Pay close attention to Chad Ocho Cinco … otherwise you just might miss something special.
On opening night of the star-studded comedy Death at a Funeral, Ocho Cinco sent out a tweet shortly before the 10:50 p.m. show at Pacific’s The Grove Stadium 14 movie theater in Los Angeles. He offered to buy movie tickets for the first 200 followers who showed up at the theater; free drinks and food were included.
“That’s just something that I normally do,” Ocho Cinco later explained at Studio 604 in Los Angeles. “During the season, I have movie night on Fridays if a good movie comes out. I invite 100 people on Twitter [to the movies] so that they can really see who I am. I love Twitter because it changed the perceptions that people had of me. Most NFL players are not accessible, but I let people know that I am regular. I’m just like you.”
Ocho Cinco found a way to turn his Everyman approach and spontaneity into a brand that’s admired by fans and respected by corporations. Since getting drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2001, he has strategically made himself a household name without winning a Super Bowl or being the best wide receiver in the NFL.
His choreographed touchdown celebrations, good-natured trash-talking to opponents, and changing his last name (from Johnson to Ocho Cinco, the Spanish translation of his jersey number), have put him in a position to be a must-see attraction in a league where players often have a hard time gaining exposure outside of football.
In fact, Ocho Cinco is no longer just an NFL player with a big personality; he’s now a legitimate marketing expert who happens to play professional football. He achieved that distinction by allowing fans to be a part of his charmed lifestyle through the use of social media.
Currently, Ocho Cinco has 649,471 page views on his Ustream channel, over 15,000 fans on his Facebook page and 851,804 people follow him on Twitter. The numbers are remarkable for a guy who wears a helmet to work — and don’t think major companies haven’t taken notice. Motorola sponsors his Facebook page, he has an iPhone application, and he created the Ocho Cinco News Network (OCNN), which is sponsored by MOTOBLUR. On April 22, OCNN was on-site in New York to cover the 2010 NFL draft. Surprisingly, Ocho Cinco was able to get his football rival, New York Jets defensive back Darrelle Revis, to serve as the official OCNN TV host during the draft.
“I’m doing a lot of stuff outside of football, so that I can set myself up [to be successful] when football is done,” he says. “Although I plan on playing football until I’m 40, I’m making sure everything is right when that time comes. I’ve talked to people and they tell me you can’t play football forever. I’m making moves and making friends, so that when opportunities come, I have people in place to make maneuvers. I’ve just been having fun. The opportunities are coming and I’m taking advantage of it. I’m embracing everything I’m doing off the field.”
Thus far, Ocho Cinco has continued to use multiple outlets to brand himself during the off-season. Along with launching OCNN and staying connected with fans through Twitter, he decided to step out of his comfort zone by joining ABC’s hit reality show “Dancing with the Stars.” He was still in the running for the championship at press time, but he has since discovered that the pasodoble is more difficult than breaking out an impromptu “Riverdance” jig after scoring a touchdown.
“I thought that I would nail it, since I can dance already,” Ocho Cinco admits. “I thought I would knock it out of the park, but ballroom dancing is hard. This is not like doing the ‘stanky legg’ or two-step. But it’s been a very humbling experience. It’s about learning and being able to grow from it.”
Ocho Cinco’s “DWTS” fans are curious too about his relationship with dance partner Cheryl Burke. The two have been flirtatious with each other on the show and they both made national headlines when Ocho Cinco bought Burke a $10,000 ring to show his appreciation. Although a bit of hanky-panky could be going on behind closed doors, the two aren’t a couple and Ocho Cinco insists that he’s still single. In fact, in July he’ll set out on a journey to find a companion on his new VH-1 reality show, “The Tournament.”
“I’m having problems finding a girl,” he reveals, explaining his predicament as a desperate man in search of a good woman. “I’m sick of being lonely, so we’re having a dating tournament. We will start with 85 women and I’m working my way down to see who will help me grow. I’m the black ‘Bachelor.’ With the show, you will get the real me and see how I interact with women. I will do it tastefully.”
Ocho Cinco’s popularity will likely be at an all-time high once his reality show airs; however, there are critics in the sports community who are appalled by his antics on and off the field. Former teammate Eric Ghiaciuc called him a locker-room distraction and controversial writer Jason Whitlock once referred to him as the Flavor Flav of the NFL.
Ocho Cinco understands that success won’t silence all detractors.
“I don’t care what people think,” he says adamantly. “My grandmother told me that people will love you and some people will hate you no matter what you do. You can’t please everybody. My focus is on making the people who love me happy.”
He credits his family and close friends for helping him remain focused long enough to make it out of Miami’s poorest and most dangerous neighborhood, Liberty City.
“I don’t have an entourage,” he shares. “I have four dudes that have been there since 1989 in Liberty City. They are very supportive and it’s always love. When all that stuff was going on in the streets and people around my age were getting locked up or shot, my grandmother wanted me in the house early and my friends would tell me to go home [when the street lights came on]. They were my age, but they wanted me to go down the right path. They kept me away from that garbage. If it [weren’t] for them, I would probably be in jail. But that’s why the love is still there.”
Making it out of one of the toughest environments in America is a victory in and of itself. But what happens once the dream of “making it” is realized and ultimately comes to an end? Ocho Cinco is smart enough to know that catching the ball in the NFL won’t always be a part of his Sunday afternoon routine. Time plays a cruel joke on even the greatest athletes. He’s making people laugh now … so the joke won’t be on him later.
“You have to grind, because there’s no substitute for hard work,” he says. “Look at Diddy, Jay-Z and Lil Wayne. It took them years to get to where they are now. I sat in the studio with Lil Wayne for hours and watched him work. I never saw anyone stay in the studio for seven hours and do four songs without writing one word down. To watch him work is unbelievable. You can’t try to be a rapper at 28. It’s not about that. There’s no overnight sensation. If you are, you become a one-hit wonder and you’re gone. People who are successful have a résumé that they put together for years. I wanted to be a pro football player and I started at 4 years old. If you are serious about something, you need a résumé.”
Any athlete who wishes to keep his or her financial status afloat after retirement should follow @ogochocinco. He’s offering free lessons on brand building 101.
