We asked some PR professionals what they think Musk is doing wrong, right and here’s what they had to say. 

Elon Musk’s PR Might Be A Bitter Pill But Is An Acquired Taste 

Elon Musk’s net worth has bolstered him up to the record of being the richest man in the world. Musk’s success story is purely attributable to the fame he achieved as SpaceX and Tesla’s CEO. Musk always advocated for the unique innovations that science brought to him from both his private space company and electric automobile maker. 

Until a very elon–gating public jab in October 2022, the achievements of Musk celebrated him as a visionary. Although Musk’s spontaneous decisions have majorly backfired on him, if he could be more transparent in also sharing the context of his strategy, he may not be as vilified as he is. After all, Elon Musk is a shrewd businessman. What affects his image, affects his brand’s market values as well. So what went wrong, right after Musk bought a certain social media platform and Twitter changed to X?  

After Elon Musk took over Twitter late last year, the existing issues of the social media platform became more pronounced. Musk reinstated suspended accounts for ‘hate speech’, fired more than thousands of Twitter employees, eliminated ‘blue ticks’ for verified accounts, alienated top advertisers, and Twitter changed to X, while also partaking in threatening to sue dozens of others. Amongst them, Musk found someone other than himself to blame for X’s woes – the Anti-Defamation League, which has been placed under a lawsuit threat as well. 

So what do PR professionals have to say?

PR Reacts: Elon Musk’s Success Story

Sarah Johnson of National Business Capital had a quite refreshing take on Musk’s controversial stature. Johnson believes that Musk is terrific for doing something that most CEOs should learn to do – not being pressured by the naysayers and developing a thick skin to criticism.

Johnson implied that Musk was definitely doing something right to have always been spoken about, either in a positive light or not. Musk has championed not particularly caring of what others think of him and that has worked tremendously on his reputation. 

Although some may not laud his brusque style of directing, Johnson says that Musk has always been transparent about his intentions with Twitter – monetizing the site. Twitter changed to X and the outrage was imminent. But as Elon Musk, the one incredible thing about his PR strategy is on how he interacts with his audience. None of the CEOs have not alienated its site’s users. Even though he calls the shots, Musk has found his fame calling in letting his users decide on what he should do. 

Johnson says that as far as PR could go, Musk’s communication style has beckoned the interest of why people can’t stop talking about him, be it backlash or praise. It humanizes his brand and fosters loyalty amongst customers. 

Elon Musk Harnesses A Nuance To His PR Image

Like most nuanced, if Candice D’Angelo of The Agency East had to sum up Elon Musk’s PR in one word, it would be ‘winning’. 

As a public figure, much of the communication is transparent but not all leaders are meant to capture everyone’s hearts. Musk has taken every criticism thrown at him in strides to do what he wishes to do. It may seem exasperating but how else did Tesla sales boom or SpaceX be celebrated as Elon Musk’s success story? – Musk’s persona lingers curiosity. 

“Because of his transparency and candor, Musk ruffles more feathers than not but in my opinion, love him or hate him, he has captivated us all.”

Zachary Weiner of Emerging Insider talks about how in the age of social media, Musk’s humor and casual tone have made him relatable to people, which is seldom found among eminent people. Weiner introduces the aspect of how Musk is consistent in aligning his personal brand with the vision of innovation of his companies as well. 

While Musk is notorious for his impulsive tweets and unfiltered comments, he has paid the price for it through lawsuits and controversies. But what makes Elon Musk’s net worth? We believe it is the rawness evident in Musk’s contradictions. He’s just like the common folk. And that is a rarity.

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On April 25, the share price of Twitter stood at $51.70 but today it hovers around $39.52. 

The Social Media Wipeout

So, how did the Elon Musk Twitter deal lose around $10 million a week? Twitter’s most recent fall can be attributed to a bearish outlook in the market towards social media stocks. Snap’s results added to the panic as Wall Street tried to cut losses and flee. On Monday, Snap reported that it will miss its earnings and revenue targets for the current quarter.

In April, the company informed its investors that they are expecting 20% and 25% year-over-year growth in revenue. Snap CEO Evan Spiegel’s candid take on the present market conditions had investors scurrying for exits. While assuring stakeholders that the company is growing, just not as fast as expected, he admitted, “the macro environment has deteriorated further and faster than we anticipated when we issued our quarterly guidance last month.”

After Spiegel shared his views, Snap’s stocks plunged nearly 30% in after-hours trading on Monday. This sentiment cascaded down to other social media stocks and the digital ad industry, which had already cutback on its spending. Twitter lost nearly 43% of its market share, while Pinterest lost 23.6%, Google lost 5%, Meta lost 7.6%, and Twitter lost 5.6%.

Rising inflation, the invasion of Ukraine, supply chain issues, policy changes like Apple iPhone’s privacy feature, and labor disruptions have all had a negative impact, according to Spiegel.

Share Price of Twitter and Elon Musk Twitter Profit

When the Elon Musk Twitter deal was announced, it had sent the micro-blogging site’s share price soaring.

On Tuesday, May 24, Twitter’s stock plunged further as investors tried to rid themselves of social media stocks in wake of Spiegel’s announcement. So far, Twitter’s stock has fallen by nearly 18% this year. According to Bloomberg, Elon Musk’s net worth has dropped by $58.7 billion since the beginning of 2022.

Elon Musk tweets have always made news, and one of his Twitter polls eventually resulted in him making an offer to buy the company. Musk has been critical of Twitter’s free speech policies as he believes the social media giant which is “the de facto public town square” is restrictive in its policies.

Expert analysts admit that Spiegel’s confession has thinned investor appetite for social media stock. Furthermore, it is clear that the advertising environment is set to worsen with no end in sight. Add to it the prevailing economic uncertainty, and Wall Street does not want to bet anything that has an ambiguous future. Russ Mould, an investment director at AJ Bell, told Business Insider that “tighter monetary policy, meaning less and more expensive fun money for investors.” Twitter’s misfortune has also rubbed off on Tesla stocks. Tesla investors have waited with bated breath to see how Musk will fund his Twitter purchase. Recent filings revealed that he plans to put up nearly $33.5 billion of the $43 billion and has secured an additional $6.25 billion in equity financing. For now, the deal is on hold after Musk stated that he will not complete the acquisition unless Twitter can prove that spam bots account for less than 5% of its users.

If things continue to stay the way they are, Elon Musk’s Twitter profit could be non-existent. The Tesla CEO can still choose to walk away from the deal, but he must pay Twitter a $1 billion penalty.

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