What’s your ‘brand?’ If you don’t know, start by asking ‘Who am I?’
Cook
It seems that everybody is a brand today, intentionally or not. The emergence of social media platforms, instant access to information and global connectivity all contribute to the phenomenon of individual branding.
Prior to this ubiquitous communication and connectivity, branding was considered a corporate activity that was both purposeful and planned. Companies used public relations and advertising to create and control brand images. They launched PR campaigns and leveraged paid media to ensure their messages were consistent and frequent.
Now, consider branding in the context of today's connectivity. The focus is on what's trending on Twitter or what's gone viral on YouTube. These contribute as much, if not more, to branding than traditional means do. Traditional media often ends up being the followers. They often retweet the latest trends and air the viral videos.
This new environment enables individuals to build their own brands on a level that goes beyond what used to be thought of as one's reputation or persona. The difference today is in the scope of exposure and connectivity, and permanence. If it's out there digitally, it's out there forever.
Today, an individual's brand can be global in scope. A simple blog post, tweet or video can go around the world instantly. If the content is strong, popular, influential, liked or just contagious, the reach can be huge.
Know and align yourself
There are two important elements in this new branding arena. First, be mindful of who you are, and align your actions with your brand message, creating the desired brand reality.
To effectively brand yourself, you must know who you are. This means having a good relationship with yourself. Knowing your true self requires self-awareness: understanding your personal values and your actions that shape who you are.
Your self-knowledge is non-judgmental, with awareness on cognitive and emotional levels. This is not to say we don't know our faults, strengths, and attitudes; it's about awareness.
This sense of mindfulness is fundamental to building your personal brand. Mindfulness enables you to be authentic. You can be transparent and open with who you are, what you value and what you offer.
This brings us to the second element of branding: alignment. Aligning actions with your true self enables people to perceive you as you truly are, and that's what brands are all about — perception.
Let's examine the process of looking for a job and how branding can help or hurt it. In a recent New York Times column, Tom Friedman wrote about hiring at Google, rated the “Best Place to Work” by Fortune magazine. He cited an interview with the senior vice president of people operations about the characteristics Google looks for. The top five? Cognitive ability, leadership, humility, ownership and curiosity/desire to learn.
I'm sure Google, in screening candidates, looks at a person's digital footprint to discern his or her “brand.” From examining that data, it can assess, to some degree, the presence of the characteristics they desire.
Ask yourself a question: Does my digital footprint represent my true self? Is there alignment between who I am and what I say and do online?
Your clarity of voice and its alignment with your actions is valuable for you and your company (or prospective company). You're also able to make moves that are right for you. You're mindful of who you are; what you do and say reflects that awareness. From the company's point of view, they can understand you. This helps them make decisions that are right for them (and you).
Branding has evolved from being strictly purposeful to both purposeful and organic. Know yourself and align what you say and do with who you are. The goal is to create a more consistent perception. Clarity, consistency and authenticity increase our chances of being seen the way we want to be seen. n
Ken Cook is managing director of Peer to Peer Advisors and co-author of How to WHO: Selling Personified, a book and program for building business through relationships. Learn more at www.howtowho.com.
Read more
Trying To Boost Sales? What Are You Doing To Build Relationships?
5 New Year's revenue resolutions
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments