and photo are about Trump. In a world with so many forces competing for eyeballs, you really have to be creative in my opinion.