'The Oprah Effect' - disaster or bonanza?

May 12, 1:28 AMSF Marketing and PR ExaminerSusan Harrow

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Susan Harrow comments on CNBC about "The Oprah Effect."

If you're going to be on The Oprah Winfrey Show plan for best and prepare for the worst. The best case scenario can be a nightmare. The Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) catastrophe is a case in point.

Advertising Age quoted NPR which dubbed the Kentucky Fried Chicken crises "the James Frey of fast food," referring to the author of a memoir praised by Ms. Winfrey that was later exposed as fiction."

Angry bloggers accused Oprah of owing 6 million Americansa meal for her part in promoting the KFC coupon for grilled chicken, a couple of sides and a biscuit. She said that every family in America would be fed. Not.

So Oprah's intentions, though honorable, weren't well thought out given that KFC is a large purchaser  from Tyson Foods, criticized for their poor conditions and treatment of chickens. Oprah is known for fighting against abuse, whether it's for puppies or for women and girls, so this isn't in keeping with her philosophy or brand. The bad press for KFC has tainted Oprah's reputation for doing good in the world. Be careful who you partner with, since who you associate with influences your brand.

For KFC's part we can chalk up some poor planning, and bad management and practices. They didn't have all their franchisees on board with the promotion and weren't prepared for the volume of demand. Lack of proper planning is a common problem when Oprah's golden touch grazes a lucky few. But you would think such a large company would have the resources and know how to make it work.

Advertising Age asked Robbie Vorhaus, a "crisis expert" his take on what happened."The combination of free food and Oprah is a tsunami," he said. "Clearly KFC wasn't ready." But you can be, no matter what you're promoting.

The Oprah Effect can be a bonanza instead of a disaster. Oprah's influence gives quite a glow for people who are set on doing some good in the world, or selling some kind of delicious or delightful product or project that helps versus harms. Take a lesson from those entrepreneurs who did it right.

CNBC will be airing a show on Thursday, May 28th at 9pm EST & 10pm PT called "The Oprah Effect" which explores the powerful results that an endorsement from the Queen of daytime TV can have on the success of an entrepreneur. These entrepreneurs talk frankly about how they strategized to get on the show, prepared for the surge, and what happened after Oprah graced them with her touch.

You can see a clip of me on CNBC being interviewed about what it takes to get on The Oprah Winfrey Show and ways to leverage your success here.

On the show you'll see a fascinating group of entrepreneurs who each had a unique journey and experience. The one commonality? They all had a huge boost in business. See their stories here.

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