Personal Branding Explained.....

The world has changed. So what – it always changes – just think technology, politics, global warming and environmental sustainability, global financial crisis, population growth or wars. But what does that mean to us individually?

We like to think we are unique and special – and we are. But do we think of ourselves as a “Brand” – whether in our families, social groups, communities or business and employment roles. Particularly in the “work” world, we generally until recently have only thought of ourselves as an employee or a business person – not as a “Brand” like Coca Cola, IBM, McDonalds or Telstra.

But this is changing – and Web 2.0 with our ability to transact much of our personal and work life online, whether through eBay, Internet banking, Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter or our own blogs and websites has brought the concept of our “Personal Brand” to more conscious awareness.

We all have a Personal Brand – some are just more articulated and “out there” than others. Think Madonna, David Beckham, Saddam Hussein, Robert Mugabe, Steve Jobs or Bill Gates – all with brands – good and not so good! And our brand can present itself in many ways in this technological world – including the traditional ways not dependent on technology. Consider the following ways which may be part of your brand:

· Your type and standard of dress
· Your educational background
· Your employment background
· Your specialist technical skills
· Your personality and work behaviours
· Your “elevator pitch”
· Your manner of speech and business/social interaction
· Your telephone and voicemail greetings
· Your email style and signature
· Your online brand – Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter etc
· Your resume
· Your community involvement
· Your hobbies and leisure interests

The power of Bing, Google, Yahoo and other search engines makes it so much easier to track someone’s brand. And it’s generally going to be there forever – that’s what makes it both so powerful yet scary. And sometimes it is just plain wrong – defamation and misleading conduct can so easily happen. So, how do we deal with this and ensure we manage our Personal Brand?

The 5 tips I offer on this are:

1. Accept that you are a Brand

2. Work out what you stand for and what you want others to see you as.

3. Consciously adopt a position about your offline brand – how others see and interact with you. This is the Traditional Branding.

4. Work out your online brand positioning – is Facebook just for personal stuff, LinkedIn for your professional activities and Twitter somewhere in between. Remember that current and potential clients, employers and associates may be checking all of this before they even talk with or email you!

5. Re-invent, Re-invent and Re-invent. The world is not standing still – nor should you. Think Madonna – she is as much a marketing re-invention every 3-5 years as she is an entertainer.

And have fun doing all this. It is just a game – and we cannot lose sight of the fact we are humans with emotions, personalities and idiosyncrasies which makes us special. That is our really our Personal Brand!

PB

Copyright: Peter Black 2009