What's the big deal about having a brand, you ask? After all, you're likable, personable, charming, talented and, well, what's not to love, right?
Precisely the reason you need to promote these fabulous qualities - and differentiate them from your competition. There are scores of likable, personable, charming and talented people out there - in your demographic, with similar credentials and experience. You must identify and communicate what makes you special.
Sure, building a personal brand will set you apart, get you noticed and quite possibly land you your next great gig. But, more important, your personal brand solidifies the way you see yourself. Your identity, self-concept and self-esteem are all centered around your brand. When you know you have a great brand, you're going to:
- have a strong identity and sense of self
- create favorable impressions and perceptions
- network with greater ease and confidence
- have a positive attitude
- build rapport with others
- feel confident promoting yourself
- develop the power to persuade and influence
- gain credibility, clout and cachet
- perform at a higher level
- expand your network with high-caliber individuals
These are very compelling reasons for taking the time to craft and hone a brand that resonates with your key publics (i.e. the individuals and groups that are critical for your success).
This same strategy applies equally to businesses, products and branded services. If you haven't identified and enthusiastically articulated the unique features of what you're selling, why is anyone going to be interested? And that includes your employees, your most valuable PR asset. Who better to promote your products and services than the people who work for you? Talk about instant credibility. Your employees are considered reliable "insiders" when it comes to your company.
With that said, people need to feel good about the brands they associate with - and that is especially true for employees. Make sure your company and the brands it sells create a positive sense of self-esteem in your people.
Branding is really about stimulating emotion; how does your brand make you and other people feel? When embarking on the branding process, this is a critical first question. You must first ask yourself, "How do I want my audiences to feel when they interact with my brand?" Southwest Airlines and Disney want their audiences to have fun. State Farm, Allstate and Mutual of Omaha want their key publics to feel safe and secure. Whole Foods wants its customers to feel healthy, and Mercedes-Benz aims to make their drivers feel pampered and privileged.
So how do you want your audiences to feel about you? Once you've clearly defined the emotional experience you want to create, every other aspect of your branding, integrated marketing and public relations will naturally fall in line.
~Debra Davenport
Davenport Public Relations
Let us show you a whole new side to PR.
gotbuzz@davenportpr.buzz
www.davenportpr.buzz
When you think of Nike, Google, Disney, Southwest Airlines or Apple, you probably experience an automatic feeling of familiarity, coupled with an innate understanding of what name - and brand - mean to you. Corporations spend billions of dollars creating brands that resonate with consumers. Today, brands must excite, engage, inform, and elicit a powerful emotional response. It is, after all, emotion that triggers purchase decisions.
Creating a brand is much like telling a story. The brand must effectively convey the mission, vision and values of the company, and it must also convey the kind of experience audiences can expect when interacting with the brand.
Take Disney, for example. The logo itself is whimsical and conveys a happy, childlike quality. Reinforcing the visual brand is Disney's commitment to creating exceptional guest experiences. This aspect of the brand is communicated via advertisements, media, Web content and, of course, the company's employees who are also known as "cast members."
As cast members, Disney staffers effectively serve as brand ambassadors, personally extending the brand to everyone with whom they come in contact. It's one thing to read about a brand and to get a general idea of the brand concept; it's a completely different thing to actually experience the brand up close and personal.
I'm often asked what is the difference between corporate branding and personal branding. The answer is, really, nothing. As a professional, entrepreneur, or business owner, your personal brand is what will make you or break you. People want to do business with other people they know, trust, and relate to. Therefore, your personal brand must be relatable, but it must also convey the kind of experience people will have when they work with you.
Personal brands are created by individual action. Since most of us don't have our own personal logos or teams of copy writers crafting our messages, we create our personal brands through the following actions:
1) The way we speak
2) The way we dress
3) The way we handle ourselves
4) The way we treat others
5) Through the quality of our work
6) Through our creativity, imagination and innovation
7) By the way we use our own unique life experiences to shape and influence the way we approach business
Each of the above points provides ample opportunities for differentiating yourself from the competition - and that is the fundamental purpose of branding, whether you're a dentist, dog groomer or Delta Airlines.
But before you begin creating your memorable personal brand, ask yourself this important question: How do I want to be perceived? Once you determine exactly how you want your audiences (i.e. your customers, colleagues, peers, employees, competitors, the media, etc.) to perceive you, you can then begin identifying your unique assets, experiences and message points to stimulate the responses you want.
As you begin promoting and marketing your personal brand, don't forget to quantify your efforts. It's important to monitor and measure your brand response so that you can continue to refine your efforts - and results.
The quality of your brand is directly proportional to your profitability.
~Debra Davenport
Davenport Public Relations
Let us show you a whole new side to PR.
gotbuzz@davenportpr.buzz
