Celebrity Apprentice: Lessons Learned from Episode Eleven

Episode Summary:

As this week’s episode began, only five celebrities were still in the running. They were Stephen and Trace at team Empresario; and Carol, Lennox and Piers at Hydra.

The teams designed sandwiches for Quiznos, and then sold them without calling on any of their high-powered friends. That meant sheer salesmanship and pavement pounding as they couldn’t rely on any big spenders to pay big bucks for a single sandwich. Whoever sold the most sandwiches would win.

At Empresario, Trace stepped up at project manager. Although he has brought in a lot of money for his team during past tasks, he’s yet to earn money for his charity with a win as project manager. At Hydra, it was Lennox’s turn again as team leader. He took the helm with the ever-present Piers offering suggestions at every turn.

When it came time to create their sandwiches, the teams took different tacks. Team Hydra chose to make only a minor modification to Quiznos’ most popular sandwich: a fairly basic turkey and cheese concoction. They named it the Champ Sandwich after, who else, but their resident champ, Lennox. Over at Empresario, Trace came up with something much more original, a unique sirloin creation called the Cowboy Club.

Both teams took to the streets early to promote their sandwiches. At Empresario, they immediately had flyers printed up (featuring both Trace and Stephen in cowboy hats) and were handing them out well before selling time started. Things were rockier at Hydra where the flyers didn’t come through until minutes before the sandwiches were ready to be sold.

Both teams seemed to do a good job drawing people into their restaurants. Hydra used the Lennox star power, promising autographs and photos with the boxer to anyone who bought a sandwich. While Hydra’s Piers was yelling like a carnival barker, over at Empresario Trace had a much more laid-back approach, wooing customers in a calmer, more low-key way.

Although it looked like both teams had a steady stream of customers, in the end Hydra won, selling 313 Champ Sandwiches to Empresario’s 253 Cowboy Clubs. In the boardroom, Trace was willing to take the blame for the loss. “I made every call. I called every shot,” he admitted to Mr. Trump. “The onus is on me completely today.”

But Ivanka pointed out that Trace has consistently raised more money on every other task than Stephen and, when Mr. Trump asked who wanted this more, Trace spoke up and emotionally spoke about how much he wanted to win for his charity. In the end, although Trace was project manager and had led his team to a loss, Mr. Trump felt that his past performance made him more valuable than Stephen, so Stephen was the one to go.

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This week’s episode taught important lessons about marketing and self-promotion. Let’s take a closer look.

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Hydra stuck with Lennox as its celebrity draw and sold a variation of Quiznos’ most popular sandwich. Instead of trying something new, they marketed with tried and true.

Success Lesson
Don’t mess with what works. As Ivanka pointed out, there was no need to reinvent the wheel. And it worked. People flocked to see Lennox and they bought the sandwich in droves.

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When Lennox took over as project manager, Piers immediately began throwing out ideas left and right. Carol complained that Piers always tries to take control but Lennox stayed cool and took the suggestions that were good ones.

Success Lesson
Be willing to listen. Very few good leaders lead by dictatorship. When your team members have something to say, hear them out. In this case, Piers has had lots of good ideas in the past and his ideas - to use Lennox and a twist on the best-selling sandwich - probably won the task for Hydra.

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When it was down to Trace and Stephen in the boardroom, Trace gamely took the blame for losing the task. However, he quietly pointed out that he thought overall he was a more valuable player who had raised more money in the past than Stephen. 

Success Lesson
Know your track record. Everyone makes mistakes. But don’t let one poor performance take you down. In a professional manner, remind people about your past success and hopefully, as in Trace’s case, your past performance will outweigh one bad outing.

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Also, when Mr. Trump was in the boardroom deciding Stephen and Trace’s fate, Stephen talked to Trace about his likability. “I think they like you more than they like me,” he said, matter-of-factly. Even Mr. Trump commented about the cowboy, “He doesn’t talk much but, when he does talk, it’s something special.”

Success Lesson
Be likable. In the cutthroat world of business, this seems like some unusual advice. But in this situation, it was apparent that Trace’s likability had a lot to do with the fact that he earned a spot in the final four while Stephen was fired.

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What will happen next week? When the final four candidates were announced, Mr. Trump called Trace, Piers, Lennox and Carol back into the boardroom and announced that four more would go home before the end of the evening. He gave no hint about how he’d decide which two would stay but the remaining four are all strong contenders. Piers is probably the most colorful, bombastic player but at this point, it’s anyone’s game.