Prince Harry and Meghan have not found their ‘raison d’etre’ since leaving the royal family and have ‘become a brand liability’ rather than an asset, royal experts tell PALACE CONFIDENTIAL
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have failed to settle in after leaving the royal family, royal experts say.
In this week’s Palace Confidential, the Daily Mail’s diary editor Richard Eden and Town & Country editor Victoria Murphy and journalist Jo Elvin discussed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex after the pair released a video of them speaking to young leaders as part of their new initiative to improve the digital world.
Reviewing the latest issue of People magazine, Victoria said the pair are “under pressure” after a string of failed deals, explaining that people are wondering if they’ve “made the right decisions.”
“What they haven’t done so far is really cultivate a very strong brand outside of the monarchy,” she explained.
“Something that means they can go out and represent something other than just themselves in a meaningful way and that’s what they lost when they retired as working royals.”
In this week’s Palace Confidential, the Daily Mail’s diary editor Richard Eden and Town & Country editor Victoria Murphy (pictured) and journalist Jo Elvin discussed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex after the pair released a video showing them young leaders speeches as part of their new initiative to improve the digital world
Reviewing the latest issue of People magazine, Victoria said the couple (pictured) are “under pressure” after a string of failed deals, explaining that people are wondering if they’ve “made the right decisions.”
“They’ve taken away that substance that you get from representing this institution and representing a country.
“If I want to be this philanthropic power couple with longevity, I think they have to find that.”
She added that the pair are trying to be a “really visible, really pioneering couple” “completely on their own terms.”
‘They set the bar high and they also set the bar for their lifestyle, you know that the property they live in is very expensive.
‘They have that certainty that they find very important. So they are the ones who are more or less trying to live up to their own expectations’.
When asked by Jo what they were actually doing and how they managed to win humanitarian awards, Victoria added: ‘I think that’s what they need to find that better or communicate that better.
Richard added that the video was “interesting” because the video was about “showing how great Harry and Megan were”
“What the royal family can do and do all these things because they put this central focus at the heart of their raison d’être.
“They’re the monarchy, and that’s what they represent, and people understand that and Harry and Megan, I don’t think they’ve found that or communicated it well.
“They do a lot of different things. And they fit into certain categories in a way.”
She added that Meghan is “doing things around women’s empowerment” and Harry is focusing on internet safety, but “there are a lot of different things going on,” meaning they don’t “bring people together in one really strong message.”
She added that Meghan (pictured) is “doing things around women’s empowerment” and Harry focuses on internet safety, but “there are a lot of different things going on” meaning they don’t “commit people to one really strong message”
“Sometimes I wonder, would they do it if they did something like this from within their family? Would they make more of an impact with the message they’re trying to convey?’
Richard added that the video was “interesting” because the video was about “showing how great Harry and Megan were.”
“It was kind of cringe,” he added. “The video just seemed to say ‘we’re here, we’re awesome and everyone loves us.’
Richard added that Harry had “turned from being this great asset to actually, you know, possibly a bit of a liability” to brands and often doesn’t come to the forefront of brands.
It comes as experts said the royal is “losing his star power.”
PR gurus said the prince has become a “lightning rod for negative PR” after being overlooked by the Travalyst relaunch.
PR gurus said the prince (pictured) has become a ‘lightning rod for negative PR’, after being overlooked by the Travalyst relaunch
The Duke of Sussex’s sustainable tourism project announced it has entered an ‘incredibly exciting’ era with a new board of directors – without mentioning the royal family.
The independent non-profit organization based in London was founded by the Duke of Sussex in 2019, while still a working royal, with wife Meghan.
Harry was the face of the initiative for three years to encourage the tourism industry to become more sustainable – despite the uproar over his use of private jets.
But he was omitted from a major announcement by the group in May about moving from a “pilot phase” to a new board of five people with “world-class expertise.”
PR experts today said Harry had become a “polarizing figure” and the business community would “rethink their association with him” amid the “negativity” following his book Spare.
Brand and culture expert Nick Ede told MailOnline: “There is a problem with the Harry brand and that is that in the space of just a few years he has taken his star power, authenticity and ability to take brands and charities he believes in to the next level. to lift, begins to lose.
September 2019 – Prince Harry launches his Travalyst initiative at the A’dam Toren in Amsterdam
September 2019 – Harry addresses an audience as he launches Travalyst in Amsterdam
September 2019 – Travalyst’s announcement on the ‘Sussex Royal’ Instagram account
Companies rely on spokespersons who engage their audiences, elevate them by association, and generally benefit from the relationship. The tide of negativity towards the Prince following Spare’s book has left companies questioning their association.
Companies rely on spokespersons who engage their audiences, elevate them by association, and generally benefit from the relationship. The tide of negativity towards the Prince following Spare’s book has left companies questioning their association.
“While Harry can be seen as a man on a mission to right many wrongs and hold institutions accountable, this one-man campaign may not fit the narrative of the companies he put his name on when he left the UK.”
Mr Ede added: ‘Harry has become a polarizing figure and when companies have spent a lot of money on their star spokespersons, they don’t want to deal with negativity from the media, shareholders and stakeholders.
“This will be a problem for Harry for a while as South Park made fun of him and this satirical view of him has stuck in many people’s minds and has done terrible damage to his brand.”
Travalyst’s statement on the changes was made eight days after Harry and Meghan’s spokesperson said the pair were involved in a “near catastrophic” car chase while being followed by paparazzi in New York after the Ms Foundation Women of Vision Awards.
The NYPD later appeared to soften the couple’s dramatic account, saying “there were no reported clashes, subpoenas, injuries or arrests” related to the incident.
Harry, 38, is still in regular, behind-the-scenes contact with Travalyst’s CEO and board and remains committed to doing so, according to a report in Newsweek. In addition, the Duke is still listed on the Travalyst website as its “founder and patron.”
But it is remarkable that he was not used as a promotional tool for the innovation – given how prominently he had previously been involved in conferences and marketing.