FLOP No. 27 – ISES to ILEA Rebrand (2015)

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The Promise: The International Special Events Society (ISES) rebranded as the International Live Events Association (ILEA) to reflect modernity and expansion.

What Happened: The rebrand acronym collided with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), which dominated global headlines. The association became unsearchable and inadvertently linked to terrorism in search engines.

What Failed: No geopolitical keyword screening. No crisis plan for acronym fallout.

What We Learned: Language is never neutral. Global context travels fast.

What an Event Pro Would’ve Advised: Vet names for SEO, translation, and cultural volatility. Don’t assume you own your own acronym.