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.

The post Elon Musk Is “Winning”: What PR Professionals Had to Say appeared first on Industry Leaders Magazine.

With the rising importance given to climate changes, countries are becoming more aware of the steps they must take to reduce the negative effects. One of the most significant changes that can help reduce pollution all over the world is the use of electric cars. Electric cars might bring about a positive change in the atmosphere as they don’t let out carbon nor do they consume combustible gases. This makes it a win-win situation from both the sides. Considering this, many companies decided to go easy on the taxes for such cars in order to promote their use. When a country decided to discontinue such tax benefits, it adversely affected the Tesla sales.

While other countries are busy promoting the use of electric cars through monetary perks, the Hong Kong government has decided against it. According to an announcement on the 1^st of April this year, this government discontinued tax breaks that were given to Tesla for its electric cars. It seems that the tax break might have really served its purpose as it’s in absence, the Tesla sales have drastically gone down. This incident is a clear example of how effective government incentive programs can be. An announcement about the reduction in sales was made on Monday.

Decline in Tesla sales

Wall Street Journal analyzed the official data from the Transportation Department of Hong Kong. After this analysis, it was observed that less Tesla models were sold in the second quarter of the year. Based on numbers, there was no sale of a single Tesla S model sedan or Model X sport-utility vehicle in April. Even in the month of May, there was a sale of only five electric cars. Such numbers are almost as good as a zero.

The collapse in Tesla sales comes as a tremendous shock for the automaker. Just before the annulment of the tax break, there was registration of 3,700 electric cars in the first quarter. Within two months of such impressive progress, the numbers of registration have gone tumbling down. Due to the success in the first quarter, its global sales crossed 25,000 in the first quarter itself. This would make this period the best sales quarter ever. But the reduction in the second quarter resulted in the company’s loss of this position. This incident might force Tesla to change its sale strategy as the company was planning to target mainland China next. Tesla decided to carry out long-term analysis before it invests or sets up a plant in any region.

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