Monday, 7 January 2008
Small Business Ideas - What is your personal brand?
| This week I was asked on Linked In: "Ever since I came across Tom Peter's "Brand You" philosophy I've always been fascinated with the concept. With that in mind, I have set out to create my own personal brand to make myself stand out from the crowd and competition. I do this by dressing well, having strong technical and creative skills, being driven and goal orientated, and able to work alone, in team environments, or in front of other people. What is your personal brand? How do you try to stand out from the crowd?" SteveHere is my response - I thought it may be relevant to other business owners. Brands to me are more than just exteriors ... they are your personal values and goals made visible. Brands can be personal brands if you work for a large organisation. But ... what I have found in small business is the personal/business line becomes very blurry so often the brands become one and the same. No matter whether you have a personal or small business brand, if you focus just on the exterior of dressing a certain way or carrying certain executive toys without being clear on the underpinning "who am I" then your brand doesn't stick or truly work in your clients mind. So for your personal brand, first work out and define your core values. Steve - I am guessing that you value technical expertise, achievement and success. This would mean that your brand is one where all your solutions head towards those values. Every interaction you have with customers reflects technical expertise, achievement and success. Every letter you send is a mirror of these three things. Every blog post is a reflection of who you are. If they aren't, you need to go back and assess whether you are being true to who you really are. So what is my "personal brand" ?
Until next time Ingrid Cliff Heart Harmony Linked In: Ingrid Cliff Labels: brand definition, linked in, personal brand |
