Personal Branding
So What Is Personal Branding?
We all know that a successful brand can go a long way with corporate positioning and promotion, it can convey loyalty, and position the quality of the services an organisation can provide. So why shouldn’t that work for an individual?
You can therefore look at Personal branding as a form of self-packaging. Your brand is a perception or emotion, maintained by somebody other than you, that describes the total experience of having a relationship with you.
We’ve all been taught that a firm handshake, professional attire, and sound credentials are the makings of a good first impression. First impressions certainly do count and you only have a brief moment to influence the decision that people will make about you when they meet you.
There is however an opportunity for you to shape some of that thinking before, and also after you meet someone, through what we now commonly call, your personal brand. The advent of social media has enabled anyone and everyone to become known; connect in almost real time directly with clients, colleagues and friends; and build global relationships. You no longer need to be, in person, to make an unforgettable first impression or establish your brand.
Personal branding is defined as the conscious and intentional effort to create and influence public perception of an individual by positioning them as an authority in their industry, elevating their credibility, and differentiating themselves from the competition, to ultimately advance their career, increase their circle of influence, and have a larger impact.
That all sounds very grand but fundamentally the process of personal branding involves: finding your uniqueness, building a reputation on the things you want to be known for, and then allowing yourself to be known for them. Ultimately, the goal is to create something that conveys a positive message.
What you say, think and do all shape your personal brand and these are shaped by what you have seen and your other experiences. Who you are and how you come across are really important to being successful. What is it that you want to be known for, how do you want people to talk about you when you are not in the room?
Branding yourself keeps you current in your field, opens doors for you, and creates a lasting impression on colleagues as well as potential and existing clients. By developing your own brand, you’ll have control over the initial perception people have of you.
Ensure that you have completed and are happy with your social media profiles and also any comments on social or business networking sites. You don’t want anything coming back to bite you! Also check that the tone of your messaging, reflects you, or the you, you want to be!
When you are looking at establishing a presence, remember you’re being searched by friends, colleagues, and potential customers, so what are they finding? It is important that people are finding what you want them to find. It is worth doing a quick search on yourself and tidying up some of the things that are out there about you that you might not want to be.
Action:
Perform the Powering Your Potential 5 Words to describe you exercise to establish how people currently view you.
