How Trump's presidential bid could hurt the 'Trump' brand

Dive Brief:

Donald Trump is grabbing a lot of attention with polarizing statements on the presidential campaign trail, but he might be doing long-term damage to “Trump” as a brand.
Positive sentiment for Trump Tower, his most recognizable business property, has plummeted, according to data analyzed by 30dB for Digiday.
Any hit the Trump brand takes could mean Donald Trump taking a hit in the pocketbook since most of his earnings are based on licensing his personal brand.

Dive Insight:

Reputation management is always a tightrope walk for brands. Just ask Subway or Volkswagen — each took a hit this year.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is getting plenty of free press on the campaign trail, but his polarizing statements may have a lasting impact on his personal brand, which is the source of his livelihood. Although Trump is seen as a real estate magnate, his money mostly comes from licensing his name as a brand for real estate holdings.

Financial documents he made public upon launching his presidential bid show Trump valued his licensing deals and brand developments at $3.3 billion, though he claims he is worth $8.7 billion. Meanwhile, as his rhetoric gets more heated, some are taking a stance against his brand. In Dubai, for example, Damac Properties removed a billboard that had Trump’s face on it after the candidate called for the U.S. to bar entry to Muslims trying to enter the country.

However, one real estate industry expert, who chose to remain anonymous, told Ad Age, “This guy says things in public and he's all over the buildings. Does this impact rent, sale prices, or people leaving? At this point, no. That doesn't mean it's out of the question, but there's no impact right now."

Even if Trump isn’t feeling any current heat in the real estate marketplace, his name is dropping in sentiment on social media, according to Topsy, with sentiment for “Donald Trump” tracking negatively and trending down. Topsy said that over a three-day period last week, the "positive sentiment score" for "Trump Tower" was a rather low 24 out of 100.