Woods can still redeem his sponsorship, says expert

Washington, Feb 20 (ANI): There is still hope for Professional golfer Tiger Woods to redeem his career and his sponsorships, says an adjunct professor of marketing at Rowan University, Glassboro, N.J.

According to Jennifer Regina, all that Woods, 34, has to do is follow a few simple rules, and he is back in the game.

"The personal chaos that has surrounded Tiger Woods has also dealt a severe blow to his financial account since he has lost many corporate sponsorships due to his alleged marital infidelities," Regina said.

Gatorade and Tag Heuer dropped Woods in early December, although their reasons were cited as "not related to his recent actions".

Many others such as Accenture and AT and T also followed suit and decided that Woods was not the best reflection for their company. Nike still remains tied to Woods.

The question of whether Woods will be able to get the sponsorships back and if it is even possible, arose.

"There is a good chance for Tiger to redeem himself," Regina said.

"One piece of evidence is the recent announcement this week of Britney Spears reconvening her sponsorship of Candies Shoes.

"For a long time, Spears was the kiss of death for all products when she shaved her head and attacked paparazzi with an umbrella.

"The idea of 'fixing' and 'reinventing' or 'apologizing' does hold weight in the eyes of many American consumers. Woods needs to establish a series of steps to bring him back to a marketer's dream sponsor," she stated.

According to Regina, Woods needs to do the following:

1. Fix the Problem: Woods needs to get help with his problem, which he is currently doing through sex addiction therapy.

2. Apologize: Woods has already done this during his February 19 news conference.

3. Disappear: Woods needs to take a break from golf (which he already announced) and concentrate on his personal life. This will also allow the negative publicity to subside and be less of an impact in a consumer's mind.

4. Rebuild: Woods will then need to slowly rebuild his image by maintaining an excellent personal reputation, volunteering to charities and cultivating a new image.

Regina spent 10 years in corporate marketing for Nielsen, Dial Corporation, Pillsbury and Mattel Toys in marketing research, product development and category management. (ANI)