Much of my career has consisted of helping companies develop, establish, promote, and maintain their corporate brand. I love branding! It’s a complex and nuanced subject, equal parts psychology and design. It all reduces to a fairly simple concept, though: reputation. When you see a logo or hear a product name, what do you picture in your mind? How does it make you feel?
A key thing about branding: you aren’t in control of it. The brand exists only in the mind of the recipient. You can do things to influence it, but ultimately, the best way to do that is to create an honest picture that reinforces your strengths. The most trusted brands, and reputations, are the ones that are consistently reinforced by supporting actions.
As we move into the connection economy, we’re now all vendors. And products. As a result, we need to embrace the concept of a personal brand. What’s the concise summary you want people to have in their heads when they meet you, whether online or in person?
While I’ve been successful in helping others to develop their brands, I’ve ironically found it to be very difficult to develop my own. Self-promotion has never been a huge priority for me – I’ve been more focused on promoting the achievements of my teams, colleagues, and clients.
With the help of many friends and trusted advisors, I’ve been refining my branding elements. My web site is getting back into reasonable shape. The resume undergoes routine refinement and clarification. My social media channels are getting aligned. All of the things I would do for a client, I’m now working on doing for myself. This is a critical effort, because I’m making a lot of first impressions without the benefit of making them in person, and some of the feedback I’ve received indicates that I might not be showing the “real” me very well.
What’s your personal online brand? Is it consistent? Is it clear? What have you done to strengthen it?