Title: Personal Branding
Category: happy
Blog Entry: What's Personal Branding? "[em]Personal Branding is the concept of influencing the way people percept onself -by employing a disciplined image and self-marketing strategy."[/em] Wikipedia's Definition for Personal Branding: [em]Personal branding is the process whereby people and their careers are marketed as brands. It has been noted that while previous self-help management techniques were about self-improvement, the personal branding concept suggests instead that success comes from self-packaging. The term is thought to have been first used and discussed in an 1997 article by Tom Peters. [/em] Wikipedia's Personal Branding website .
Personal Branding is simply the art of Standing out! Adobting this technique requires setting up your own strategy and having a high degree of self-motivation and discipline. Planning of self-marketing strategies usually starts with evaluating oneself and one's situation -what you are and what you stand for. It's all about you! Try to find out what others think of you and how they percept you. Choose a couple of charachters from the different areas in your private and professional life and try to see yourself through their eyes. Consider the following points in your "survey": - Values - Positioning and Perception - Class - Image - Distinction Try to repeat this "self-check" regularly to find key issues that may influence success and failure in your branding, take feedbacks and critics seriously. Here's a short list of recommendations: Dig deep to unearth who you are : Who are you and why? Define your dreams and put them into action : If you don’t know where you are going, you will end up somewhere else. Go after your target audience with a vengeance : Knowing your brand is just as important as knowing who you are going to sell your product to. Don’t crash and burn –figure out what is stopping you : Be aware of internal /psychological & environmental barriers that hinder your progress. Recruit a squad of brand cheer leaders : You’ve got to have friends! Learn the secrets to packaging your brand : Appearances count big time! A package communicates the essential stuff of the product at a glance. It is not a disguise. Get comfortable in your own skin : Style is all about personal presence, that which frames your personality: James Earl Jones’ voice (Verizon/This is CNN) –solid, authoritative; Devise a plan and get on with it : Being good is not enough. We have to roll up our sleeves and work at it. Successful Personal Branding requires continuous improvement and focused efforts. Therefore, you should be aware of your public presence and "maneuvers", and pay attention to all aspects that might affect your brand. Remember, the central idea underlying personal branding is the positive, powerful image and making a "bella figura".
Personal Branding is not that any different than major other marketing strategies -it can get tough and requires much self discipline.
VIEW FULL VERSION: Link