[Chapter 20: Choosing a Spokesperson, Attorney Goodman]
After sending Daniel off, Linton called Mira, asking her to send over the filtered list of potential endorsements along with the self-recommendation materials from the lawyers and accountants. Since last month, various law firms and accounting firms had been continuously sending recommendation letters to Mira, hoping to take on Linton's business, leading to an increase in endorsement offers.
Previously, Mira had mentioned to Linton that the William Morris Agency could recommend cooperating lawyers and accountants to him, but Linton preferred not to rely on the closeness of WMA. He didn't want to later be blindsided by a combination of agents and accountants. Hiring himself seemed more prudent, especially after hearing Daniel's advice, he felt that necessary safeguards and checks were a must.
...
Mira walked in holding a thick stack of three collated piles of materials, which included sorted endorsement offers, self-recommendations from lawyers, and self-recommendations from accountants.
"Mira, why don't you start by introducing the filtered endorsement offers you gathered?"
"Since May, we've received over thirty endorsement offers for you. However, most of them are from very low-end brands, like KFC and McDonald's. These don't match your brand positioning at all. If you go further with these, they could drag down your image. Some brands may fit your image, but their offers are significantly below your market value.
After our screening, we have five products that we can consider. The first is the Sony's Walkman from Japan, the second is Dell Computers, the third is Ray-Ban sunglasses. All three are offering $1.5 million per year, requiring a two-year contract. The fourth is Adidas sportswear, offering $2 million per year with the same two-year contract requirement. The fifth is Blue Goose whiskey, offering $2.5 million per year, also requiring a two-year contract.
Sony, Dell, and Ray-Ban are all major brands and are trendy electronic or fashion products favored by youth. They fit perfectly with your image as a rising pop star and the prices are appropriate relative to your current fame. But the biggest issue is that they require a two-year contract. You've only been in the industry for three months, and you've achieved this level of fame and market value so quickly. By next year, your market value may far exceed $1.5 million a year, so it may be a bit of a loss overall.
The fourth, Adidas sportswear, is popular among the young, but the brand's prestige isn't quite on par with your positioning. While the pay is higher, there's a concern that if you take this clothing endorsement, it might negatively impact future high-end fashion endorsements. The fifth one, Blue Goose whiskey, is a high-end drink often found in nightclubs."
"What the heck? Nightclub drinks? How does that fit my image? You know I don't go to nightclubs!" Linton interjected.
"At first, I found it strange too. But after discussing it with the brand side, I learned that your songs Numb and Believer are really popular in nightclubs, and your performance in the Believer music video is a hit among nightclub women. Plus, your ex-girlfriend Connie's media antics have fueled many women's fantasies, so the brand sees your potential influence in that demographic."
"What? Connie's media antics had such an impact?" Linton was bewildered; it had practically become an adult joke across America.
"So I suggest you take the first three endorsements and pass on the latter two. We can look into new endorsements next year when your fame has further solidified. The brands will likely have a higher caliber and the pricing will be more fitting then."
After looking through the other endorsement offers, Linton found they were just as Mira said -- mostly low-end fast food chains and snack brands in North America, or some odd brands, including various gimmicks that were hardly suitable. Was this the result of Connie's media hype too?
He wasn't a rookie; he understood that very few rising stars would endorse such low-end, mostly junk food chains. One offer was for a headphone brand, but the endorsement fee was only $1 million a year, clearly far below his market value -- definitely a pass. Overall, Linton was quite satisfied with Mira's selections. It seemed that Mira was quite responsible, not overly focused on short-term benefits despite their short contract with WMA (after all, the contract was only for a year).
"Honestly, my dream endorsements would be Coca-Cola or Pepsi -- even if the fees were lower, that would be fine. Is there any chance WMA could negotiate something with them?" Linton looked hopefully at Mira.
If he could endorse Coca-Cola or Pepsi, their immense promotional power and global advertising would offer unimaginable exposure and popularity for him -- he would even endorse them for free without pay.
"Not a chance. Look at the endorsers Coca-Cola and Pepsi usually choose -- Jordan, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Cindy Crawford, Johnny Depp. We can't reach those levels yet, but after your album breaks into the charts next year, we can revisit the possibility," Mira effectively quashed his hopes.
"Alright, let's go with your plan. Let's move forward and negotiate with Sony, Dell, and Ray-Ban as soon as possible."
"Let's try to negotiate terms that are favorable to us. If that's not possible, the prices are acceptable in general; however, we should differentiate when it comes to payment. How about we offer two options during negotiations? One option is paying the same price for two years upfront, and the other is a tiered price -- meaning this year at one price and the following year we increase it accordingly, paid annually."
"That's a good proposal; your popularity is indeed rapidly rising, and the brands should recognize that."
"Speed up the process. Let's aim to wrap up the ad shoots by July because in August I'm going to focus solely on recording my album. Also, tomorrow morning, please accompany me to BMI to register the song copyrights."
---
After Mira left, Linton picked up the self-recommendation materials from the lawyers and selected three white male lawyers from prestigious schools with five to ten years of experience, scheduling interviews for the afternoon.
After some thought, he decided to contact Daniel again and asked him to arrange for the company's legal consultant to accompany him during interviews to help assess and ensure their business capabilities.
---
Returning to the office, Linton found Lisa waiting for him in Molly's assistant's office.
Upon meeting, Lisa directly expressed her desire to continue as the producer for his album. She told Linton that the three songs they previously collaborated on were her shining accomplishments and significantly boosted her status in the industry.
She promised that if she continued as the producer, she would fully respect Linton's creative input while putting in her all to make the album a high-quality project. She hoped to earn Linton's support.
Linton didn't agree on the spot but told her he would consider it carefully.
---
In the afternoon, at the Dandelion Cafe next to Universal, with the help of Universal's legal consultant Jerry Michie, Linton interviewed the three lawyers.
He ended up choosing Goodman Depp, a 28-year-old graduate of Yale University, currently working at a law firm in Los Angeles.
He had just transitioned from a trainee lawyer two years ago and had relatively few clients; nonetheless, he specialized in legal cases within the entertainment industry, and his competence was confirmed by Jerry.
They negotiated a reasonable fee and signed the contract with Goodman on the spot.
*****
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